Calle Ocho

11/08/09

Okay birthday dinner...

by Flushingsfinest08

I took my boyfriend here for his birthday tonight based on the reviews on here, and was disappointed. The sangria from the "sangria bar" was terribly watered down - to the point that they all tasted the same. The ceviches were ok, but were extremely skimpy on the seafood (bf had the Huachinga(sp?) ceviche and loved it). I had the Tilapia, it lacked flavor, but the hearts of palm it came with was really good. What was a real downer though, was the fact that this place has a really limited menu to begin with, and they didn't have any of the steak dishes tonight! SUPER annoying, since that is what the b-day boy felt like having. Oh, and the arepas they serve when you first arrive are to die for.

• Pros: Decent ceviche, good arepas
• Cons: Limited menu, and half of it wasn't even available

06/06/09

Brunch was sooo fun!

by applemanKT

I went to Calle Ocho for my birthday brunch and had a great time. The service was fine, and because of the unlimited Sangria, i didn't want to be rushed outta there anyway. I had bites of all of my friend's dishes and other than the vegetarian polenta dish--it was all delish. I tried most of the different sangrias and they weren't too sweet or watered down. Overall, I must say I will return for "drunk brunch" again.

• Pros: unlimited sangria with brunch, great food
• Cons: little pricey for brunch

05/11/09

Amazing Ambiance

by RRivas427

One of the most amazing cuban restaurants I have been to in a long time. The food was amazing and the drinks were great. It is extremely trendy and the ambiance is always happening. Resonable prices.....

• Pros: Great Food

03/21/09

Over-priced for Average Food

by uesreview

We first tried Calle Ocho during 'Restaurant Week' and weren't that impressed. The restaurant is nicely designed and spacious, but the food isn't worth the prices. I'm thinking it might be a decent place for Mojitos and appetizers during happy hour in the front lounge part.

• Pros: Nice location; Nice Atmosphere
• Cons: Pricey; small portions

12/13/08

The food is not very good, service - fluctuates.

by meni_m

went there a few years ago, and for some reason didnt really like it, dont really remember why.

there are enough places in NYC so you dont have to go back to a place you didnt like.

went there for the second time for a friends Bday dinner after another friend didnt stop praising it....

it all started with them not having the only dish i really wanted (what kind of restaurant can not offer two of their dishes on a Saturday night?)

i had to pick a steak. so did 3 other people in the party.

my steak was...odd. very chewy. had to send it back (i really dont do that usually)

20 minutes later, i still had no steak, everyone else was done.

had to cancel my order...

my girlfriend dish was like pure salt, mojitos took forever to come and a friend that asked for extra sauce got it after he was already finished.

the bread at the beginning was amazing! but that's where it ends.

my take? dont bother.

• Pros: bread
• Cons: slow service by the waitress, food.

11/05/08

good but not special

by sscottw

I've had Calle Ocho a few times and I wasn't as impressed as my other friends. If you want to try it, save your money and try it out for dinner. The restaurant is nice and the service good but there's nothing that stands out about the food. It's overrated in my opinion.

08/04/08

service weak - food bad - go to another new uws place

by eatsny

waste of time and money. service is slow . restaurant week was awful and food was mediocre. frozen dinners taste better than the food here. it's loud and noisy and needs major improvement. go to new place opening on uws est branch.

• Pros: none
• Cons: bad food and service

07/29/08

Restaurant Week Loser

by ack2gurl

Went here last night for dinner and had the restaurant dinner menu. The empanada crust was dry and the interior salty and a ground up amalgamation of gosh only knows what. The crusted mahi-mahi mentioned elsewhere was awful. Mrs Pauls could and has done better. The service was well meaning but extremely slow. All in all I would never return to this loud, noisy over priced upper westside restaurant.

• Pros: Not sure there really were any
• Cons: Mahi Mahi a disgusting fried fish entree

07/29/08

Mediocre at best...

by lizbazos

Went here last night for restaurant week and was not really impressed..drinks were good but too sweet and expensive. Dinner for restuarant week- appetizer was GREAT! some sort of beef empanada. Dinner I had "plantain encrusted mahi-mahi". well, it was kida just fried fish..on top of a disgusting mix of dried out plaintains mixed with sweet onions and bacon. pretty gross. dessert was great. service was okay, nice people but i have never in my life waited so long for food. i mean, it felt like at least 40 min between appetizers and main course. i probably wouldn't go back.

• Pros: Cool Ambience
• Cons: Expensive, food not very good

07/25/08

Great Latino Food in the Upper West Side

by Osado

Went here with a large group for Summer Restaurant Week. It was great! Yummy Latino food and cocktails, service was great and prompt. Not to mention the salsa and merengue music adds to the feel that you're actually in a restaurant in Latin America. Aside from the food, they provide pan de queso (cheese bread) before your first course and I have to say it was very deliciso! These pan de queso reminded me of home in Ecuador. One misconception that my friends had was that this was a full Cuban restaurant which is not. The menu items listed different dishes from several Latin american countries. Overall I would defintiely come back here with date.

• Pros: Food, Service, Cheese Bread!
• Cons: Dessert could be more diverse.