La Picada Azuaya

Me and my homey came here a few weeks back… we had delicious half chicken over rice.. service was superb even though my spanish wasn’t that great… they guided me the right direction to a delicious meal… It was priced great so I would def be coming back for some good ol spanish food… many places to go but i chose this spot and im glad i did

First off let me say that I like eating at a joint that feels cozy. In my case I felt like I was eating at friends house waiting for his mother to cook up some authentic Ecuadorean food. Nice warm comforting spot and the staff was so welcoming and very helpful. I don’t speak the language but I can get by, I didn’t have any problems ordering. this is New York big ass melting pot if your going to let a minor language barrier set you back from eating a yummy meal you have some bigger problems my friend. I had almost a buffet going on my table I wish I can remember the names to tell you guys but that don’t matter because everything I had was pretty awesome the beef tripe soup, vegetable soup, the fried fish was bomb!, roasted chicken I believe it was was moist and flavorful … What a good time between the music pumping through the speakers and the drinks back to back what more can you ask for ** definitely will be back**

Had a great time coming here tonight with my boyfriend. It was a Saturday and we arrived around 9pm. I order a Seco de Gallina (Chickew Stew) and my b/​f got the Guatita (beef tripe). Both came in great portions and were deliciousssssssssss! After we were done with our food we had some sangria to finish the night perfectly. Little did we know that after 10pm a DJ would arrive and start off Karaōke Night!!! We thought that maybe we had to pay an extra cover fee or something to stay the rest of the night but the friendly waitress said that we can just talk with the DJ and let him know what we wanted to sing. Oh boy did we have a blast and ended up staying till 2am. Such a fun night!!! Food was great and service was excellect would definitely recommend!

I believe this is one of the few restaurants that serves decent yet cultural Ecuadorian food. Sure there are other restaurants, but at least this one feels welcoming and is encompassed by many employees who actually came from the country.
I ordered the chaulufan and it was excellent. It reminds me of a rice mix, but filled with seafood and/​or meats to create a great mix. I always enjoy coming hear, and I don’t plan to stop.

This is by far the best Ecuadorean place I’ve been too. I strongly recommend you to come here If u want to taste Ecuadorean food. :) I was talking to the bar tender and she told me that there is a new owner and business is getting better. I hope u guys eat here and enjoy it. Hope business goes well and good luck to la Picada.

Love the food here ! This was my first time eating here and it was just delicious! The service was good and food!

It’s just not tasty. What more can I say? I’ve come here off and on over the years, and it sucks each time.
I got fanesca there today. Worst EVER. Fanesca is a seafood stew made for Good Friday/​during Holy Week. What I got was just all beans and a couple of pieces of salty bacalao from the supermarket.
When I used to go there, not once, but twice, I received Humitas (a corn patty) with a long hair cooked into it.
So, just keep going. Nice enough service, but cheap and gross food.

Service was pretty good, courteous waitress, decent food, decent portion but difficult to have a conversation with your friends or partner due to the loud dominican music. I love music but not extremely loud in a small restaurant for a Wed lunch with my love ones. Also, we ordered «seco de gallina (hen stew) but it was actually chicken, traditional plate calls for gallina (hen) but they don’t even tell you they don’t do it and that they will replace it for chicken. Basic 2lunch plates plus small sodas around $ 34 plus add tip. Total $ 40. Will I come back? No ‘creo’

Came here awhile back and much like other reviewers I was quite disappointed with my meal. I ordered the Pollo Apanado Con Arroz Y Habichuelas (breaded chicken with rice and beans) and my serving was dismal.
For $ 12 I was served an entrée that was basically the size of your average appetizer or tapas. It was tasty, you could tell they really tried — but there was also nothing really Equidorian, or even Hispanic about this dish. Both the presentation and the flavor was pretty generic…
I speak fluent Spanish so ordering was not an issue for me — also I get that they’re located in Jackson Heights (a very heavily Latin populated part of Queens) but there should be at least one really, comfortably bilingual person on the wait staff.
I would maybe try coming back for something small should nothing else in the neighborhood be open.

Ughh do i even have to give 1 star is all I have to say. U know this is the place that actually made me make a account on Unilocal just so i can warn people just how much of a waste of hardearning money this is. First of all it is extremely overpriced. They well even go so far as to tell u something is say one price and when i got the bill it showed something else. When i asked about it, she just looked like she didnt understand me and smiled and walked away (yes i speak spanish and yes my husband is ecuadorian) so no communicating problems here. The food. oh man the food. Although kind of tasty it left me hungry afterwards. It looked like they gave us both a spoonful of beans, I have never seen a serving of beans that damn small. Now the icing on the cake, ur gonna love this. I asked them for a hard boiled egg. Sounds simple right??? Well she comes out with a cup of raw egg and places it on the table. I look at it, look at her, i ask, what the hell is going on, is this a new drink. She said no its a egg. I said u want me to drink my egg? Then she said, how do u boil a egg. WTF. No this is not a cultural thing. I had mentioned before, my husband is from ecuador. I turn to the hubby and say do u have hard boiled eggs in ecuador, yes they do he replies.
Also my husband had said i want a dish that includes a avocado, she says yes we definately have that. Food comes out and no avocado, so he sits there, very aggitated especially after my egg incident. Then he calls her over and says, wheres my avocado. Oh we dont have avocado. he says i told you when i came in, i only wanted a meal with a avacado, tht is why we chose here. She just did the stupid smile thing and walked away. Now my husband can eat you out of house and home but he was so mad at that point he said, come on, lets go so he paid and we left down the block to our usual spot on 92^nd street to get some good food
Overall i give this place negative 6 stars. Would never go back

This is my FAVORITE Ecuadorian restaurant in NY. The prices are decent am not sure what that other review is all about) and the meals are very authentic.
I recommend getting a Mora or Pineapple shake to begin your mean.
We always get the seco de gallina (chicken stew basically) and the guisado de carne. Get a side of beans and you are set to be full all day.
The place is small, but it is nice. The waitresses are good. If you know some Spanish it will definitely help.

Overpriced and underwhelming. Actually, how do you say «ghastly» en espanol?
So, my family and I went here with our Ecuadorian exchange student. I was told by some online contacts that this was an authentic, quality dining experience, and that our homesick transplant would thoroughly enjoy it. She did NOT (so much for reliable social networking); I concur.
I really wanted to try Pilsener Beer (Ecuador’s signature brew). They didn’t have it, even though its listed on their menu. Okay. Strike one. Maybe they were temporarily out. Not a dealbreaker for me. I’m still game at this point in the meal.
I order their specialty (La Picada Azuaya) which is supposed to be a mixed platter of fish, chicken, and meat — sort of an Ecuadorian mixed grill. It was — but the chicken, fish, and meat were all breaded, bland, too thin, and largely flavorless (well, I guess «bland» kind of covers that). This was basically a dry chicken finger, meat cutlet, fish stick combo with some onion and plantain thrown in — and $ 18 for what tasted like something previously frozen and microwaved. Strike two.
The rest of the the family INCLUDING THE ECUADORIAN EXCHANGE STUDENT (who I consider a very reliable food critic) was absolutely disappointed, thoroughly underwhelmed, and grossly overcharged. Ugh! The ceviche was especially disappointing — more like a salsa with some shrimp added. 3^rd and final strike! Not impressed.
When it comes to restaurant reviews, I’m very much a «silver lining» guy. I don’t like ripping a place (especially when I’m their 1^st Unilocal review). But I’m having a hard time coming up with any upside to La Picada Azuaya (the entrée AND the restaurant). I suppose I can say the waitress was friendly, efficient, and competent. That’s about it.
Maybe one could attribute my dissatisfaction with LPA to an unfamiliarity with Ecuadorian cuisine, and some gringo tendencies on my part — except that I’m very adventurous when it comes to ethnic food AND our Ecuadorian insider herself said this place was «PESIMO,» whatever that means.