GRASA: the new 'dark bistro' with Puerto Rican flavor that opened in Old San Juan

San Sebastián Street in Old San Juan has a new restaurant inspired by the classic French bistro, with a Puerto Rican, contemporary twist and plenty of edge.

It is GRASA, the new concept from Emilio Meléndez and Vanessa Cardez, creators of the clothing brand Pícalo and the concept store El Nido in Bayamón, with which they want to enter fine dining in a relaxed, unpretentious way.

"It's something we've done with a lot of passion, like all our previous projects, but we felt it was really necessary for something like this to happen, especially in Old San Juan… (Where) the offerings are very much aimed at foreigners, and we don't want that. We want locals to feel at home," Meléndez told Platea about the restaurant, which he describes as a "dark bistro."

“GRASA viene siendo dentro del universo de Pícalo el concepto de fine dining dentro de las ideas gastronómicas”.

How did GRASA come about?

Located where Café con Ron, the bar that nodded to the Bad Bunny song, once stood, GRASA spent about a year in development before opening its doors on Aug. 20, 2026.

"It's the first project we've worked on more from the kitchen, from the inside out. Sitting down, table service, having a few classic cocktails, but yes, the main thing is that people sit down to eat, as opposed to other projects," explained Meléndez, owner, co-founder and creative director of GRASA.

The concept. Inspired by a French bistro in both its culinary and aesthetic approach, with wood, dark colors and dim lighting, GRASA adds contemporary touches and "the disruptive spirit of Pícalo" with a graffiti mural on one of the walls.

• "Right now we're on the first floor, but a project is being developed for the second floor that will be more of a lounge… where people can go up for a drink on the terrace," Meléndez said.

The name. "Since we come from the clothing world, people say 'me pongo la grasa'" when they dress well and with a lot of flow, Meléndez explained about the origin of the restaurant's name. It refers not only to elegance, but also to "our edge."

The music. It was curated by El S. in his contemporary tropical style. Eventually, they hope to bring in live DJs.

• "With him (El S.) what we worked on was something quite tropical, connected to a lot of classic hip hop, lo-fi, but then a lot of tropical jazz and samples of contemporary music, like hip hop and rap, but with the voice of Maelo, of Héctor Lavoe," Meléndez said about the musical concept.

The cocktails. "We're working with a lot of classics, executed really well," Meléndez said, such as a house Negroni, a house Old Fashioned with bourbon or local rum, and gin and tonics.

• Sana Curita Sana is made with lavender, mezcal, crème de violette and lime.

• Amanecer Borincano blends bourbon with lemon, passion fruit, blood orange, raspberry coulis and honey.

• Amor Perdío combines rum with a touch of strawberry, rosemary and ginger beer.

Investment. The couple invested around $250,000 in developing the concept, design, branding, menu and more. They created 11 jobs with this restaurant.

GRASA's menu, by chef Brian Rodríguez

The GRASA menu was created by chef Brian Rodríguez, who has worked at culinary concepts including Marmalade, Santaella, Vianda, La Hacienda and Levain. Although inspired by a bistro, it includes local flavors as well as international influences from places like Mexico and Thailand.

"It's the first time I've been given carte blanche to express myself, and I'm very grateful to them for it, because for me, they (the owners of GRASA) have been mentors," Rodríguez told Platea about creating the menu.

The clams casino becomes Clams-Tocino, made with classic tocino rather than bacon, while the Escargots de Bourgogne are prepared with conch instead of snail (when in season).

“El ADN culinario en términos de lo que es la técnica y lo que con inclusive los nombres de algunos de los platos, nacen de estos platos clásicos de un bistro. Por supuesto que les dimos un *twist*”.

The chef's favorite: Yellowfin tuna tostada. The tostada is made on a blue corn tortilla with a cashew and lime cream softened in a pork broth from another preparation, yellowfin tuna, and the house salsa macha. The salsa macha, Rodríguez explained, is a spicy Mexican sauce he makes his own by preparing it with pumpkin seeds and sesame in herb oil.

• "I top it with more cashew seeds and crispy onion, to add more crunch. It's one of my favorite things on the menu."

The most ordered.

• Pork chuletón. It is the most criollo dish on the menu. A 1½-inch chuletón cooked at low temperature "so it stays juicy" and roasted at the moment of serving, over a bed of blood sausage purée without rice and onion. It is finished with a tamarind and coffee dressing, a "very particular combination" that came out of a chef's mistake that turned into a success. Served with plantain tostones.

• Malanga gnocchies. Served with mojama (salt-cured tuna), pickled peppers and manchego cheese. "They're delicious," said Meléndez.

• Mariscada. Made with the catch of the day, which can vary between sea bass, different types of snapper or tuna, depending on availability. The selections are made by the chef. It includes clams, salsa verde, basil oil, coconut rice and chayote.

Desserts. The chef calls them "dulce ish" because they combine flavors beyond sweetness.

• Olive oil and lemon cake, almond-based. Served with whipped cream made from tepache, a Mexican drink produced by fermenting pineapple rinds, finished with extra virgin olive oil and piloncillo (an extract of unrefined sugarcane).

• Chocolate cremeux. A creamy high-quality chocolate dessert mixed with black cardamom, topped with toasted corn flakes coated in chocolate and Urfa black chile, a traditional hot pepper from Turkey.

This content was translated with the assistance of Artificial Intelligence (AI).