The Washington Post’s Tom Sietsema has been the newspaper’s food critic for nearly 25 years. In a recent dining guide he highlighted “5 great affordable restaurants in the D.C. area”, which included Montgomery County’s El Chante Comedor y Fritanga Nica (photos below).
Nicaraguan restaurant El Chante Comedor y Fritanga Nica occupies the full space it used to split with Frank’s Burger Place at 11265 Triangle Ln in Wheaton. It’s owned by Frank Matamoros, who moved Frank’s Burgers to a new location at 11230 Grandview Ave in Wheaton (former site of Umberto’s) and shares a space with District Bistro.
The restaurant offers “pequeños” (small dishes) that range in price from $7-$12, sides that go for $3-$5, larger Nicaraguan dishes that range in price from $14-$19, carne asada variations for $18-$22, and more. The full menu can be seen here. Photographed below you’ll see the carne asada platter and chancho frito con gallo pinto.
“When it comes to quantity, this Nicaraguan outpost delivers.” Sietsema writes. “My strapping, $20 entree is the most expensive item on the menu and tastes of care as much as bitter oranges, garlic, oregano and mildly nutty annatto in the marinated flap steak. The rice is unusually delicious, too; the red beans in the mix are cooked a day ahead, then refried before serving, intensifying their flavor. The spread is prettier for its banana leaf backdrop”
