I went with a group of four and none of us had ever had Cuban food. We waited around 20 minutes and for a Friday night that's not bad at all! After perusing the menu (the English side) we realized we had no idea what anything was and opted to have someone else decide for us. So, when our waitress came, we told her our predicament, and she was wonderful! She gave us her recommendations, and made sure we ordered a complete and well rounded meal. There was tons of food, and after the drinks, appetizers, main dishes, tips and tax, it was only $21 each. AWESOME!
We ordered:
-Stuffed patties (one of each, the beef one was especially yummy)
-seafood soup (friday's soup-of-the-day). it had rice in it, so it was really filling and chock full of seafood!
-octopus rice (really yum! the octopus was not overcooked, and had the texture and creaminess similar to a firm cheese...)
-shredded chicken in sauce (tomato based sauce- it was not bad)
-churrasco beef (delicious bbq flavor)
-red beans, black beans, and fried plantains
Just so you know, the main dishes come with rice, beans, and salad, as well as type of fried plantain.
Amazing prices, great food and drink (we had different fruit smoothies and horchata) and a fun place for something a little out of the ordinary. Well worth the trek into JP. Enjoy!
Deanna C.
Cambridge, MA.
Yelp.com
One of my roommates was Cuban, and the day he discovered this place he came speeding home to pick us all up and take us here. Now, I don't know anything about real cuba food, but I know that my roommate was born in Cuba, and he positively shat himself over this place.
I gotta give it to this place, there were four of us and we each spent a little over 7 bucks each for a special and we couldn't fit all the food on the table. I had pork. . . AMAZING pork. And fried plantains. not really what I was expecting, but still kinda tasty.
Christopher M.
MA.
Yelp.com
Talk about surreal. Yesterday, I ate half of a Cuban (sandwich) while dining with a half Cuban (man). Yup, I split my first ever Cuban sandwich with my fiance' who is in fact, half Cuban.
I will start by saying that although I don't really like ham or mayo, I still liked my sandwich. The bread was perfectly crusty and there were pickles inside the sandwich. Honestly, I would have been just as happy with a toasted pickle sandwich, but that's me.
We also shared an order of Tostones and I'll go so far as to say they were the best Tostones I've ever had. (I have had tostones exactly two other times). These were the perfect size and texture.
Because we're gluttons, we also ordered a few chicken croquettes too. Although they were really good I gotta say it, they weren't' as good as my future mother-in-law's. Now if only she read my yelp reviews this would certainly score me a few brownie points.
PS - How fitting that on the way out of this place we ran into Mr. "Some day my gal is going to give birth to a Cuban sandwich" himself, Damien S.
Debra R.
Boston, MA.
Yelp.com
The Scene
El Oriental de Cuba looks and feels like lunch hour at a Havana cafeteria. A lengthy takeout counter greets all patrons, from neighborhood kids to police officers walking the local beat. Scenic photographs of Cuba are perched between snapshots of local celebrities. Ceiling fans hum above the twenty tables, which are graciously shuffled around the restaurant to accommodate diners. Bilingual service is casual and dependable, but not necessarily friendly.
The Food
Aficionados pour beans (black or red) over rice (white or yellow) and add their entree to the mix--like breaded steak (bistec empanizado) served with peppers, green olives and onions, or shredded chicken (pargo en salsa), swimming in a garlicky sauce. The house specialty is the tasty Cuban sandwich, a thin baguette filled with roast pork, Swiss and ham and topped with a secret sauce. Crunchy tostones (fried green plantains) are served with most meals, but try the sweeter maduros, made from ripe plantains.
Editorial Review for El Oriental de Cuba
– by Citysearch Staff
Fried and cheap! There isn't much in the way of vegan options, but what they have is tasty. We went with fried yuca (pretty much like fries), sweet fried plantains (like bannanas... mmmm) and yellow rice with black beans. The price was right and we were full.
There was an older buser who kept teasing some kids who were sitting by us and it was hilarious. I don't think he spoke English and he probably had about as many teeth as the tiny kids. Good times. Our waitress answered our questions about what was vegan and not vegan but could have been a little more helpful. This place is cute and small and only 2 blocks from my house. And it's open til 10 on Friday and Saturday, so if I get a hankerin' for some fried plantains, I know where to head.
Brian G.
Jamaica Plain.
Yelp.com
In a word, Awesome! They have the best coffee in all of Boston and the food is outstanding. The selection is huge and the service is amazing. The owner happened to be there during my first visit and I had a question about the cashew juice, he pointed out a picture of the cashew. The cashew is a seed that grows outside of the fruit--how cool is that? Who knew? Then he gave me and company tastings of the juice. I had the cuban sandwich, monfongo, and coffee. I'm sold on this place! I liked it so much I came back for breakfast the next day.
Shauna W.
Boston, MA.
Yelp.com
My second foray into Jamaica Plain in recent weeks brought me to discovering the best Cuban cooking around. This little Havana hideout makes undeniably the best cubano sandwich in the Boston area, and takes the crown for tastiest food from Castro country around.
My main dish of traditional ropa vieja had a great home-cooked feel to it and was very tasty, while my side dishes of yellow rice with manzanilla olives and lightly fried sweet plantains also blew me away. I couldn't resist ordering their cubano for our table after making the schlep out to this place and being unsure of when I'd be back - that proved to be the best decision I've made in a while.
I laughed when on their menu I saw the following: "If you like our food tell other people, if you don't tell us." Well here I am doing the right thing. Gracias El Oriental De Cuba
Nick H.
Cambridge. MA.
Yelp.com
I don't like Cuban food. But I go to El Oriental regularly, since my gf loves it. She's from Miami so I guess she knows a thing or two about it. So here's what I like about El Oriental-
*The servers are so sweet! They even let me speak my horrifyingly butchered Spanish at them and play along
*The yellow rice (I think it's called Cuban rice)
*empanadas (but really, you can't go wrong with meat in a fried breading thing)
*diverse clientele (JP queers and latino/as unite!)
*The decor is cute without being cheesy and cartoonish
But...
Cuban food just isn't my thing. It's not spicy and obnoxious enough. Still, I'm giving it 4 stars because I go back again and again and like it. Even though I will never crave a pork sandwich with mayo and pickles and iceberg. Yeeg.
