Really nice place. The food is great. I enjoyed myself My friend really loves coming here . I go again soon someday read more

Melanie's Restaurant - Delicious - Caterers Near Me - Newark, New Jersey

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Very good. Flavorful. Large portions & great prices. Old school. Local spot many options. read more

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Lately pork and all of the food I have eaten have been way too salty. I used to love the pernil. I don't think I will be ordering food from there anymore. read more

La mujeres son mal Geniadas y déspotas.................................................................................................................................................................... read more

Love this place! Been around for DECADES! Tasty food, good selection, GREAT prices, great portion sizes. Staff is super nice. read more

Melanie's Restaurant - chicken breast with arroz con gondules (yellow rice n peas) to go. Great portions for GREAT prices - Caterers Near Me - Newark, New Jersey

I had my Christmas Eve dinner catered by this place. I took a chance because I've never eaten here but the prices were too good to pass up and the reviews were pretty good. I couldn't of been happier. The food was delicious. My personal favorite was the the congri rice. I also ordered sweet plantains, yuca, BBQ chicken, fried fish, macaroni salad, white rice. Thanks Melanie's! read more

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Came because we are in the area. It is very smoky inside but the food is very good. The beef and chicken empanadas is very good. We prefer the beef over the chicken. The stew beef and chicken is very tender and flavorful. Staff was nice but some limited English. read more

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My review is BASED ONLY, STRICTLY, SOLELY, on their CUBAN SANDWICH!! That is my disclaimer. So if you go and have a disappointing meal, it's not my fault. However, if you go and have a delicious Cuban sandwich, then feel free to thank me. Melanie's makes great cuban's. Go have one and enjoy! read more

I love this restaurant food is delicious portion size is great very friendly staff service is great! I go at least twice a month!

I went for lunch today with a friend of mine and we both had the oxtail with brown rice, which comes with bean. It was cooked great and very tasty. We also had sweet plantains on the side. The food was great and staff was very friendly, they asked us if we needed anything a bunch of times. read more

Waited more than 30 min and no one took my order. their service is trash. It doesn't even get 1star. Ladies don't know how to speak. Going for better service at taínos. read more

Good food and decent prices! I've been coming here for over 20 years.

I loved this place when I interned in 2010 at a near-by school. The staff are always super nice and welcoming, I do not speak spanish, nor do I look Latino, but they treated me like family. Their chicken stew is to DIE for, and I absolutely LOVE their Shrimp in sauce....it's soooooooo good. I also frequently ordered their homemade empanadas...YUMM I'm looking forward to going tomorrow for the first time in over a year and a half :) you wont be disappointed when you go! **Don't forget to Bring Cash though.** read more

I am a sucker for "mom and pop", "hole in the wall" joints. Yes, ambiance and atmosphere have their place but when I am looking for good hardy grub, those requirements fall by the wayside. First and foremost, if you don't speak Spanish, you will be at a disadvantage. I am an adventurous eater so I don't let a little language barrier get me down but if you are a person easily fazed when out of your element, bring a Spanish speaking friend. Some of the waitresses speak some English but on my second trip there, the waitress spoke no English. However, the staff try really hard to work with you. Don't pull that speaking English at the top of your lungs crap, it won't work and will not get you any closer to a hot meal. I did a lot of pointing and worked my best high school Spanish, which was sad and pathetic to say the least but in the end, I was able to put my order in with no problem. The food is served cafeteria style. By that, I mean its all behind glass, you point to what you want, they dish it up, reheat it and bring it to your table. My friend ordered a stewed steak dish which came with rice and bean, I got an oxtail entrée which came with rice and beans, 2 passion fruit shakes (which kicked ass) and a Cuban sandwich to go for 25 bucks. HELLO can I get an Amen! The menu changes everyday. On our second trip, my coworker and another friend both order the stew, which was slap your mama good. I ordered the stewed pork ribs which was fantastic but required some work due to having to eat around rib bones. We had our choice of rice and beans, I got the black rice, Ahmad got rice with red beans and Bruce got the rice with the pigeon peas. Again, we order two shakes, and a diet Coke...all for 27 bucks!!! They had a nice looking shrimp dish available that looked dynamite but cafeteria style shrimp just seemed kind of dodgy to me, so I passed. Pro: Good, cheap food, super-duper fruit shakes, nice wait staff Con: English is limited, can be a little on the salty side, the rice can be a little dry from sitting out cafeteria style read more

Old time favorite location since I was a child. Moved out of Newark over 18 years ago and this place has not lost it's touch! Went in last weekend for a quick grab and it was everything I wanted and more. Fresh stewed chicken, steak with onions, their black rice, yuca, and so much more! So many option prepared waiting for you or an awesome menu to select from and receive fresh meals! It's a win! read more

Very hard to find decent Spanish food near me, and Melanie's definitely satisfies my cravings for yummy latin dishes. The location is definitely not the best, but it's worth making a quick trip to take-out the food to bring back home and enjoy. The employees are a bit rushy at times, but I can't really blame them since every time I go in, they are always very busy with several customers at once. The food is tasty and I love the fact that they have tons of meals already prepared and ready to be boxed to-go in no time. I recommend getting the food to go since the restaurant is a bit dim and uncomfortable, but hey, that's just my preference. Either way, I definitely recommend them for their dishes, hefty portion sizes, and extremely affordable prices. Favorite dishes at Melanie's: - Pechuga de pollo - Arroz con gandules - Tostones - Yuca rellena - Bistec encebollado read more

The food at Melanie's always has me wanting more! It is always on point and served with a smile. This is a definite go-to place in North Newark! read more

I asked for a flan yesterday in the afternoon after I ordered two cubans and told her to keep the change. When I got home I found mold on the flan and the cuban sandwiches tasted funky and were so messy! You guys just lost a good customer!!! read more

The food is delicious but there's this one waitress who never puts my money in my hand and always seems to be annoyed. I'm not sure if its because I'm black or because hates her job. So in short, food is great but the service sucks read more

Melanie's Cuban Style Restaurant is a gem. The staff is very friendly and helpful. The food is excellent, very tasty. The prices are great--but accept cash only. Local Hispanics frequent this restaurant. They do take out, but there are about a half dozen booths seating 4 and counter service too. Our favorites are the salads with sliced avocado, plentiful ice water with lime, fried fish, beef/chicken stew, yucca w/ onion, red or black beans with white or yellow rice. Enjoy. read more

It is true, there is a particular Cuban restaurant several feet away from Melanie's that prepares a delicious Cuban sandwich, but the place doesn't compare to Melanie's other dishes, bacalao and yucca, a variety of rices and beans and their delicious shakes. I'm also impressed at the waitresses, they make you feel welcome and very insistent to your needs. The prices are very fair and worth their delicious Hispanic cuisine. read more

The food is ok the parking can be a challenge they would get a 5 but it takes forever for them to answer the phone there fluatas are my favorite read more

This small cuban restaurant in the midst of a busy street in North Jersey is definitely where to go for some authentic cuban cuisine. This urban area consists of a lot of ethnic restaurants and shops, making it easy to see why Melanie's isn't a place you would go without first knowing about it from a friend or other forms of word of mouth. Obviously, not many people around here use Yelp, making it all the more obvious that this place is indeed authentic. We even had to ask for translations of some of the food and do a bit of point-and-ask to know what the dishes were that were displayed in the window. They had delicious fresh fruit shakes (although I do not recommend Tamarind). I got the ox tail rice dish along with a papaya shake and it was great. They also have cuban sandwiches here, but I heard there's a better place nearby. read more

Great prices, decent service and authentic cuban flavoring. The Moro was on point, the yuca could have used some mojito as I prefer it wet and extra garlicky . I went there in the afternoon craving breakfast and was able to indulge in just that. The morir soñado was on point and delicious, I couldn't stop at just one but at $2.50 a cup why would you. read more

Great local place. Had the steak with onions with tostones and maduros. Like the food here at reasonable cost.

If your craving affordably priced authentic Cuban food and your in the neighborhood then make sure you try out Melanie's, you won't be disappointed and you'll walked out bursting stuffed at the seams and shell shocked at just how little you paid. read more

A little tough to communicate for non-Spanish speakers, but the servers are friendly and the food is always good. It is also quite inexpensive. Nothing to look at, but a great neighborhood joint. read more

Please believe me!!! Always friendly service from ALL the servers!!! My friends come all the way from Union City, NJ to eat here!!! Food is EXCELLENT!!! Shrimp is AWESOME!!! Oxtails are AWESOME!!! Workers are AWESOME!!! I just want to know...WHO'S NEXT?!?! I LOVE THIS PLACE...Yours truly...Teresita!!! read more

Average... Not authentic Cuban food. It could be better. The Cuban sandwich is good.

Whole in the wall Cuban spot - usually competes with Omar's across the street. The cuban here was much better. Also fruit smoothies/shakes were delicious. Prices can't be beat - cuban sandwich was only $4. Shake $2. Bring cash - they don't accept credit cards. read more

Nothing special, but I liked it. It's cheap and you get a lot of food. I think they also do a lot of take-out. I really liked the mango milk shake that I got. I would go back. read more

Very good food but just wish they would speak a little more english...the facility was very clean and never an empty seat, but the only thing I found a problem with was no parking in the front or in the rear and the result of that I wound up paying the city of newark nj $45.00. Plus the bill for my awesome cuban sandwich... read more

Went for lunch and ordered arroz con gandules con carne guisada with a side of two beef empanadas. The rice was super bland. The meat inside of the empanada looked undercooked and bland also with a little bit of meat. Not only that as I looked around I saw that they were cross contaminating meats and seafood. There was also mold building up on the glass where the food is kept warm. Overall, they need a new cook and new appliances or just shut down, I paid for my meal even though my appetite was killed but I will never go there again! And they were also unwelcoming read more

I've been going to Melanie's for wow at least 25 years now. This review is long overdo. I don't speak but I understand a lot of Spanish and i try my best to say my order in my Spanglish lol but the waitresses understand me. What I like the most about them is no matter what I order, I get exactly want I want and am never given a problem. I also like the fact that they know my orders and also bring me containers because they know I always take my left overs to go. I guess I should say most importantly that the food is awesome. You can get a whole plate of food with sides for under 10$. I've been eating this food since I was a little girl growing up on Summer Ave. it brings back a lot of good memories. They've been in business for at least 25 years that I know about so they must be doing something right plus they have delicious Cuban sandwiches that can't be beat. They have daily specials and shakes and wonderful soups. If you haven't checked them out, it's well worth it. They are always busy and those girls work hard but it's well worth the trip and I just enjoyed my meal :) read more

So let me start this review off by saying this, this restaurant has the best Cuban food I have ever had in my life. I mean the Food was made with so much love, it's just amazing. The restaurant was exceptionally clean!!! HOWEVER, The waitresses had a very nasty attitude towards me. It was almost as if they didn't want to serve me. I stood in line for about 15 minutes while they took every other person's order and skipped right over me. At first I was baffled, but I couldn't help to notice every person whom order had been taken was some sort of Hispanic dissent. So I started to wonder if the reason I'm getting such a nasty attitude from these waitresses were because I am gay ?? or because I'm black and gay. Well let me answer that question for you, as I walked out of the store one of the waitresses yelled "Moreno" !!!!!!!!! read more