It’s so hard to find Puerto Rican food in this city. So hard. That’s why I’m glad I found OG Puerto Rican Cuisine, even if it was by total mistake.
You see, my very good friend stopped by this weekend, and we were looking for someplace to eat with seating outside—to keep ourselves disease-free—as well as a place for our canine pals to hang out with their people. Eventually, I found OG Southern Grill, 10901 NE 23trd in Nicoma Park; the only problem was that, when we got there, the southern grill was long gone, whistling dixie down the road.
Instead, it had been replaced by the next illogical edible genre, Puerto Rican eats, now labeled as OG Puerto Rican Cuisine. Even better, I thought to myself, remembering the Puerto Rican women that I have loved over the years and the small selection of them that have cooked me some of the best food I’ve ever had in my life.
However, now there was a different problem: the interminable wait.
We were seated quickly, as were many other people on the patio, but, our wait soon became one hour, two hours, almost three hours; I saw so many angry white people leave in such a fit of rage that it made me even more determined to stay and have this food, long ordered and long-awaited. It became a point of pride in me to wait so long.
When the food finally did arrive—with the owner and head chef in tow—they told us their story of being backed up because they were all alone with only a few of their kids to help them out and they were doing their best to make the meals fresh for the patrons that waited. I perfectly understood, even if my grumbling belly didn’t; the only nourishment it had had so far were the Mango juices that I had delicately quenched as we waited.
Without waiting, first was the appetizer that is probably one of Puerto Rico’s most famous dishes, Bolitas de Mofongo ($3.99) and, I gotta say, it was well worth the wait. Made up of mashed-up twice-fried plantains and a bit of pork and spices like garlic and olive oil, as I took a bite out of these deep-fried balls, even though it burnt my mouth a little, I worked through the pain like the man that I am.
Honestly, they were a dream to me, as was the Pastelillos Pollo ($3.00), a Puerto Rican meat pie that was a true slice of fried Heaven; I have faith that these must be the empanada-like turnovers that God eats on his day off. Ostensibly a pocket meal, they were filled with warm chicken, wrapped in a most delicious dough that made me feel warm and loved. All was forgiven, OG!
But, and I’m honestly saying this in a piece already so full of accolades, the final dish, the entirely exquisite Borifongo ($15.99) was the ultimate meal, as far as I was ever concerned. Brought out on a white plate covered in pulled pork shoulder on the left and a small salad on the right, with, in the middle, a warm covered pot of true mofongo and arroz con gandules.
While I’m sure others might disagree, I would have waited literally all night for this dish. The sumptuous rice, seasoned to perfection, was already a crowd-pleaser, but the mofongo was the most delicious of all treats, the bulbous tamale-like eat bursting at the seams, with the pork shoulder the absolute meat-cherry on the top of this Puerto Rican sundae.
“Who needs dessert?” I said as I took the last swig of my mango juice.
So, yeah, it took a little longer than I’m sure that most Oklahomans are willing to wait, but if it’s fast food you want, go to McDonald’s and spend a few dollars on their nauseous eats. But, if you want it done good and done right, OG Puerto Rican Cuisine is well worth every fucking second of your useless time.
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