La Fogata

It’s usually the little spots that never fail to amaze and this is one of them. We came here on a Thursday afternoon and it was relatively empty at first. The server was quick to our table and took the drink and appetizer order. We ordered the plantains with guacamole. I was surprised to only see four fried plantains with the mountain of guacamole that came. The taste of both, plantains and guacamole was great, I would have expected a few more plantains though, as we had half a bowl of guacamole left after finishing the plantains. The Bandeja Paisa was fantastic. The avocado was fresh, soft, vibrant green, and didn’t have a single brown spot. The steak was nice and tender while the pork rind was crispy. For once I was able to enjoy the entire pork rind compared to other places where it’s like rubber. Biggest winner were the beans. Doesn’t matter where I go, they usually have no flavor, are watery and taste fresh out of the can. The beans I experienced here had great flavor and it actually seemed like someone took the time to taste it and adjust seasonings. Gave it four stars because our table was dirty and the seat was sticky.

I went around 2:30pm, place wasn’t that busy. It didn’t look clean, not even the menu books, I had to sanitize them. The server was excellent, thank you. Ordered lomo saltado which looked like biftec encebollado, because all it had was beef and sautéed onions, no peppers, no parsley or cilantro, not the picture on the menu. The avocado had some black spots, it should have not been used. The only salad dressing available was ranch, or oil and vinegar. The kids ordered chicken wings which was over-fried, the meat was super dry, they didn’t enjoy the wings, and ate the fries. My friend wasn’t served chimichurri with her churrasco, nor sauce for her tostones. I haven’t been to La Fogata in quite some time, am able to say that it has changed, prices continue high for the quality of the food. I know I will not return in another long period of time, hopefully your cook knows how to prepare lomo salteado and doesn’t overcook wings. You also need a trash can or something accessible to guests in open area.