Frommer's Review
This is an ideal place to go for the new generation of Puerto Rican cookery, with a touch of Cajun thrown in for spice and zest. Set within a starkly contemporary room within the postmodern premises of San Juan's Art Museum, it has the kind of neutrally hued decor that appears disarmingly simple until you begin to grasp the complexities of its infrastructure. Starkly minimalist, it has a lighting scheme whose tones change from reds to blues to yellow throughout the course of your dinner. And a large TV screen shows, through closed circuitry, the culinary rituals transpiring minute-by-minute within the restaurant's kitchen. This place not only keeps up with the latest culinary trends, but it often sets them, thanks to the inspired guidance of owner and celebrity chef Wilo Benet. Formal but not stuffy, and winner of more culinary awards than virtually any other restaurant in Puerto Rico, Pikayo is a specialist in the criolla cuisine of the colonial age, emphasizing the Spanish, Indian, and African elements in its unusual recipes. Appetizers include a dazzling array of taste explosions: Try shrimp spring rolls with peanut sofrito sauce; crab cake with aioli; or perhaps a ripe plantain, goat-cheese, and onion tart. Main course delights feature charred rare yellowfin tuna with onion escabeche and red-snapper filet with sweet-potato purée served with foie gras butter. Our favorite remains the grilled shrimp with polenta and barbecue sauce made with guava.
Note: This information was accurate when it was published, but can change without
notice. Please be sure to confirm all rates and details directly with the companies in question before
planning your trip.
