Cubana

Quite possibly the worst service I have ever experienced. Waitresses and barstaff were rude, aggressive and completely lacking in common courtesy. Menus were thrown onto the table then snatched back and it took an hour for the waitress to take our order (we asked her to give us 2 minutes to choose!). When it arrived the food was greasy and overcooked.

When we refused to pay the service charge which had laughably been added to our bill we were asked to leave immediately - we were only too happy to oblige!
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One time reviewer
0 Overall rating
Food 1 | Service 0 | Atmosphere 0 | Value for money 0
Friday, February 11, 2011

We had a very nice and inexpensive lunch. The place wasn't that busy - it is apparently more of an evening place - but at £6.95 for two courses, it was great value. We had fresh chilli tuna cakes, a seared tuna dish and Pollo Criollo - the last was very filling. The smoothies were also made with fresh fruit. Only real complaint was one choice was off the menu - otherwise, a good restarant for an inexpensive lunch.
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val harland
8 Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 9
Friday, January 28, 2011

Went to Cubana last week and had a great time. Love how the restaurant is decked out with machine guns on the wall. Gives you a feeling of being in pre revolution Cuba.

Had some really great cocktails - my favourite was a mojito made with real Cuban rum. I ate something called "Parilla mixta con ensalada". No expert on Cuban food but the steak just melted in the mouth, and given teh dish also included chicken and chorizo it was a meat eaters paradise.

Service was fine, atmosphere great and food cheap.
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Paul Jones
8 Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 7 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 9
Wednesday, September 29, 2010

cool decor. good food, strong drinks. i will come here again.
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Yevgeniy - View all reviews by this user
8 Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 7 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 8
Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Went there with few friends for my birthday. The place was vibrant and colorful. Music not too loud. We did not wait long to order our drinks and the service was pretty quick. The plate sharing of starters was copious (even for 6 people!).

Was not impressed by the dish I got. Lots of chickpeas not enough chicken, still the chorizo sausage was delicious and the dish in itself was quite filling.

One of my friend went for "Parilla mixta con ensalada" and that looked nice!

When came time for dessert, they kindly offered it as it was my birthday. We each got 3 scoops of delicious coconut ice cream!

Overall very happy with the cocktails and the food and the service. Good value for money too. On average, £20 each.
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9 Overall rating
Food 7 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 9
Monday, September 06, 2010

This is a fabulous place for a drink, it's got real character - bright colours, chandeliers, pictures of revolutionaries... But don't bother eating here unless you have money to burn; it's really overpriced. I had grilled prawns for my main course, and I actually thought they'd brought the wrong dish at first because I couldn't see any prawns there. There were a few; just buried under some ratatouille and served with a mound of rice. Rice and ratatouille: one of the cheapest meals you can make - and they charge a tenner for it. The cocktails are tiny too.

Everything tastes good and the ingredients are obviously fresh, and I'd definitely come back for a beer, but the service is appalling and it's far from being value for money.
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4 Overall rating
Food 6 | Service 1 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 1
Wednesday, July 28, 2010

I went to this place before the theatre and was very unimpressed; to the extent that I suspect some of the reviews below may be written by staff.

Alarm bells started ringing when I told them we had a reservation for 2 and they said that they didn't have any reservations. They then showed me the empty reservation sheet before spotting our solitary reservation. It was only a Wednesday, but you have to wonder why nobody reserves to eat there...

It took them 25 minutes to bring our Mojitos, which at £6.95 for 2 are decent value, at least. They then took our order before coming back twice, first saying they didn't have any empanadas, then saying they had no tapas, which together made up a third of the menu.

The tuna is supposedly served pink but I sent it back as it was over cooked and ruined. The chicken and chorizo stew was pretty tasteless, but what really took the biscuit was that there was no chorizo in it and only two tiny scraps of chicken. Having already sent the tuna back and not being able to get a waitress' attention having noticed this, my girlfriend took the plate directly to the kitchen herself. The chef did not apologise but seemed totally unsurprised by the complaint and said he's send a new one with the tuna.

Although they replaced both meals, there was no apology and it was done a bit grudgingly. The new tuna still wasn't cooked very well, but served with a tasty salsa and nice plantain chips. The stew came with half a chorizo sausage plonked on top, which suggests they had forgotten to put any in, or they were economising by leaving it out. Either way, it was still a bit rubbish, though the home-made chilli sauce was very nice and added some much needed punch. The cooking was well below average pub standard, and costlier, too.

Overall, probably decent for a couple of cocktails, but I would stay away from eating here.
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HackneyNick
3 Overall rating
Food 2 | Service 2 | Atmosphere 6 | Value for money 2
Friday, July 23, 2010

I went here with my friend to grab drinks before the show at old vic.

Quite like it, even though the portion of Mohito was a bit small.
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Sunny - View all reviews by this user
7 Overall rating
Food 6 | Service 7 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 8
Thursday, June 24, 2010

Went to Cubana with 9 girls for a friend's Hen Night and we loved it. Very lively, even on a Monday night. Despite being packed, the service was quick and friendly. The food, while nothing spectacular, was tasty and good value for money. Would recommend for a night out with friends.
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Jo
8 Overall rating
Food 7 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 9
Tuesday, May 18, 2010

What can be said about Cubana. Great live music. Their mojitos are great value at £4.95 - but even better when I got two for £6.95 during their happy hour.

Chicken tasted fresh and juicy - just as I like it, and I had some sweet potato which was to die for.

All in all a good night out. Don't go there expecting a fuddy duddy kind of evening, but if you want decent food, and fair prices then Cubana may fit the bill
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Michael Davies
8 Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 7 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 9
Friday, August 21, 2009