El Punto: Classy Dominican & South American Cuisine in Zhongxiao Dunhua

We stumbled upon El Punto completely by accident while accompanying a friend to their appointment at Mozi, a hair salon-slash-speakeasy cocktail bar. Originally, we had just wanted to get something fast and cheap for dinner, but our minds were changed as we saw the words “Dominican,” “South American,” and “cuisine” in the same sentence on Google Maps. We had no, repeat no idea that there was a Dominican restaurant here, so we jumped at the opportunity to try it out.

El Punto is a beautiful little restaurant that’s located right in the heart of the Zhongxiao Dunhua/Sun Yat Sen Memorial Hall area, which is an amazing place for food. We were instantly impressed by how nicely it was decorated and what a classy, calm atmosphere it had. It would be a really great date spot if you’re looking to impress someone with something a little more unique. El Punto has a really nice looking menu that we agonized over — there were so many things we wanted to try! — so we ended up asking the waitress for some recommendations.

The first thing we ordered was the ceviche Dominicano, the lemon seafood salad ceviche ($300). A glass of ceviche, garnished with three slices of bread, sat on a bed of salad greens with four breaded shrimp. Honestly, we had mixed feelings about this dish. The ceviche itself was nice and tangy, but we thought the shrimp was on the dry side, although it was seasoned well. The salad added a nice freshness, but it would have been nice if the bread had been toasted a little so it was could hold the ceviche a little more securely. We didn’t hate this dish, but we wouldn’t rave about it either. It could be that we got it on an off day, though. By all means, try it if you’re in the mood.

The next thing we ordered was much better — the frituras, fried bananas and cassavas with French fries with parsley and shallots ($240).  This was an extremely flavourful dish that was packed with what we had thought was garlic, but may also have been shallots. We’re not sure, but we loved it either way. Our one gripe was that it was a little much to share between two people, as it was quite heavy and didn’t come with a sauce, so it got rather old. That being said, we’re the kinds of people who have to have some kind of sauce with fries (cringe), so we’re definitely biased. If we’d had more people to share this with or it had come with a sauce, this would have been a 10/10. If you do come here on a date, do not order this: your date will not appreciate it.

The last thing we got was by far the best — the cerdo al horno con oregano, the Dominican roast suckling pig ($300). (For some reason, it’s translated as BBQ pork on the menu, but when we translated some information on their Facebook page this is what we got, which we feel is a better description of the dish.) This is one of El Punto’s speciality dishes, and we can definitely see why. The fat melted in our mouths, the meat was tender and juicy, and the crackling was perfectly crispy. It paired very well with the spicy sauce it was served with, although our friend didn’t love the kick as much as we did. We’d absolutely order this again.

We hadn’t been planning on ordering drinks but seeing that they had cocktails, we couldn’t resist. We ordered the caipirinha (left), made with cachaça (a hard liquor made from sugar cane), tangerine, lime, and syrup ($260). This was a little different from the caipirinhas we’ve had before, but it was tasty and refreshing. We also got the El Diablo (right), which was made with tequila, cassis, ginger syrup, lime, and ginger ale ($260). This was a nice choice too, although we slightly preferred the caipirinha. Both cocktails had a decent kick to them, which left us feeling satisfied with our choices.

Check out their entire menu down below — it has changed since we last ate there. This is their new menu:

Overall, we really liked the food and the classy, pleasant atmosphere at El Punto. We kicked ourselves for only coming with two people, as there were so many things on the menu that we were dying to try out and weren’t able to due to limited stomach space. This would be an amazing place to take someone on a date, with its calmness, beautiful interior, and impressive menu, but it would also be great for groups who want to try a bunch of things. We will say that the food took a while to come out, so we’d advise against eating here if you’re in a rush. Being neither Dominican nor South American, we can’t exactly speak for its authenticity, but reviews have mentioned that the chef is Dominican and that the food is the real deal. Good enough for us. We can’t wait to come back here and try some of their other specialities, like the Dominican fried fish and the spicy stewed oxtail.

What’s the vibe?

Quiet and classy. The staff were attentive and helpful. The only other customers there on a Wednesday night were a group of Taiwanese people in their 30s, although we’ve heard foreigners come here too.

Worth it?

It’s not cheap, but would you expect it to be?

Would you go back?

YES. We really want to try their other dishes!

Last visited November 2019.

El Punto

Chinese Name: 重點 El punto 南美風情臻品料理

Hours: 11am – 2:30pm, 5:30pm – 10pm

Phone: 02 2731 2255

English Address: No. 12, Lane 4, Lane 345, Section 4, Ren'ai Road, Da'an District, Taipei City

Chinese Address: 台北市大安區仁愛路四段345巷4弄12號