Paladar Latin Kitchen & Rum Bar

Mark K Was an amazing server. I recommend that you come here. He is great at what he does. He is the best

OMG! Kelly is the best «mojito» bartender in Tysoms Area… We love her!!! SHE IS SOOOO SWEET and very kind person. Try the strawberry mojito and mango mojito… By the way, Mark was our server, he is soooooo cute and very kind… And everybody on our table was so happy with him… We LOVE MARK!!! And we are coming back soon to see him!!! He is a 5 start server!!!

This is my first time at this restaurant and I was so happy to be here!!! Mark was our server … He is the Best!!’ Very kind and edúcate!!! I recomend 100%.

Outstanding first impression! Our party of 11 gathered here Sunday morning for brunch on Father’s Day & from start to finish our experience was nothing but exceptional. Our server was on top of everything — offered delicious food & drink suggestions, accuracy with our orders, quick drink refills & even a complimentary coconut caramel flan for the dads we were celebrating! Our server single handedly made sure we were all well taken care of, wish I had caught his name.
As for the food, extremely appealing to the eyes, nose & especially taste. We started off with 2 small sides of guac, of which 1 was free with my Unilocal check-​in. It was fresh, cool, not spicy & served with plantain, yucca & malanga chips. Loved the chips, but they could use a bit of salt. Additionally, we also started with the Mojo Pork Tostones & the Queso Fundido. The tostones were easily my favorite, a simple dish yet flavorful & aji verde takes it up a notch. The queso was cheesy good with a few spicy peppers & chunks of chorizo sausage on top. However, the tortilla chips served with it didn’t do anything to enhance this dish, but it was prefect for sharing.
For my main entrée I opted for the Huevos Rancheros, delicious! It was crunchy, cheesy, spicy, just bursting with fresh flavors. I don’t think I uttered 1 word as I devoured this dish. At my end of the table the Chorizo & Cheese Pupusas also got rave reviews. My sampling of the sweet potato & plantain hash was highly enjoyed; savory, salty, good. The Maple Pulled Pork entrée that I also sampled was savory & a bit too sweet for my taste for more than just a few bites. Heard from the other end of the table that the Chipotle Honey Chicken & Cornbread was too spicy, however this is coming from someone who does absolutely no spice, so in my mind this doesn’t count. Drinks were also flowing & enjoyed. Amongst the table the ladies enjoyed their tasty, refreshing rounds of Pomegranate mimosas, Jalapeño palomas & tropical mango sangrias & the guys threw back several Pacificos. I’m not sure what the deal was, but mimosas were charged at ½ price. That brings us to our bill…
With a party of our size, it’s completely our fault for not notifying our server the need for separate checks. So in the end this left us with a bit a dilemma, which ended up being solved by us manually calculating our totals ourselves. It took some time & in the end it all worked out well, as the Dads ended up with a free beer at the bar while us ladies untangled our individual family totals. None the less, the awesome hospitality, great service & delicious food in such a warm, inviting setting has earned my 5 star review.

I had this place figured for a typical chain with impersonal service, rubber stamped food with frozen ingredients, etc. But I could not have been more wrong.
My wife and I stopped in last night and were very impressed. The bartender was super helpful with navigating the menu. I’m half cuban, I probably have set a high threshold when it comes to latin food but I was pretty impressed with Paladar. Typically in DC «latin» restaurants all of the mixes behind the bar come out of an Island Oasis container but Paladar is made fresh. The food is locally sourced and going by just the two items we ordered, pretty darn good.
I regret not trying Paladar sooner and look forward to a return visit.

Went for lunch today and got the lunch special — chicken tortilla soup and fish tacos. The soup was terrible but the fish tacos were really good! I’ve been here many times and I always like what I get so I won’t write them off just yet.

Paladar was the first restaurant I’ve been to in Northern Virginia that actually tasted like authentic caribbean cuisine. The mojo pork, rope vieja, and the rum are all authentic real flavors and food items you would find in Central America and the Caribbean. I recommend you go here and have some real «spanish» food. A real step up from texmex, tacos, and burritos you see everywhere else. This real. 4 Stars because the service is not the greatest.

I had a Dragonberry Lemon Mojito and Tomato-​Lime Shrimp Ceviche to start. Both were good. I also got a taste of Blue Chair Bay Spiced Coconut rum from Barbados and that was delicious. I finished with Slow Smoked Pulled Chicken. The chicken was great with the Salvadorian rice and plantains. Everything was delicous.
I will go back to the food but also to taste the different rums.
The place is a little awkwardly situated and hard to find. Follow the signs.

My wife stopped by to pick up dinner to take home, it was excellent! She got me the pork and plantains. Well made dish, good flavor, cooked well.
We will definitely go back to try more! She loved their chocolate custard desert.

I Really Love Paladar, the food, the drinks, the décor and the staff are all great, the menu consists of different Latin America dishes, I haven’t had anything that I didn’t like yet, the ceviche=good, the salsa trio=money, all of the tacos=excellent
I’m always so indecisive when it comes to the menu because from the guacamole to the churros everything is satisfying, the coconut curry veggie stew with added chicken and shrimp is my absolute favorite dish!
You can craft your own guacamole or build your own rum flight as well
Food For thougt: They DON’T have Salsa lessons on Mondays like the one in Bethesda

We stopped here after Tyson corner and everything was really good. We did get the free guac from Unilocal and it comes with different types of chips. Yuca, malanga, and plantains. We ordered churrasco and replaced the rice and beans with coconut mango rice with fried yucca. The yucca were the most perfect yuca I ate in my life. Super soft with a thin layer of crunch. The waitress was really nice too, we told her it was a first time and she explained everything to us.

Very nice place to have lunch or dinner. They have a vast array of Spanish cuisine and a large assortment of rum. I got the trio guacamole which had spicy, original, and mango. The mango was my favorite! I also love the different kind of chips they give you. I got one of their mojitos which was tasty but it also had so many leaves and lemons and other things that got in the way of my drink. For the main entrée I ordered duck tacos which were definitely overcooked. It was so dry that I couldn’t finish them because they did not taste good at all. Other than the duck everything else was pretty okay.

As a connoisseur of Latin food I was conflicted in ordering as there were many things appealing to me. I chose a cubano sandwich with the hearts of palm salad and a side of chef’s guacamole. The cubano was ok, though it wasn’t like a cuban sandwich that you would get in Miami, FL. The dimension of the sandwich wasn’t as panini like as one would hope. If you want to try the cuban sandwich I would recommend trying it during the happy hour as it is a far better deal. The fries that accompanied the sandwich left much to be desired.
Nevertheless, the portions and prices are reasonable and the food was seasoned.

Had a reservation for 8 last night.
Mango-​Cilantro Mojito — Terrible. Half the glass was filled with Mint leaves and crushed so bad that it was horribly bitter. Skipped the drink
Jalapeño-​Paloma — Terrible. I don’t even know how one can destroy this drink! We’ve had both these drinks in Rockville and they were absolutely fantastic at that location.
Rum Flights: Excellent.
Asked for a dish that had cilantro rice the last time I had it and showed up the lamb stew with cinnamon rice. Ate the lab skipped the rest.
Service — Had to ask 3 different waiters to have our waiter stop by for orders/​help.
Am I going back? No!

The food, drinks and service was great. Came for dinner with my husband and two boys. It was the first time eating at the restaurant. We ordered a pomegranate-​ginger mojito, cheese quesadillas, fries, fish tacos, braised beef vieja ropa, calamari and guacamole with chips. Easy parking and location next to the mall was easy to find.

I gathered my team and a couple of intern candidates at Paladar for happy hour. Happy hour lasts until 700 PM and the specials covers appetizers, wine, (some) mixed drinks, bottled and draft beers. It was already pretty crowded when we arrived, but we scored a table in the bar area!
The server was really helpful and after ordering our drinks, we asked her to bring out her favorite appetizers from the menu. We had guacamole, chips, yucca fries & dip, pupusas, empanadas and braised beef tacos. The drinks and appetizers were served rather quickly and our server kept checking in with us. Everything tasted pretty fresh and tasty.
I find a lot of places skimp on their happy hour menus, but Paladar keeps it real and offers a good variety and plenty of choices. Definitely a place I’d visit again and again!

I stop in here from time to time after work. They have pretty tasty food, and interesting, lively décor. I like how all the servers accent themselves in hot pink.
Their food is good. I would tell anyone to try their guacamoles because they do multiple different kinds, and they’re all tasty. My favorite item on the menu is the Feijoada Stew. I know its Brazilian but I have never had it anywhere else before so I have no idea how authentic it is… all I know is it is good! The pupusa is also one of my favorites. To me the Ropa Vieja was a big dissapointment. I have had many real Cuban preparations of Ropa Vieja before, and unfortunately this does not come close.
The bartenders are always crushed for happy hour, so if you’re sitting at the bar it can take a while to get a drink. They have a great happy hour to include 5 $ mojitos– like real mojitos too, not the kind that are premade and dying from preservative. They also just have great happy hour specials all around. Definitely try the braised beef tacos!
Ive been here for brunch before any maybe I got the wrong options, but I was sort of underwhelmed and can think of better places to brunch.

I ordered their lunch special fish tacos and a salad and I was blown away. I was impressed with the food quality and portion size. The plantain and malanga chips with the spicy guacamole were so good! I tried my friend’s yuca fries and they were crispy and delicious.
I read the one star reviews and thought they were unfair and extreme. The overall rating for this place is 3.5 stars thanks to those reviews which almost discouraged me from coming here. I don’t think one star accurately and fairly reflects the review content. Anyway, I’m glad I ignored the overall rating because I had the best lunch ever!

Went there for a tasting, in planning a holiday event. At first, I thought it was going to be «another corporate restaurant» but wow, how wrong I was!
I’ll get to the food shortly but we went there in search of a place that could accommodate a large, company party and Paladar totally fit the bill. They have a great private room, that itself, can be split ⁷⁰⁄₃₀. It can be cordoned off by heavy curtains for more privacy. Also, unlike other private rooms that are stuffed into the back of the store, this one has huge windows almost wall-​to-​wall, so you don’t feel like you’re in some claustrophobic, box that was the restaurant’s afterthought.
Ambiance is nice, warm wood tones, gentle blue hues. Kind of a clean, modern, Latin vibe.
Staff is fantastic!!! All really helpful, warm, friendly and happy. Alina was bartending that day and that lady muddles magic in her pomegranate mojito! Soooo delicious. Prices are really good for this neighborhood, too.
We dealt primarily with Habiba (she does all the sales/​party planning, etc) and I just cannot say enough good things about her! So accommodating, professional, helpful and fun! She offered us a really amazing party package that is by far one of the best deals you can get in the Tysons area! The menu and pretty much everything, can be altered to best suit your taste and party needs. So so sooooo many options to mix and match.
Finally, the food!!! Chef Jeff (who has quite the impressive CV) and his crew whipped up delicious everything for us! The Tostones were my favorite but we had a sampling of what felt like almost everything on the menu and there is not one thing I have a bad review for.
I knew we were in for a treat when they brought out all 3 flavors of the freshest guacamole this side of the Mississippi!!! Original guac, mango and spicy. All three were delish, but original was my fave. So fresh and thick with vibrant flavors. You can taste the onions, cilantro, lemon… My mouth is watering now just thinking about them. They serve them, not with tortilla chips — no way — that’s too common. Instead, they came with super thin plantain and yucca chips! Very nice. Very original! You just know that if they pay that much attention to the guac… then their food will be killer. And I was right!
Every dish they brought us was like a flavor party in my mouth. From apps to dessert. Nothing I can criticize about this place!
All in all — Paladar is an absolute GEM!!! The staff is great. The food totally made me happy, and given my background and difficult to please palette, I know I will return just for dinners!
I can see this being a place I visit regularly.
I HIGHLY HIGHLY recommend. My fave dishes: Tostones, orig guac, mushroom empanadas, pom mojito!
Have a party. Call Habiba. She really took care of us, especially given our small-​ish budget!

A pathetic experience at Paladar. Brought 8 of my friends to celebrate our friend’s birthday and was hoping to introduce them to a fun experience.
The outdoor patio was a popular place but our group preferred a nice dinner. We asked for a table in the dining room, and were actually convinced to dine at the bar that already had a table for 8 waiting. We decided to take the offer and enjoy both happy hour and a full dinner menu. It went DOWNHILL from there.
The food is great here, I want to put that out first off… that’s the reason for #1 star. The attempt to provide some form of good service is the only reason for #2 star. It appeared our poor bar server was waiting on all the tables in the bar as well as some dining tables. As a result, drinks did not arrive for at LEAST 20 minutes. I’m not sure if it was the backed up bartender or the server.
Taking food orders, even for chips, took an eternity. The chips/​salsa is not free here, take note. But it is on the happy hour menu at $ 3.95 each. The salsa bowl is about ¼ cup large (aka…SMALL). AND, it’s not refillable so if you want more salsa, just chalk up another $ 3.95. Honestly $ 20 for salsa and that was still not enough. Top that off with practically begging someone to bring us more. even if we paid. The food arrived after almost an hour of being seated. That’s ridiculous for happy hour and dinner.
It’s disappointing to show excitement for a place that recently opened up in the past year, only to see that past Unilocaler reviews were true to their word. I didn’t want it to be true because this place has a lot of potential. Unfortunately service like this doesn’t really help future business especially for big groups like ours.