Cuba

Recommends

omor87

Joined 1 year ago

very romantic, great food!!!. I took my boyfriend here for his birthday on a weeknight. we were seated right away between the cigar roller and the live band. we had amazing mojito23 cocktails its like a mojito with champagne. i had 2 and well i guess im a lightweight because it got me kind of drunk lol!!!

We had amazing apetizers (although very small) and as soon as we were done with that we got our entree all within 20 minutes of us being there, the staff were really friendly and efficient. it was definately romantic and intimate. ive been downstaires before and definately not as intimate as the top floor. i made a reservation a week ahead and the room was pretty empty mabe 3 other tables were full so it was nice.

we were out of there within an hour very satisfied. we tipped thhe cigar roller and he gave us 4 cigars! he was really nice. overall a great experience, a little pricey but well worth it. ill definately go back.

Recommends

PhillipLisa

Joined 8 years ago

GREAT Cuban Food Experience...!. Ok, let’s start with the atmosphere/vibe of all Luis Skibar owned restaurants: clean/neat , festive/lively, chatty - a good thing (dislike quiet places – don’t get me wrong, you can have a perfect romantic evening here and hear each other’s conversation!), warm/inviting and romantic all rolled into one! The food is outstanding, Chef – Mario Garcia has kept the high standards every day – consistently. Very generous portions! The staff do their duties to the upmost, but also have fun and can mingle. Happy employees make for a happy restaurant and impeccable service. Now, Eduardo is one of the best bartender’s, excuse me – mixologist in NYC. He is passionate and dedicated to everything he is creating from scratch using the freshest of ingredients. Come a little early before having dinner or after or come in just to experience some of the great tropical drinks that are offered year round, at his bar. The sangria and mojitos are some of the best in all of NYC, if not THE. The two hostesses on the weekend and the one during the week (sorry, lovely people but do not know their names – yet) are friendly, pleasant and accommodating. Jose Martinez the cigar maker, gives you a complimentary fresh/hand rolled cigar to top off your meal. The wait staff are all great BUT one in particular – Tony is a gentleman and a pleasure to have gotten to know. He is very attentive and makes great recommendations if you are not sure about something on the menu. My wife and I try a different dish each time we come there. We used to go to their sister restaurant – Havana Alma De Cuba on a regular basis when Giovanny Campos (now partner at Yerba Buena) was the manager, so we have switched up and have agreed to divide our time 60% at Cuba and 40% at Havana. It’s like “la familia” (family ) again – all over. To owner and staff, keep up the great work!

PS – The live musicians are an added plus!

Doesn't Recommend

jeffrotul

Joined 5 years ago

Bad food, rude waitstaff. Took a cab ride here especially to try the cuban but my wife and I found the food to be pretty bad and the staff's attitude to be even worse. Don't waste your time here.

Recommends

berger_jane

Joined 5 years ago

Good Cuban food on this continent. It is not pricey for the area and well worth it for the quality of food that you do get. The staff is extremely kind and can answers all your questions about the food and what the different dishes taste like.

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evody

Joined 3 years ago

Decent food, great drinks, great music. You can't beat the location of this place. Lots of bars and restaurants in the village. Getting in was easy, but the layout of the restaurant was strange. Upstairs is where the live music and environment is at. If it's full, you go downstairs to a dark room that feels very segregated from the rest of the restaurant. We ended up down there with two groups of people, one of which was beyond obnoxiously loud. I'm a New Yorker AND latino and I thought they were loud. This has nothing to do with them, other than we were squeezed into a tight space. If you can stay upstairs, do it.

Let me start with presentation being the best thing they do. Food looks amazing on the plate and make you want to eat until you explode. I have mixed emotions about the food though. I ordered the Ceviche and immediately was overwhelmed with the taste of cilantro. Whomever prepared it went overboard. It was prepared perfectly and had an amazing taste aside from that. We also had the shrimp stuffed platanos (first bite should be over a plate) which were ok. I had their chicken soup with yet again more cilantro. Completely not necessary for chicken soup.

Our main courses were mozzarella and shrimp stuffed chicken with mashed potatoes, ropa vieja with rice and the paella valencia. The mashed potatoes were amazing. Great flavor and consistancy. The chicken however was just ok. Usage of the cheese was a nice change but seemed a bit out of place. The ropa vieja was presented in a very cool cup made of plantain chips. Unfortunately it was bland. This is one of my favorite meals and is comfort food to me. I was looking forward to it, but found it to be just mediocre. Rice was ok as well as the beans. The paella looked beautiful. I was very anxious to eat this meal. The taste, unfortunately, was yet again bland. The mussels were gritty, the rice was grainy and chicken was dry.

Our mixed drinks were amazing. Do yourself a favor and be sure to have a few. The caipirinha I had was so on point. The other two ordered pina coladas which were both great.

Overall I would go back again but try to stay upstairs with the live music. If you're not latino, you'll find that their food is flavored just right. Being latino, I know how each of those plates should taste, having made them for years.

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gaiamcraft

Joined 7 years ago

Excellent food and service. This place is a goldmine. Really innovative delicious food where the chef is not afraid to risk combining flavours. The atmosphere is live and fun, and even though there is no space, makes you want to get up and move. Everything from apps to desserts is great. The tres leche cake has a nice pineapple twist, so does the tuna salad sharing itself with watermelon/onion.

Make reservations, this place gets packed. Also great drinks, especially Mondays where they offer a great price.

Recommends

tngreene

Joined 4 years ago

Loved this place!. Great food, I really thought that this restaurant was special. Really Special. Actually, I'm just testing functionality. Please ignore this review!

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uniblab

Joined 10 years ago

Great Cuban food! Fun Staff!. Went on a spring afternoon for my wifes b-day. It was some of the best cuban I've had outside of Miami. The prices were reasonable and the portions were, well, you'll leave full. The food presentation was very original. In short, we both really liked this place.

My wife had a ceviche appetizer which she said rivaled her grandmas. I had a cuban tamale which was great. I had my favorite , ropa vieja, and it was was moist and flavorfle the way it should be. Futher it was served in a "bowl" made of fried plantains.

Oh, and the mojitos lived up to there award winning status.

We had my sister inlaws birthday there and we had 14 people. The put us in this small prvate room. Everyone was happy.

Doesn't Recommend

bell231

Joined 4 years ago

cuba. some people say cuba is one of the most ugly country in the world because of its conditional background... but seee this, restaurant of hope, if i say, some how it changed my perception...

Recommends

cooldev

Joined 4 years ago

very nice place. very nice atmosphere.

nice peoples around

nice peoples around

nice peoples around

nice peoples around nice peoples around

nice peoples around

i love it.