I wandered by and saw this place for the first time today and thought "why not give it a try"? There is a small indoor seating area with only 7 tables, one of which is set up for a group of six. I was enthused by the Latin music playing in the background. There were also two tables for two outside on the sidewalk and a patio around the side with additional seating. The sidewalk seemed like a nice choice.
I was greeted by the waitress and offered something to drink including complimentary sangria... Well that's a no-brainer, I'll take the sangria.
I asked a few questions about the menu and decided to go with one of the Venezuelan options as that sounded more interesting with Italian food being ubiquitous in this neighborhood. I ordered the pabellon criollo and was pleased to learn that all entrees come with bread and a side soup or salad.
The sangria was delicious and not too fruity, and hey, who's gonna complain about free drinks? The bread came with a nice home made herbed dipping oil and Parmesan cheese. The salad was good but somewhat on the plain side even for a side salad. Pleasantly appetized my main course arrived.
Pabellon criollo is a platter of shredded beef, seasoned white rice, black beans with queso fresco, and plantains. Every bite was delicious, but the plantains were the star of the show. Usually I'm not a big fan of plantains but these were on the sweeter side and were perfectly cooked. They made an excellent contrast to the savory beans and meat.
Overall I was really happy with Aldofo's. It does have a family run feel, which I didn't mind as I appreciate the authenticity and lack of pretentiousness. The prices did seem a bit high though on a few of the dishes. I was informed by the chef/owner (Aldofo I presume?) that they will be having live music outside Saturday night and are byob. Sounds like a great time to come back with friends.