Esteban orders a variety of dishes for us to try. First up: morcilla, Puerto Rican blood sausage. Repulsed by the undeniably black color of the sausage, Carlos and I inch small pieces into our mouths. “Hey Mom, this isn’t bad!” He’s right, not bad at all.

Carlos polishes off the rest while I move on to the cuajito, a stew of pig’s ears and offal. One’s in a spicy tomato base, the other in garlic and spiced oil. I screw up my face (I can hear my mother’s voice in my head, “Ay Annie, don’t be such a drama queen”…wait, maybe that’s my uncle talking) and take a bite. I hate the tomato-based one. It’s rubbery and doesn’t taste like any part of a pig I’ve ever had.

I move on to the other, wanting to get it over with. Under the oily, garlic base, this one isn’t entirely bad, but in the interest of full disclosure, I don’t have any beyond the first taste. Perhaps it is the dining room’s mural depicting cute Disney-esque pigs frolicking about in a bucolic field. I mean, por favor! As if I need to be reminded of what I’m eating!

I wash down the stew with a mouthful of Medalla beer and steal some of my husband’s more “normal” food, including the succulent lechón asado (roasted pork) and delightful arroz con gandules (rice with pigeon peas). No wonder the Puerto Rico Herald called El Mojito one of the best places to get lechón.

Day Three

Tonight we meet my family at Escambrón, arguably the best seafood restaurant in the capital. In contrast to yesterday’s rustic location, Escambrón is an elegant, beachfront restaurant a few doors down from the Caribe Hilton. Tucked under a viaduct, the building has a wave-like shape and circular ship windows in front. The service is impeccable and the menu includes traditional Puerto Rican fare as well as more universal surf and turf dishes.

My cousin Carlos convinces me to sample their octopus salad, to get an idea of different preparations. To my surprise, the large piece he foists upon me is tasty, not at all rubbery, and smacks of garlic and delicate spices. However, I happily return to my Caesar salad criollo style, and wash it down with a frosty mojito (the rum version this time).

Day Four