“When I saw the smoker, I saw potential,” recalls Manuel Iguina. The driving force behind Pikoteo had his eye on several potential Northern Virginia locations when he saw the turnkey piece of equipment inside the former McLean location of Southern barbecue restaurant Boss Hog’s. “I fell in love,” he says.
The San Juan, Puerto Rico, native — best known for Mio Restaurant in DC — had an eye toward slowing down. “I wanted to be simplifying my life, coming from a background of fine dining to upscale casual. This was more like a retirement plan for me,” Iguina recounts.
A True Hidden Gem
Three years on, Pikoteo is still serving smoked meats, creative appetizers, and chalkboard specials every day. Tucked into a quiet back street near downtown McLean, it’s no surprise the restaurant remains largely undiscovered — even by many locals.
But that’s a shame. There aren’t many places left where a pair of diners can share three delightful courses for less than $100.
When Pikoteo opened in 2023, Iguina was its chef. Today, the food is created by a specialist who first worked for him at Mio, Roberto Hernandez. “We think alike,” says Iguina. “I can tell him [an idea for a dish] and he makes it better.”
That includes the chef’s ceviche, one of the most compelling fish dishes in NoVA right now. It’s served with taro and plantain chips, and fresh cilantro imbues the citrusy marinade with a Kermit the Frog–like hue and an herbaceous brightness that tastes like a summer day. The liquid sunshine “cooks” small cubes of tender rockfish. This would be enough, but chunks of cantaloupe and pineapple take the dish over the top.
I will return to Pikoteo for the ceviche alone. But it isn’t the only aesthetically pleasing appetizer to produce a complex mouthful at Pikoteo.
Another dish features pan-blackened calabaza squash with an oversized blob of burrata. Cut into quarters, each segment is colored like Christmas thanks to red pomegranate arils and molasses, onion-spotted green chimichurri, and crunchy spiced pepitas. Creamy, spicy, tangy, and sweet all converge in a single bite.
The Meat of the Matter
Those are both rare dishes at Pikoteo that aren’t embraced with smoke. The smoked meats form the backbone of the most recent menu, which Iguina says has been abbreviated due to staffing difficulties.
Other plates, everything from fried chicken to chicharrónes to ropa vieja, appear on a chalkboard menu that changes daily.
One of those dishes is Puerto Rican lasagna, which stacks fork-tender brisket burnt ends with sweet plantains in smoked tomato sauce. It likely won’t remind you much of an Italian pasta dish (except for the grated pecorino cheese on top), but the meaty marvel is destined to satisfy.
Those craving fleshy substance shouldn’t miss the pork ribs. Cooked over walnut instead of hickory, the baby backs are cleanly smoky, totally lacking in the carcinogenically powerful flavor that many barbecue restaurants turn out.
Rubbed in spices similar to Jamaican jerk seasoning, the pork tears easily from the bone beneath a layer of sweet-and-sour guava barbecue sauce. It’s a lovably messy mouthful.
All barbecue dishes come with an array of housemade goodies. That same chimichurri that dresses the burrata is present, as are pickled vegetables — radishes, onion, and jalapeños that recall a Puerto Rican take on Korean banchan.
A choice of two sides includes four basics, all of them strong contenders. The most mouthwatering is the tallow fries, squared-off wands of crisp-jacketed potato with just a whisper of beefy flavor.
Rice and beans are lovably garlicky, the cornbread has just the right amount of sweetness, and green slaw is a fresh-tasting antidote to mayonnaise-drowned varieties. Other meats include slices of brisket, a crisp-skinned half chicken, pulled pork shoulder, and spicy pork sausages in Argentinean style. Frankly, you can’t go wrong with any of them.
Don’t Skip Dessert
Desserts at many purveyors of smoked eats are an afterthought. Not so at Pikoteo.
Iguina says it’s easy to make tembleque, a Puerto Rican cousin to panna cotta. Its palatability is inverse to the effort put forth to get it on plates. The jiggly coconut treat is served beneath stewed pineapple and a small mound of ground cinnamon. Think of it as a spiced piña colada with a creamy mouthfeel.
Another winner is the crêpe soufflé. The fluffy, eggy delight combines the powers of the two desserts with a soft center of vanilla cream set into a pool of tart-but-sugary passion fruit caramel.
An appetizer, two entrées, a dessert, and a Boylan Bottling Co. cola will likely set you back less than $80. I’ve recently reviewed restaurants where a single main dish costs more. And the food tastes just as good, if not better, at Pikoteo.
With a relaxed atmosphere and Iguina’s easy hospitality, Pikoteo is one of McLean’s best bets — a homey neighborhood spot that’s also a destination. With beautifully plated apps, flavorful drinks, and hearty barbecue, the restaurant serves a memorable experience at a price point that’s difficult to find in NoVA.
Pikoteo
★★★
See This: High-energy Latin music brings additional character to a cozy dining room. Ask for a table in the front alcove and nestle in a pile of pillows or dine al fresco beneath a canopy of red umbrellas.
Eat This: Ceviche, baby back pork ribs, tembleque
Appetizers: $12–$18
Entrees: $19–$32
Dessert: $10–$15
Open daily for lunch and dinner.
6811 Elm St., McLean
Feature image by Michael Butcher
This story originally ran in our July issue. For more stories like this, subscribe to Northern Virginia Magazine.
