So, I'm biased, because I already know I love Mexican food (or Tex Mex which is apparently what we…read moremostly get in the UK. Fine. Whatever. I love it). Having tried other bits and pieces of Latin inspired cooking I figured a Cuban restaurant would probably be a pretty safe bet. Having wandered past Poco Havana a few weeks back, it went straight to the top of the "to try list."
So, at around 9pm on a Saturday night we arrived to a quiet-ish, but not totally empty restaurant. We took a seat, ordered a jug of frozen margaritas (yes!) and looked at the menus. The first impression we got was that the restaurant was warm and welcoming and that the smells coming from the kitchen were awfully promising. The second impression we got was that for a restaurant named for Cuba's capital, it serves an awful lot of Mexican food. About half the menu is given over to burritos, tacos and enchiladas. Perhaps that's no bad thing, but I was kind of surprised.
Anyway, I ordered the hurrachas con chorizo to start. It's a kind of corn meal pancake which was served really crunchy and topped with chorizo, potato, avocado, mushrooms and sour cream. My braver partner went for the almost death wings. I tried one - they're hot. I mean, I could probably have eaten one, if provided with sufficient water, but not the 5 he was served.
We decided to stick to the "Cuban Corner" of the menu for our mains. I chose the Pernil Relleno cos Moros y Christianos - a garlicy, citrussy and lightly spiced dish with huge juicy chunks of tender roasted pork shoulder, served with rice and peas. My goodness that pork was good and it's nice to get a change from the ubquitous pulled pork that seems to be everywhere right now.
My partner chose the Ropa Vieja, a slow roasted, chipotle spiced, shredded beef dish, again with rice and peas. A delicious as it was, after his 5 chicken wings he struggled to finish it. Fortunately the staff didn't mind at all that he wanted to take the rest home with him and made a point of wrapping it extra carefully so it didn't leak.
We finished the meal with pisco, a kind of brandy I hadn't tried before, as a digestif. The whole meal came in under £60 which, given how much we enjoyed it, I thought was a great price.
While we were there we noticed that they clearly also operate as a bar. You can just sit with a few drinks, maybe a bar snack or two, and while an evening away. Chatting to the staff we were told that they're open until 1am on Fridays and Saturdays, which is good to know. As well as a favourite new restaurant, I think we've found a cool new place just to hang out.