HAVANA GRILL

12/02/11

DONT GO HERE!!!!!!!!

by Jersey Girl02 at Citysearch

This was the worst Spanish food I have ever eaten. These people should be ashamed… I love Dominican & Puerto Rican Food. I was so excited to try this place. I ordered yellow rice & chicken the meal was dry and had no flavor What a waist of $$$ these people need to go back to Havana and get some cooking tips from abuela!!!!!!

11/19/11

Not very good.

by couponsignal at Citysearch

My wife and I had heard about this place and finally found time to visit and see for ourselves. Our visit was on Friday, November 18, 2011 at about 2PM. We are from the Caribbean and consider ourselves pretty good cooks and with a good knowledge of the Cuban, Dominican, and Puerto Rican cuisine.

The place appeared to be very clean. We ordered the yellow rice. I asked for the the red beans and the wife the black. Both ordered the pork. This comes with two slices of “Cuban” type bread. This with two sodas came out to about $21.00

Now the bad, the rice was extremely “mushy” and paste like and part clumpy. Some slang for these issues are “mogollado”, other “crudo”. The bean servings were of fairly good consistency but tasted like burnt “ahumado”. The pork was more “USA southern like” with a distinct vinegar flavor.

We were saddened because others had recommended this place to us. Maybe this was a fluke? Bat timing? But then on all the items ordered?

Not sure we will be returning (never say never again).

09/26/11

Best Catering Ever!!

by Petsrgreat at Citysearch

I have never had a bad experience with Havana Grill and once again this past weekend it was fantastic!

They catered a Cancer Benefit for a breast cancer patient and all of the food was over the top. Robert was on time to set up the food and to pick up after the event was over. His attention to detail always shows. I will continue to recommend him.

05/13/10

Please Don't Waste Your Money On This Place!

by luvscuba at Citysearch

I was very hopeful when I chose to have my husband take me to Havana Grill for a Friday evening dinner. I had read mixed reviews on this site as well as others, but still decided to take a chance and see if this restaurant might be a delightful surprise. I was truly disappointed.

After reading that the hot foods were suspect, and since I was really longing for a good cuban sandwich anyway, we ordered the special cuban and a pitcher of what they claim to be "fresh made sangria". We sat down on the patio and a server brought us the pitcher. The "sangria" was an abomination. It was basically cheap fruit punch with a small personal sized can of Libby's fruit cocktail thrown into it. There was no detectable wine in the pitcher whatsoever. It was so horrid that after a couple of glasses (while we deluded ourselves that surely it will be better as we get deeper into the pitcher), I brought the pitcher up to the counter and requested that they replace it with 2 bottles of beer (the cost of which didn't even come close to a substitution of the $14 cost of the pitcher), which they reluctantly acquiesced to.

Then the server brought out of cubans. They were nothing close to the cubans I was used to eating in Ybor City in Tampa near where I grew up. The pork was bland and flavorless and the bread was only slightly better than grocery store bread.

After talking with friends who had frequented this establishment when it first opened (and who do not now), apparently the food and service have gone straight downhill.

I left this place with a sour stomach and the firm resolution never to return. Please don't waste your money here. I have no better suggestion for a substitute cuban restaurant in the area, so if you get the hankering for some cuban, maybe get a cheap flight to south Florida!

Oh by the way, I intended to give this place zero starts, but apparently that is not an option on this site. Please consider my review ZERO STARS.

• Pros: None
• Cons: Everything

03/31/10

I go here often for lunch

by soccer425 at Citysearch

I'll be the first to admit that I don't have a lot of authentic cuban experiences to compare this to, and it may or may not be what some call authentic, but I think it is very tasty stuff. My favorite is to get the slow cooked pork with black beans and yellow rice. Reasonably priced, very appetizing, and convenient. I would recommend trying it out.

• Pros: Excellent food, quick service,
• Cons: None