Platano
Salvadoran · Berkeley
About Platano
En Platano, te invitamos a descubrir la auténtica cocina salvadoreña en un ambiente acogedor y lleno de color. Nuestros platos, como las famosas pupusas, están elaborados con recetas tradicionales y el cariño de nuestra tierra. Ven a disfrutar de una experiencia culinaria única, rodeado de arte folc...
En Platano, te invitamos a descubrir la auténtica cocina salvadoreña en un ambiente acogedor y lleno de color. Nuestros platos, como las famosas pupusas, están elaborados con recetas tradicionales y el cariño de nuestra tierra. Ven a disfrutar de una experiencia culinaria única, rodeado de arte folclórico de El Salvador, aquí en Berkeley.
What Customers Say About Platano
Platano is a well-loved Salvadorian restaurant known for its delicious and large pupusas, plantains, and friendly staff. Customers rave about the authentic flavors and generous portions, making it a great value. Service can be a bit slow at times.
Popular Dishes
Best For
Tip: Try the pupusas and plantains, and don't be afraid to ask for fried yucca. The lunch specials are a great value.
Features
What to see nearby
Data from Wikidata
Explore the area around Platano
Platano is located in Berkeley, surrounded by cultural and historical points of interest. Here are some of the most notable places nearby.
Historical Heritage
- Studio Building (A 190m) — building in California, United States of America Lugar inscrito en el Registro Nacional de Lugares Históricos
- Tupper and Reed Building (A 447m) — historic building in Berkeley, California, United States Lugar inscrito en el Registro Nacional de Lugares Históricos
- Edwards Stadium (A 517m) — stadium in Berkeley, California, USA Lugar inscrito en el Registro Nacional de Lugares Históricos
- Corder Building (A 543m) — historic place in Berkeley, California Lugar inscrito en el Registro Nacional de Lugares Históricos
Religious Buildings
- St. Mark's Episcopal Church (A 719m) — church building in Berkeley, California, United States of America
Parks & Gardens
- Civic Center Park (A 327m) — park in Alameda County, California, United States of America; geonames ID = 6348166
- West Circle (A 537m) — park in the United States of America
Other Points of Interest
- David Brower Center (A 391m) — nonprofit community space in Berkeley
- Berkeley Public Library (A 415m) — public library system in California, USA
- Haas Pavilion (A 727m) — building in California, United States
Data from Wikidata
Frequently asked questions about Platano
Platano Berkeley Reviews
I needed a catering order and they were able to place my order the day before! They respond quickly and are willing to negotiate you with prices. I have eaten here before and have loved their pupusas, so I knew they wouldn’t disappoint! Love their food, staff, and hard work! Thank you for helping out the community! ❤️
Was walking by and went in on a lark. Very unassuming from the outside. Wasn't super hungry so I had a half order of the ensalada tropical and a Salvadoran pilsener. The salad was absolutely delicious (and a bargain to boot). The beer was good too. Throw in super friendly and fast service; it's a no brainer I'll be back to try more of the menu.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Hands-down one of the best Salvadoran food spots we’ve ever been to—seriously! I came here with my whole family, and we all left full and happy. The food was incredibly tasty, and the entire experience from start to finish was smooth and enjoyable. We were seated right away, and our waiter was very nice and super fast. The place wasn’t crowded, which surprised us because the food was top-tier. It’s a great spot for large groups—plenty of seating, very comfortable, and we were never rushed. We loved that the drinks were refillable (huge win when you’ve got kids), and the prices were very reasonable for how much food you get. The variety of pupusas blew me away—so many options and all made fresh. My wife was especially happy with the pastelitos—they reminded her of the ones she used to get during recess back in Nicaragua. I tried one too, and yep, they were delicious. We were also given two complimentary containers of curtido and two bottles of red sauce, which we really appreciated. They didn’t charge us for either, and both were flavorful and authentic. I ordered the lemonade—lightly sweetened, super refreshing, and perfect with the meal. If you’re anywhere near here, don’t skip this place. You won’t regret it!
Quite a nice place. In Berkeley, as you approach the restaurant and enter, you are warmly greeted with a sweet smile from Adriana, and she kindly guides you to your table. The scene is nice as you notice all the beautiful art all around the restaurant. The menu is detailed with a few vegetarian options. Needless to say, We came for their famous Papusas! Papusas are stuffed thick corn masa tortilla served with curtido & salsa. They were all delicious, a good size, and served fresh and hot. It is not too salty with a decent amount of cheese stuff mixed well in. They did not come soggy they came fried to perfection. The Papusas we ordered were... 1 Revuelta & Frijoles 1 Revuelta 1 Chicharron 1 DE Res y Queso 1 Queso & Frijoles 1 Queso & Loroco Delicious 😋
10/10 would visit again when I'm back in the area. Authentic and delicious--my partner and I shared a lunch special and some yuca fries and it was a good portion. The yuca fries didn't come with sauce, so we tried dipping them in the tomato sauce and crema. The crema was a great impromptu sauce! Completely wiped the plate clean.
Platano is swinging for the fences with tasty Salvadorian and Central American food, large portions, friendly staff come a great selection of beers that traditionally go along with these dishes, walk up friendly location, and like the name says, Platanos! If you've never had one of these tasty treats which is a variation on a fried banana, but with way more flavor, you need to stop in here. I ordered the Bistek, (steak. Most Latin and Caribbean countries have their own take on this dish) with black beans and rice, platanos, and a side salad on the plate. Someone's mom is obviously working in this kitchen because this is old school goodness, and for people who want some authentic Latin food, I would absolutely go here as opposed to some pricey Upscale hipster hangout like Comal. Platinol has been holding it down since 2006, and the quality hasn't changed once. Family run, and family operated, this place is my favorite Central American eatery in the East Bay. Highly recommended
Plátano is a salvadorian restaurant with delicious Pupusas 🫓!! The Pupusas sizes are large and can fill you up. There are many other typical salvadorian plates to enjoy as well. There are plenty of seats and the restaurant size is pretty large for a space in Berkeley. Service was great and the food was yummy. Parking around this area can be a challenge, so be prepared to circle around a bit if not trying to park in the structure/garage.
Been here for three times in the last two months now, and I gotta say, the best restaurant in Berkeley yet. The staff is extremely friendly! (I'm a beginner in Spanish and they teach me Spanish in the restaurant when I'm ordering :) ) They serve very large portions at fair prices, you have to try their plátano fritos (fried banana), it's very awesome. The environment is very clean and well-organized, I wish I could give them 6 stars but google only allows me to give 5 stars.
The place was packed when we got there. We went their during lunchtime, so we tried their lunch specials #3, #4, and #9. Lunch special #3 comes with 2 pupusas, plantains, casamiento, and sour cream. Lunch special #4 comes with 2 pupusas, casamiento, and chicken tamale. Lunch special #9 comes with 2 pupusas and a small tropical salad. We also tried their horchata, atol de elote, fried yucca, and chicharrones. Pupusas were good but needed a little bit more flavor, so we all pretty much used up an entire bottle of the sauce they provided us. Plantains were cooked really well. Chicharrones was delicious, too. Overall, it was a good experience.
Been here twice and liked both experiences. The pupusas are tasty and they have a house salsa that is very spicy, which we love! Their ensalada beverage is very refreshing and great to sip after eating some of said salsa. The second time around we ordered the Fried fish. Overall had some nice flavor but was too fried and tasted more like chicharon. We'll stick to the pupusas.
The pupusas here are great. this is definitely the place to go if that is what you're looking for and Berkeley it is also the place that most people get their food catered from for Salvadorian food. the flavor of the pupusas are great there not too doughy, though sometimes it's kind of hard to find the feeling that you chose inside. they have a great spicy salsa by request only and it is very delicious and definitely adds a little kick to the food and that you like spicy. This is a great place to come with friends or on a date or just yourself. When did you get too busy the service gets kind of iffy but overall it's okay.
Really delicious and authentic food. The pupusas my friend got was delicious and the ribs I got had fantastic flavor. The service here is a bit lackluster and we sat around without water for over 30 minutes and it didn't help that the entree prices are a bit high. The pupusas however are great value and quite filling.
Sign in to leave a review
Sign inRemove ads and manage your menu
Explore Your Area
Eureka!
Cafe Tibet
Juice Appeal
Triple Rock Brewery
University Taqueria
Pizzeria Da Laura
The Butcher's Son
Cal's Fried Chicken & Burgers
Cholita Linda
The Noodle
107 Photos
Explore Platano's photos
About Platano
How to get there
2042 University Ave, Berkeley, CA 94704
Highlights
Services
Dining Options
Restaurant Info
Amenities
The Neighborhood
Location
2042 University Ave, Berkeley, CA 94704
📍 Explore the Neighborhood
building in California, United States of America
park in Alameda County, California, United States of America; geonames ID = 6348166
nonprofit community space in Berkeley
public library system in California, USA
historic building in Berkeley, California, United States
stadium in Berkeley, California, USA
park in the United States of America
historic place in Berkeley, California
Gaming
🎮 Earn Points While You Explore!
Play Find Me and redeem points for discounts at Platano and other restaurants
Earn Points at Platano!
Play Find Me and redeem rewards here
Earn extra points and redeem them for rewards at Platano
🏆 Rewards at Platano
10% Discount
At Platano
Free Appetizer
On your next visit
VIP Table
Premium experience
to redeem rewards and earn points
📋 How Do Rewards Work?
Play Find Me
Every 100 score points = 1 reward point
Collect Points
Workers earn 2x points per game
Redeem Rewards
Discounts, free food and VIP experiences
Is it yours? Claim it FREE!
Remove ads and manage your menu