I tried one of Rihanna's favorite dishes in NYC, and everything from the fries to the short rib blew me away

Throughout the years, the singer and entrepreneur has been spotted by diners and photographers ducking into Coppelia on 14th Street and 7th Avenue for both late-night and midday eats.

"She's usually pretty low-key when she comes in," Coppelia chef and partner Julian Medina previously told Billboard Style. "But if it's after an event, the paparazzi will follow her! She loves our staff and we love her."

The restaurant is currently hidden under scaffolding and the entrance is disguised by an enclosed outdoor seating area.

The "Open 24 hours" neon sign was turned off as the hours have now been adjusted to 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., according to the website.

Still, the festive greenery and diner-like facade gave it away and I walked into the Chelsea eatery excited for lunch.

In the main dining area, there were booths, tables with banquettes, and stools for counter seating.

I could tell this spot was used to solo diners because when I asked for a table I was met with, "Table for one?" rather than the sometimes condescending, "Just you?"

The walls were decorated with art and stained-glass panels and the bar was bright with patterns of primary colors.

A server walked me past a cylindrical display case for pies and cakes, which all looked delicious, to my seat in the back section where Rihanna has been photographed dining.

I love diners. I love diner food, variety, portions, and the fact that I can get breakfast at any hour of the day. So while I was studying this big — but not too big — menu, and saw at least a handful of dishes I wanted to try (huevos rancheros, lemon ricotta pancakes, and a Cuban sandwich, just to name a few), I knew I would need to come back again.

But this time, I was there for Rihanna's favorite dish, according to Medina.

"Rihanna loves the Lomo Saltado, a soy-ginger glazed beef short rib stir fry with tomatoes, onions, fries, and white rice," he told Billboard Style.

Medina told Insider via email that the lomo saltado is also a crowd favorite.

There was upbeat Spanish music coming through the speakers. It was loud enough to enjoy, but soft enough so I could still hear the noises of all the people talking around me.

When I arrived at 1 p.m. on a Tuesday, the place looked to be around 30% full.

I saw colorful art on the walls and small teardrop-shaped lights hanging from the ceiling above me. It all worked together to create a fun, warm, and easygoing atmosphere.

But I didn't have long to take it all in as my food came out within just 10 minutes of ordering.

I immediately smelled the soy ginger sauce when my dish hit the table. It was a heaping bowl of sauced-up fries, white rice, stir-fried onions and tomatoes, and generous cubes of beef short rib that had been beautifully browned. All of it was then topped off with bright-green, raw scallion sliced on the bias.

The dish cost $29, and I ultimately got two meals out of it.

When I tasted it, I noticed there was a clear flavor profile coming from the ginger, which can sometimes take a backseat to other ingredients.

It's hard for me to not immediately eat a french fry if it's part of the meal in front of me. Whether they're on the side of a burger or stir-fried right into the dish like they were here, I'm going to be eager to dive in.

The fries in this lomo saltado were soft from all the sauce, but bits of them were still crispy and firm, which added texture and helped this not turn into a giant bowl of mush. Despite being soaked in the soy ginger glaze, the potatoes retained their familiar, oil-fried flavor.

Next, I went for a cube of beef short rib. I had a feeling it would be good, because it's Rihanna's favorite after all, but the softness was beyond what I could have imagined or expected. I truly don't know that I've ever had meat that soft. The exterior was textured from browning, but as soon as I closed my mouth around it, the strings of meat completely fell apart. It was tender, juicy, and so flavorful. I was able to taste the ginger and soy, but also the natural flavor of the beef.

As I continued exploring the dish, I found the fragrant bed of white rice. There was what I'd consider to be the perfect amount of it. It wasn't so much that I felt like I was being cheated out of other ingredients, but it was enough so that I could have some with every bite of the meal from start to finish.

The starch was cooked well, in my opinion, which meant they were all distinctly individual grains, but they were also slightly sticky, which provided more texture and moisture rather than dryness.

Stir-fried onions and tomatoes also added to this deliciousness. The onion was thin and floppy, but also firm at the center which added some crunch. I loved the sweetness they added to the overall flavor profile, which was nicely juxtaposed against the bitterness of raw scallion used for topping.

Tomato wedges held onto their firm interior while providing a softer texture on the outside. The skin peeled slightly to expose the fruit's jammy flesh. They brought unique acidity to the dish, which I appreciated.

I also got some notes of heat that came from visible chili seeds and flakes, but the spice was mostly muted.

I wanted to decompress from the richness of my lunch, so I ordered a café Cubano (decaf, because my nervous system hasn't been loving caffeinated coffee these days).

The little cup of espresso with brown sugar was served hot, filled to the top, and perfectly sweet. There was just a slight undercurrent of brown sugar flavors, and there was no pile of half-dissolved granules at the bottom of the cup, which I sometimes get when I add sugar to a cappuccino. Unlike coffee with sugar, café Cubano is made by whisking the sugar with a bit of the espresso first to create a sweet foam crema, and then adding the rest of the espresso, according to Food & Wine. It felt like whoever made my coffee really cared about making it, taking the time to whisk the sugar so it fully disappeared.

It felt like a perfect end to the meal.

From the energetic atmosphere — which included a fun, made-for-mirror-pics bathroom mural — to the absolutely delicious food, I can see why Coppelia and its lomo saltado was a go-to for Rihanna whenever she was in town.

During my visit, the restaurant was filled with mostly small parties of one and two — some tables had three diners. The service was warm and welcoming from the moment I entered, and I got the feeling that it's a place where people go to relax, enjoy a long lunch, and catch up with a friend or coworker. I never felt rushed during the hour-plus I was sitting there.

The atmosphere can only do so much, though, in terms of a place being worth the hype — the food has to also be worthy of eating again, in my opinion. Everything I ate and drank tasted so fresh, and the lomo saltado was rich but not in an overwhelming way.

There was a lot of meat, and I didn't feel cheated for paying nearly $30 which, unfortunately, happens more than I'd like while at restaurants. There were maybe one or two short rib chunks that were mostly fat, but the rest were that deliciously soft beef.

I was also full halfway through my bowl and took the rest home for lunch the following day, so it was satisfying to get two full meals out of this one order.

I'll definitely be craving this beefy meal again soon, and when I'm back, I'll be hoping to run into Rihanna herself.