El Pollo Rico

Great charcoal chicken made in the proper oven. Fair pricing although you cannot buy just a whole chicken. Whole chicken with 2 sides and 6 sauces is $25. We live closer to the Fairfax location, but came here due to better reviews. Certainly a must try if you're into good quality Peruvian chicken.

Their chicken is delicious, but the flan is some of the best I’ve ever had! Ordering is quick and food comes out before you’re even done paying. Lots of seating and the chicken was so tender and flavorful. Their rice and beans are amazing and the sauces that come with it are great. The green sauce is very spicy and the white sauce was great with the fries. Out of everything we still thought the flan was seriously out of this world. Perfect consistency and truly amazing. We will definitely be back!

One of the best deals in Arlington. Tons of food for cheap while still having a ton of flavor. The interior is very no frills and could definitely use more seating but the food tastes great and you get a ton of it for cheap.

The line was very long when I went even during off hours. You can order online to bypass the line which I'll probably do next time. Ordering in person is a bit odd since you speak into a mic in some weird corner. They could easily improve the experience greatly for cheap but I guess they don't really need to.

We just ate here the other day. The chicken is delicious just as everyone says. This casual restaurant is warm and all the staff are friendly. You will see us again. Thanks so much, El Pollo Rico!

A local favorite of NoVA, enjoyed even by Anthony Bourdain, El Pollo Rico is known as the place to go to try Peruvian chicken.

Their yuca fries are INCREDIBLE!!! The crispy outside, the fluffy insides, the unique yuca potato taste...I'm making myself hungry just thinking about it again.

Their Peruvian chicken is excellent, especially when dining in, since you get to eat it fresh. I will say their plantains have not been as crispy edged as I prefer, but still delicious nonetheless.

The one thing I wouldn't recommend ordering here is their desserts, especially their tres leches. It comes in a cup and is more like a parfait of dos leches than tres...I couldn't taste any of the soaked evaporated or condensed milk personally. Their alfajores are amazing when they're good, but they can be inconsistent in quality in my humble opinion.

Lines get long during peak hours, order online. If you order online there's a separate pickup window line, however, since this is Peruvian chicken they will prep it for you when you arrive, not before you arrive FYA.

Plenty of dining room indoors. It's fast casual. They have tap pay.

There is a parking lot for the place but not a lot of spots during peak hours.

Hands down best Pollo in No.VA.

You can tell by the quick moving lines, this Pollo is hot & juicy, crispy skin and best spice blend.

Not to miss, their sides are ALWAYS fresh, I recommend Slaw & Fries (always hot made to order), with extra Yellows Sauces. 😋 OG tip mix the green and yellow sauce - now you're in for a treat!

The Peruvian chicken is juicy and cooked perfectly and the price is a really good value. Interior is nothing fancy and it's all about the food. Check it out if you're looking for just some straight up delicious chicken

I love coming to this place. It is a locally owned business that serves the best chicken. They have a location in fairfax too. The chicken here is so good that the line will sometimes be out the door! A good hole-in-the-wall spot in the middle of Arlington.

If you're looking for delicious chicken and sides that will leave your taste buds wanting more, look no further than El Pollo Rico. I recently visited this restaurant and was blown away by the quality of the food.

First off, let's talk about the chicken. It was cooked to perfection, with a crispy exterior and moist, flavorful meat inside. It's clear that El Pollo Rico takes pride in their chicken, and it shows in the taste.

But the sides were just as impressive. The sweet plantains were a standout for me - they were perfectly caramelized and had just the right amount of sweetness. And don't even get me started on the rice - it was so moist and flavorful, I could have eaten it on its own.

Overall, I give El Pollo Rico a big thumbs up. The food was delicious, the service was friendly, and the prices were reasonable. I will definitely be coming back soon to try more of their menu items. If you're in the area, I highly recommend giving them a try. You won't regret it!

It has been a long time since last visit. I have been coming to El Pollo Rico since late 80’s. It felt like visiting an old friend. It was heart warming to see that it’s still in business and doing brisk business.

There are many Peruvian chicken options now but this is my Peruvian chicken standards. This is where I was introduced to Peruvian charcoal chicken, fried yuca and inca cola.

I stopped by during peak dinner time. While there was line but the chicken was fresh. There were times (lunch) that it served reheated chicken from the previous day but you are guaranteed to get fresh chicken during the peak dinner time.

The chickens are well seasoned and peppery. I always get both mild and hot sauce and mix them to enjoy creamy sauce with kick. Unfortunately the steak fries were soggy; its fries always have been hit or miss for me. The coleslaw was creamy as I remembered but I was disappointed that it stopped serving fried yuca. 🥲.

The whole chicken now cost $19.99 and other prices gone up but it still offers good value. (It used to be under $10 when I started come here. 😃)

4.5 stars for stop serving the fried yuca.

Came to Arlington to pick up a van we bought from WBM of Arlington and after their recommendation walked over and had lunch. The rotisserie chicken was amazing. The sides of beans, fries and an extra order of plantains rounded out a delicious lunch.

This place is still good. It cost more then usual as inflation has increased cost of goods and services. If want main dish for company without cooking. This is the place and food everyone enjoys. Food is fresh my favorite is the fries, plantains along with the chicken with both sauces mixed together.

This was recommended to me to visit so I made the trek and was pleasantly surprised. It's tucked away but the GPS led me right in. The chicken was seasoned perfectly and I also had beans and flan for dessert. I'm glad to have ventured out and tried it.

Pollo Rico is one of the best Peruvian chicken places around. They’re yellow and green sauces go perfectly with their chicken, which is seasoned just right. The restaurant is always packed and the service is great.

I ordered a 1/2 chicken, french fries an cole slaw. The chicken I would give 10 stars if possible! Flavor is just delish!! The steak fries not bad. The slaw had the pickly/sweetness I like but it was too much mayo for me. Not a deal breaker.
I’ve been eating here for 20 years back when they were at the original location. Quality has stood the test of time.
My only complaint is they definitely need to multitask and better balance the in-store customers along with online ordering customers.

This has to be the best rotisserie style chicken, probably chicken in general! The chicken is absolutely to die for, they cook it right behind the cash register, its so fresh to the point where I think they they have a chick farm behind the restaurant😂. The prices are also very reasonable for the size of the chicken. The service is also good, very friendly cashiers. The only down side of El Pollo Rico is the parking, sometimes it could be jam packed. Another downside is the long line, one thing I recommend is calling ahead of time to get your food. Overall had an amazing experience here at El Pollo Rico.

Delicious and amazing tasty chicken 😋

Unreal. This restaurant lives up to its name—the chicken is muy muy rico. The chicken is well seasoned and unbelievably tender. It’s a cheaper, tastier version of Nando’s. Fries are wonderful, coleslaw is tasty too. Could benefit from a wider sauce selection, but otherwise, no complaints.

Staff is wonderfully kind and warm. Highly recommend.

I want to say you love it or hate it. The decor feels like a 90s middle school cafeteria. There's often a good line and wait, even at eight at night on a Wednesday, when our wait was about ten minutes.

Yet, the chicken is delicious. Fried plantains were delicious.

Order ahead on the web and save yourself the wait in line.

I've been coming here since I was little, and the taste is always consistent. I get the chicken, fries and coleslaw. Super delicious! Heads up, they charge for extra sauces.