We came here on a Friday night and were seated with no issue around 6:45pm. We were in the bar area at a high top for our party of 8. Parking was easy in their shared lot of the strip mall and there was lots of open space in the restaurant. Our server was super paient with us as some of our party arrived later and we took our time to order, just catching up on our lives. There were so many good options on the menu, filled with Cuban classics, and a few unexpected items such as a caprese salad. I ended up going with the churrasco steak, which was at a great price point. I got it medium rare and it came out a short time later perfectly cooked. The skirt steak was nice and chewy and the chimichurri sauce it came with was amazing! So flavorful, but light. The server was able to spit the check by couple with ease! read more

Just received my order, and was disappointed. My mariquitas are stale & fried in old oils, extremely dark. My steak sandwich seems like half a steak, the other piece is missing the meat, and had mayonnaise which I said no mayo. Entire meal very disappointing. read more

Mambo's Cafe - Burned plantains chips, and an entire steak sandwich with this little piece of meat. Mariquitas Pan con Bistec Sandwich Lunch - Cuban Near Me - Alpharetta, Georgia

I've always enjoyed Mambo's, but I've noticed a concerning decline in the quality of their food lately. On two separate occasions, I ordered the Lomo Saltado to go, and unfortunately, both times the beef was dry and overcooked, lacking the rich flavor that should define this classic dish. While the prices continue to rise, the food quality has noticeably decreased. As a proud Peruvian, I truly appreciate the art of Lomo Saltado, and I hope Mambo's can return to the exceptional standards I know they are capable of. read more

Food always fresh and prepared as requested. The service is good as well! One of my Alpharetta go to read more

Ordered through Uber Eats last night 4:48 pm. Ticket #80, $86.66, Windward, Alpharetta location. Mambos came highly recommended and mostly for the Vaca Frita. Unfortunately the Vaca Frita was inedible because it was so overcooked and dried out. The onions were just black thin strips because they were cooked to death. We tried to give it some moisture but just could not chew it enough to swallow. This should not have been allowed out of the kitchen! Love Cuban food and thought we found our place. I should mention that the rest of the dishes were okay. We hope this situation gets corrected so we can try again but this time with a dish that has some moisture/gravy or sauce with it. Can someone assure us this won't happen again? read more

Been coming here for years. In the past great food, excellent service and a tad higher priced, but worth it. The last two times noticed the service has really slipped with a new crew. Today thought we would try it again. First, lousy service by the waitress. Food prices have been increased to a ridiculous level. Sweet tea $4 each Two empanadas $12 Cuban sandwich $17 Side cup of black beans $8 Was told they no longer have back bean soup. What? It's a Cuban restaurant. The Cuban sandwich was 30% breath with mustard only. The cup of back beans 2/3 full. Never one time came back to refill sweet tea. Guess it's time to go elsewhere. read more

Mambo's Cafe - Empty bread, beans missing - Cuban Near Me - Alpharetta, Georgia

See all

Great food, love their steak, plantains, rice. Server was very nice, informative and patient w our questions. The colorful decor makes for a fun atmosphere. read more

See all

The service and food was great, haven't had paella in awhile and this seafood paella was amazing and the plantains WOW read more

Mambo's Cafe - The service was great and so was the seafood paella & the plantains. Definitely a sleeper and a keeper!! - Cuban Near Me - Alpharetta, Georgia

The food is Amazing and fantastic service! I highly recommend this and the Buford location.

Such great food here. We have been to Mambos probably 25 times and it' great. Service has always been pretty good in the dining room section, not always the case in the bar area. The Mambos mixed grill for 2 is the best. read more

Finally found a descent Cuban Restaurant in this God forsaken Atlanta metro. Had to drive an hour away to Alpharetta, but, hey, it was worth it! The Papa Rellenas are full of meat (not "siegas". The Ropa Vieja was "dingo del gusto de abuela", The Bistec de Palomilla was cooked perfectly (and was thicker than most other places, but not too thick). The black beans were fantastic and bot the yellow and white rices were "al punto" . Lastly, the Tres Leches was delicious. Our waitresses fantastic; friendly and checked on us often. She fell in love with our grandkid. Lastly, they actually play Cuban music, both old style and some Salsa (No Reguetón, thank goodness). Don't get me wrong; as a Boricua, I enjoy Regetón, but only at a party or PR restaurants. NOT at any of my other Latino brothers' restaurants. read more

What an awesome find in this area. The food was delicious. We got the fish, chicken and a few other options amongst the group. The server was great and helped us figure out what to get. The place is very casual and can accommodate large groups. read more

See all

The Peruvian dishes were excellent. We got takeout to bring home as we don't live close. Looks like a cozy place to dine.

Sour sausage, mushy shrimp and disappointing results. My husband and I went to the Windward location on a Saturday night. Happily there wasn't a wait. We ordered drink which they do make so pretty, ate some yummy empanada's and had a good caprese salad. We were looking forward to our seafood paella to come out. It was so pretty, I took a picture. BUT then I said, what smells sour?? It was the chorizo - it was on the edge we pulled that out. Then the shrimp were mushy - not fresh and were stinky. The clams and mussells were good but you could tell they weren't washed and there were shells in our food. The dish was bland and didn't have the signature paella crisp on the bottom. I asked for lemons and salt to help it out. We expressed our disappointment to our server and the manager did come out and listen and offered us a "discount". We ended up just not eating anymore after that. Shockingly our discount was insultingly $13 off a $46 dish. We likely won't back. read more

Dinner was delicious' been looking for a closer Cuban place and Peruvian is an added bonus. They catered a lunch at work and I couldn't wait to try it in person :-) Went with my husband who loves Ropa Vieja and he said it was great! I had the Lechon Asado. And a signature house cocktail with Tostones Rellenos was an appetizing start! It's a large space! Has an outdoor area. Is located down from the cigar bar, so if you're smoke sensitive sit inside. They offer a large array of beverage (adult) and the guava cheesecake had a lovely layer of guava on top! The prices are reasonable and make it a possible, go to place. We will be going again and have already suggested to it the ladies at work for our next night out! Thanks for a delicious dinner! read more

Mambo's Cafe - Pisco Punch! - Cuban Near Me - Alpharetta, Georgia

See all

This review was left unpublished for some reason. Delicious food & great service. We will be coming back again and again.

Horrible place . The waiter is horrible . The lady doesn't take anything serious. I went with two friends. We got one salad , one lomo saltado, 1 saltado. We sat all the way on the back left. The lady can't follow directions on the order. I asked her for a military discount and she laughs and said they don't support the military discount. I paid looked away for a second and she took my food(half the plate) and through it away. Laughed about it and did nothing to make it up. Fuck this shitty ass place and I'm Cuban! read more

Love the food here - feels healthy and not too heavy or fried. Our go to when family is in town

This place is great. The food is excellent. Lots of choices you can't find anywhere else. The staff is great too. Get the empanadas for sure. read more

This place is always spot on! The fish is so fresh! Grouper, snapper, shrimp and calamari! Service is exceptional and the price is right! Oh, and I didn't mention their black beans! Amazing! read more

Mambo's Cafe - Cuban Near Me - Alpharetta, Georgia

So happy Mambos survived COVID! I have been a fan since they were at their old location on Haynes Bridge. Visited tonight and was happy to see they were packed! This means they are popular so shouldn't be going anywhere anytime soon. It was the first time I've been where there wasn't one parking spot available in the lot and had to park across the way at Lowe's. Even being that busy, they seated us right away with our reservation. They did have people waiting and asked them to wait in their cars and they would text them when their table was ready. The wait was about 20-25 minutes. The service was a bit slow because they were short staffed but they were still on top of everything once we finally got a server. Because we waited for a server for a good fifteen minutes we all realized when he came we needed to have food and drink orders ready to go. There were seven of us so I made sure to ask for a pitcher of water for the table. I've been there before where we are at the end of the meal and the server hasn't returned to check on us and everyone needs water. So it was a must to ask and they gladly brought one. It took a bit to bring everything to the table that was ordered. The beverages didn't actually come till after the food. My gripe here is the heavy pour. Having more alcohol isn't always a good thing because it can ruin what a drink is supposed to taste like. This was the case for all of the drinks. We were here celebrating a birthday and they allowed us to bring in our own cake and they provided plates and spoons. The servers were super friendly and helpful. I will always come back. Other things that are great on the menu are the Relleno de Papa, Tostones, Chicken Milanesa, Cuban Sandwich...just everything....you really can't go wrong if you are craving a Latin inspired meal. read more

See all

I originally reviewed Mambo's Cafe (Alpharetta) in 2016, giving 5 stars for the overall combination of great Cuban and Peruvian dishes, good service, value, and upbeat ambiance. Sadly, much has changed in the last 7 years. The menu is essentially the same, but execution has declined. After two consecutive dissatisfying experiences here in the last few months, I've downgraded my rating, and I would be hard-pressed to return. The experience a few months ago involved slow service, lukewarm food, and failure to prepare food as requested. The main issue with the latter is that I requested my steak (part of mixed grill) prepared Medium Well. It was brought Rare...after a long wait, too. They took the steak back by itself and cooked it appropriately, but this sort of threw off the cadence of the meal. I wrote this all off as a bad night... stuff happens, right? However, today I had another experience that convinced me that Mambo's has really gone downhill. This time, I ordered the Parrillada de Mariscos (seafood grill) ($38) while my friend got the Churrasco (skirt steak) and pesto pasta combination ($28). Food was brought relatively quickly yet again, temperatures were inconsistent. Some items on the plates were hot while others were luke warm. Odd and not appealing. But the big issue: My seafood dish included octopus, and it was so rubbery that it was inedible. I would compare it to trying to chew a thick piece of rubber hose. (A rare instance of having to spit out food...ick). Now I realize that octopus, like squid, can be tricky. It can be tough if undercooked, but it will quickly become rubbery if overcooked. It's got to be cooked really fast (like hot grill 60 seconds) or marinated and very slow cooked (like an hour). I'm not sure what happened in this case, but I'm guessing that the food prep has become sloppy and inattentive, resulting in an overcooked disaster. I often choose to hold back on complaints, but for a $38 entree, I expect all the ingredients to be at least acceptable (and edible). So I told our waitress. To my surprise, she just looked dumbfounded and unsure what to do. She said, "Oh, sorry, so do you want me to leave that out of your to go box?" Seriously? That's it? After feeling a little more annoyed, I asked to talk to the manager. The manager came; she was polite and offered to have them prepare a couple of pieces of octopus for me to take home with leftovers. So, at this point, my thinking was, "let it go..." The waiter brought a similar portion of octopus. Out of curiosity, I cut a piece to taste. Better - it was at least edible. Yet still a little tough. (Have these cooks not been trained?) As prepared years ago at this restaurant, the dish was cooked with a little olive oil but not much. It was "clean" and full of distinct tastes of the various ingredients. Now? Excessive oil...swimming in oil! Looks like it's in a sauce, and everything tastes the same. Again... sloppy preparation! Did Covid and the labor shortage ruin Mambo's? read more

Mambo's Cafe - Parrillada De Mariscos - $38 (issue: rubbery octopus and swimming in oil) - Cuban Near Me - Alpharetta, Georgia

We came here on a weekday and I was happy with their warm welcome. Here is the summary of my experience Ambiance - 4/5: The ambiance is a stark difference between the bar and the seating area. While the bar looks chic and upscale, the restaurant area has been given a rustic vibe. I am not a fan of rustic places with open AC ducts but others might like it. Service 4/5: The service was really good with the staff helping me understand all the dishes and being ready to modify them with a smile. They brought bread for us without us asking for it. But in general, the service was slow, we had to wait for some time even for the water to arrive - This happened when the restaurant was not so crowded Food 4/5: The food was a mix of hits and misses: 1. Pollo Saltado: The pollo saltado was served with rice and had a tangy flavor which I really liked because it was close to an Indian flavor. The chicken was moist and the portion was large so I took it home and had another bite the next day 2. Chicken Empanadas: I had their famous empanadas but I didn't personally love them. Value for Money 4/5: The place is not cheap with a majority of the dishes above $15-20 but the quantity is huge so you can take it home and have another bite most of the time. In summary, I would definitely come to try a few more dishes and give it a try once more PS: The green chutney with the bread is really spicy ;) read more

See all

Expensive and low value for the money. This used to be one of our favorite restaurants. They've raised the prices ridiculously expensive. $31 for ceviche de pescado. No thank you. They used to use a halibut for their ceviche. They are now using a cheap white fish. No thank you. read more

Love, love, love this place! The food portions are huge, service is great and drinks are so good. You can tell they put a lot of care into making the food. I've enjoyed everything I've tried so far. read more

See all

Birthday dinner with our family. This was the first time at Mambo's Cafe. The food & cocktails were delicious! The service was good. read more

See all

I got the trout special tonight. I get trout all the time so I have a comparison. It tasted old and fishy and the sauce was terrible. The waiter came around and asked us if we were enjoying our dinner. I told him I was not and that I would not recommend the special trout dish tonight to anybody else. He nodded and then walked away and never said anything else about it? I left it on the plate pretty much untouched, but he never acknowledged it. Most places would have said can I get you something else instead? read more

The food didn't last long enough to get pictures. Outstanding. Everything perfectly prepared. My mouth is watering thinking about it. Support this small business. You won't be disappointed read more

My last day in Atlanta, I went with two coworkers to Mambo's Cafe. One of the coworkers I went with was a manager of the office . We had spoken a number of times on the phone, but while in Atlanta got to know him. Its funny to have found someone working for my company who also was originally from South Florida and had moved and worked for the company. Anyway he knew I probably missed Cuban food after moving to Northwest Ohio, so we all went to Mambo's. Place is well decorated and clean. The staff is friendly. We were immediately sat down and we ordered some croquetas de jamon. Our other coworker, who came with us never had Cuban food so it was an experience for him. When he took a bite of the croqueta, it was flavor overload for him. I have to say, I loved having some after so long without. We each ordered our main courses, I had a bistec de palomilla, white rice, black beans and plantains. The food was amazing! Totally authentic to what you can find down in Miami. Oh how happy I was eating here! Anyone who loves Cuban food or wants to try it, should definitely come to Mambos! read more

See all

Foods good and consistent service has been good every time we've been there except last time but we've been quite often. It's a nice clean place. The green sauce with the bread is awesome, it's hot so a little goes a long way. read more

One of my go-to places for Latin food, Mambo's, offers an extensive range of dishes. The Peruvian dishes are excellent and compare well to my meals in Lima, Peru. The Caribbean dishes are also great. The fried green plantain (Mariquitas) strips are perfect (and in large portions). Arroz Chaufa is a delicious Peruvian take on Asian stir-fry rice. But my favorite is the MasasDe Puerco Frita. My wife raved about the Parillada de Mariscos she had last week; it was huge, so come hungry or split between two. I'm getting a Paella on my next visit, as they look good. The ambiance is pleasing but can get loud if it is more than half-full. Service and food quality has been good on the dozens of visits over the years. read more

Mambo's came highly recommended from our friends and since I am a HUGE Peruvian food lover, we were excited to see what the hype was all about. Unfortunately, all we experienced were crazy lines, an overly packed restaurant, and low quality food. I ordered the papas rellanas thinking they'd be similar to Porto's spicy potato balls. They were so bland and dry- completely the opposite. The empanadas were the worst thing we ordered and were completely inedible. Hard, thick, and bland. We barely touched them. The plantains were undercooked and/or unripe, chicken had no flavor, and ceviche was chewy and much too sour. I am not sure why this restaurant is so popular apart from their large portions. read more

See all

Always love this place!! Have ordered almost everything on the menu and it never disappoints. The Pisco sour is a classic!! read more

Mambo's Cafe - Cuban Near Me - Alpharetta, Georgia

Great Cuban and Peruvian food. The staff was great. I went with a big group-the table can be a bit tight when you go as a group. I got the Angus Churassco Steak and it was delicious. It comes with your choice of yellow or white rice and plantains. Parking is available. read more

Mambo's Cafe - Cuban Near Me - Alpharetta, Georgia

Excellent Peruvian foods! Enjoyed the food and the stellar service. Alex, our server, was so helpful to fully understand the menu. Those were the next empanadas I've had. read more

See all

The enchilado de vegetales is BOMB. And the bread and green sauce?? I could eat that every day. read more

Mambo's Cafe - Enchilado de Vegetales - Cuban Near Me - Alpharetta, Georgia

I have only done takeout from here but the food is awesome. Everything has been great Servers are extremely pleasant and friendly. Would recommend to anyone who enjoys Cuban food read more

Fresh great variety and generous portions. Efficient service, great liquor selection. Could beef up the wine list.

My wife is Peruvian who moved to the States at 16. I have been to Peru and eaten the food there. All I can say is. My wife and I LOVED the Peruvian food here. The Leche de Tigre Ceviche was fantastic! And my chaufa was the best. The service was top notch and the environment was so welcoming. We are so grateful we found this place. As it's been so hard to find good Peruvian food in our area. 10/10 recommend! read more

Came for Father's Day, it was busy but the food and service were still great. Had the chicken and beef empanadas, Lomo Saltado, and finished it off with a Cuban coffee read more

Mambo's Cafe - Cuban Coffee Espresso - Cuban Near Me - Alpharetta, Georgia

See all