Asia de Cuba – Better for Groups than for Couples
Written: Dec 01 '00 (Updated Dec 08 '00)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Fabulous food!!!
Cons: Tiny bathrooms!!!
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| matochak's Full Review: Asia de Cuba |
This is a very detailed review (in a chatty, diary-entry style) about all aspects of the restaurant and its offerings. However, I think it’s critical to first know what size group you should take. I don’t want to mislead you, the food is incredible, but the restaurant is much better suited to groups of 4 or more, because the large size of appetizers and entrees makes sharing the preferred eating mode. I love “family style,” so I was very happy, and besides, I went to Asia de Cuba with my “supper friends” group, which made it that much more enjoyable. The cast of characters for this particular LatAmerAsian eating adventure is listed below (you may want to cast your dinner in a similar fashion, as this particular combination of personalities and skills were synergistically beneficial):
Alison (me) – marketer, note taker, vote compiler (see “ordering” below)
Tim – colorist, dish director (see “serving” below), tie-breaker
Liz – social worker, founder of “supper friends,” style-changer
Des – financial whiz, pop-culture expert, Miami native
John – legal whiz, apartment buyer, detail-noticer
Molly – statistics expert (though she doesn’t like to be called that), metropolitan hipster, Asia de Cuba London veteran
Steve – surgeon, fan of Miami, fearless drink-orderer
RESERVING
Call a month in advance, and maybe you’ll get a table. I hate that about certain restaurants, but I felt the food was worth the wait. When we actually did get there, we had to wait until 6 out of our party of 7 showed up in order to be seated, which is fairly commonplace for large parties. The bar is a nice place to wait to be seated. There are comfortable couches and barstools, though there is also a lot of posturing and trying to be seen (of which I am not a fan), but since the table was ready quickly, I didn’t have to deal with much of the tucked and lifted set.
ORDERING
The waitress recommended that we order 4 appetizers and 4 entrees for the 7 of us. This was an excellent estimate, since we had absolutely no food left, and everyone left the table satisfied. However, for planning purposes, it is important to know that we did order a side of lobster mashed potatoes, 3 desserts and several drinks as well, so we did have additional food beyond the 4 and 4. If you’re really hungry, and want to leave stuffed (and you have a party of similar size), I’d throw another entrée and appetizer on the list.
Deciding on what to order was difficult. Since we would all be sharing, we wanted to reach some kind of consensus. Because we decided to write down all of the appetizers and entrees and make tick marks next to them to keep track of who voted for what, I can tell you what was on the menu!
[Voting was full of trials and tribulations, I must say. It was hard keeping everyone focused, but that is a specialty of mine, with my loud voice (hey, I was built for the theater, OK?) and “must keep on task” attitude. John needed to talk to Des (recent purchaser and aforementioned financial whiz), because he’s buying an apartment in the city, and he and I already conferenced a week ago. As the “Director of Strategic Measurement” among us, Molly did notice that the methodology behind our voting was flawed, because some people withheld their final votes until they saw how others were voting – CHEATERS! Liz, as the social worker and nurturer among us, wanted everyone to be happy. And Des wanted the duck, no matter what happened.]
I’ll give more detailed descriptions of my favorite dishes under “The Food” section, but listed below is a general list of appetizers and entrees and how many votes from the group each had. I also tried to list prices, but didn’t get them all.
Appetizers
Tuna $16 - 4 votes
Calamari Salad $14.75 – 4 votes
Foie Gras $24 – 0 votes
Thai Beef Salad $16 – 5 votes
Oxtail $14.50 - 0 votes
Ropa Vieja $14 - 0 votes
Crab Cakes $22 - 2 votes
Duck Salad - 1 vote
Black Bean Dumplings – 3 votes
Beef Satay – 4 votes
Prawns – 0 votes
We went with the crab cakes instead of the tuna, because Tim and John made a real case for the crab cakes, and also because we knew we would have tuna as an entrée.
Entrees
Sirloin $29 – 3 votes
Lamb $28.50 – 1 vote
Chicken $26 - 4 votes
Salmon $28 – 0 votes
Duck $29 – 3 votes
Pork $27 – 6 votes
Mahi Mahi – 2 votes
Whole Fish – 1 vote
Tuna – 5 votes
Lobster – 0 votes
Tamale – 0 votes
some sort of) Noodles – 0 votes (I think this one was the vegetarian choice)
(Everyone got four votes each for appetizers and entrees, but not everyone used all four votes. The items in bold italic are the ones we decided to get.)
Beware of ordering drinks for three reasons:
1. They seem to be stronger at the table than at the bar
2. They are expensive (most drinks were between $8-10)
3. There are one or two drinks that look really girly. Steve bravely ordered some sort of champagne drink, and it came in this very high flute with a lot of pink sugar stuff around the rim. Not that there’s anything wrong with that. I had just met Steve that night, but he seemed comfortable enough with his masculinity to deal well with the very girly drink, as I’m sure most men would (well, men that I know, anyway). However, I am providing this warning, in case you find yourself either very insecure in your masculinity, or with someone who is very insecure with his masculinity. Fortunately, for those of you sadly falling into either or both of these categories, the restaurant has the drinks on display in a well-lit cube-like structure in front of and to the left of the big waterfall picture (see “Design” below).
THE FOOD
The food, as I mentioned, is incredible. But, what does incredible really mean? Was it delicious, yes. The big stars of the appetizer world were the spicy and delicious Thai Beef Salad with wonderfully done carpaccio and the Beef Satay with peanut sauce dipping stations and quinoa (pronounced “Keen-Wah”), which is one of my favorite grains.
The calamari salad was edible, which is a huge compliment coming from me, because I really don’t like seafood (except for tuna steak and an occasional mahi mahi). I was able to eat it, and not get grossed out at all, which indicates complete lack of fishiness. Admittedly, I don’t know if I’ve ever had calamari before, because I don’t eat such things, so take this with a grain of salt (no pun intended), but I thought the calamari was tough. Molly discussed how different the calamari salad was in New York, compared to that in the London Asia de Cuba. She said that both were very good, but it was much more frisee-intensive across the pond, and she was amazed because normally she hates frisee, but the kind they used in the UK was amazing and without the usual bitterness inherent in the green. She also mentioned that the foie gras in London was to die for and like butter. We could not be convinced to order it, though.
Now, because I am not a seafood fan, the crab cakes, although I tried them, did not make much of an impression on me, except a lingering feeling that there was a faint trace of mustard in the sauce somewhere. However, Tim, Molly and John apparently enjoy crab cakes a great deal and quite often, and commented that these were among the best.
The clear winner for entrees was the pork. It was tender, and flavorful, and a perfect combination with the greens on the plate. Everyone just loved the pork. The chicken was very good, and had a leg (which is something you don’t always see in restaurants, but I thought it was a nice touch). Flavored (sorry, I don’t remember with what) mashed potatoes were also on the plate with some greens, and it was all good. The tuna was seared, so it was kind of raw in the middle (which was fine), and the wasabi mashed potatoes (which came with crunchy wasabi peas in them) rounded out the dish nicely. The tuna and potatoes were sitting in some kind of green sauce and I was very glad to find out that it wasn’t cilantro. I think it might have been a type of pesto. The duck was excellent as well. In the past, I’ve had duck that was very gamey and was overpowered by the sauce with which it was served. The duck at Asia de Cuba was tender (for duck, that is) and smooth tasting, with a hint of the fruity sauce (that was served with it) cooked in.
The way the food was served was also lovely. Not only was all the food very attractive, it was cut and placed in such a way to facilitate sharing. Granted, we did have a surgeon among us, so we were not in need of someone who knew how to slice and dice (wow, we could have really used him at Thanksgiving!), but it was nice that we didn’t have to test his talents.
For dessert, we had the Bay of Pigs, which was a monstrously huge banana split dessert with chocolate and caramel sauces, ice cream, a brownie and these crazy coconut rolls on the end. You need at least 4 people to finish that dessert, that’s how big it is, and did I mention it is HUGE? We also ordered a café con leche type of flan desert, which came with nice little fried-dough accents, some berries and a crispy cookie, and a dessert called something like “Coconut Invasion.” That consisted of two very tall pieces of coconut layer cake drizzled with that delicious chocolate sauce of theirs, with some coconut ice cream on the side. All desserts were crowd-pleasers, and I think we ordered a little too much dessert.
I had jasmine tea, which was lovely, and brewed properly (not at all bitter), but it did keep me up all night, so be very wary of that description on the menu which says “low caffeine.” I heard others remark about how delicious their Cuban coffee and café con leche was.
SERVING
The course doesn’t all come at once (thank goodness), because the plates are big, and they won’t fit on the table. This should be a powerful motivator to everyone to grab their portions quickly, and empty the plate so it could be cleared. It is also very important in groups to minimize the chaos of the serving process. (Have you ever watched The Brady Bunch for example – we can all take some pointers from them!) We quickly made a rule that all dishes should be passed counter-clockwise, no matter from where they started. Because of our strict adherence to this code, we all escaped the dinner sartorially unscathed. Please hold your applause.
DESIGN
When you read about Asia de Cuba, everyone always raves about the design of the restaurant. I thought it was rather unimpressive. If no one ever raved about it, I would think it was good, but given all that build-up, I was disappointed. Yeah, there are white, billowy curtains everywhere, but save that for the sun cultures, baby, this is NYC. You know, I think every Miami and LA ex-pat in the Big Apple was in this restaurant. Fake tans and plastic surgery abounded. Was it the décor that attracted them? Who can say? And, John, master of details, noticed that when the wind blew, the billowy curtains revealed all of the empty liquor boxes behind them. This place must have reminded people of Miami, because we got to talking about it, and Steve told a funny story about Fishers Island (I hope that’s the name of it – I had never heard of it before, but apparently, it’s some swanky place). I won’t go into details, but just don’t bring your fishin’ pole and tackle box when someone invites you out on a boat on Fishers Island. You’ve been warned.
Another thing that is spoken of with reverence is the big picture of a waterfall on a large wall. It was a big plastic print on a light box. Why all the hubbub? Hello, have you seen an X-ray, people? I thought it almost took away from the room, certainly not added to it. It looked like a photograph your Dad took on vacation, blown up really big, but not printed very vibrantly (the colorist among us noticed this, and I tended to agree), and stuck in front of a light source. Also, I remember light coming through it strangely; I don’t think it wasn’t all one piece. Strange.
The most glaring design flaw of all was the bathroom. I only visited the ladies room, but I was appalled. TWO stalls in the bathroom? What were they thinking. Hello, this is a bar! Don’t make me tell you about alcohol’s effect on the anti-diuretic hormone – it makes people pee for crying out loud, and this is a big restaurant! Try like ten stalls, honey. The bathroom is so tiny that the Washroom Attendant is outside of the bathroom, and not in some kind of foyer de banjo - I’m talking out in a hallway, where a register or something is. So, there’s no room to wait in the bathroom, so you’re out in a hallway? Who thought of this? Spank his butt, please. Important Warning: Don’t wait until the last minute to pee. That’s good advice in general, but especially critical at a place with such poor planning.
OK, the restaurant is also drafty in spots, so bring a sweater. Now, I did like a few things about the design. There’s a very, very long table down the center of the main room, which leads up to the waterfall photograph. That adds a lot to the room, and it’s a beautiful piece. Also, the bar and some tables being upstairs in a kind of mezzanine gives the main room a double-height ceiling, which is also lovely. However, the kitchen must be up there, too, because waiters kept bringing food down the stairs, so you were always competing with the crowd (and we had a 6:30 reservation on a Wednesday night!) and the waiters, just to use the stairs!
MISCELLANEOUS
I was pleased to note that no one hurried us from our table, because it was nice to sit back with friends and talk and enjoy the great food at our leisure. Aside from the mortgages, travel tips, the fact that Liz needs to change her style (because people mistakenly think she doesn't show her knees for religious reasons, not just because she dresses way too modestly) and food talk, there were many other interesting side conversations. I was just wondering how we got on the topic of thongs (I think it had something to do with talking about retouching photographs, and then naturally to Victoria's Secret), because we started talking about how there’s this one kind of thong that apparently has Majorcan pearls sewn inside it in key areas, and all the women agreed this had to be invented by a man. How could that be comfortable, let alone supposedly pleasurable? Pass the donut and the Prep H, dude, I’ve got pearls in my thong… Who thinks of these things? See, you wish you were there, now, right?
Food:<hr>The food is a little expensive, but reasonably priced for the portion size and quality, and all ingredients are fresh and creatively combined to please the palate of lovers of Latin American and Asian cuisines.
Special Notes, Tips or Menu Recommendations:<hr>Beef Satay and Beef Salad appetizers are incredible, as is the Pork entree. Also, if you're not in a group, you'll look like a pig if you order the "Bay of Pigs" dessert.
Food:<hr>The food is a little expensive, but reasonably priced for the portion size and quality, and all ingredients are fresh and creatively combined to
Special Notes, Tips or Menu Recommendations:<hr>Beef Satay and Beef Salad appetizers are incredible, as is the Pork entree. Also, if you're not in a group, you'll look like a pig if you order the
Food:<hr>I'm sorry if you see repeating stuff under these sections. I've been trying to clear them, but the system isn't picking up on it properly.
Food:
I'm sorry if you see repeating stuff under these sections. I've been trying to clear them, but the system isn't picking up on it properly.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
matochak
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Member: The Chak
Location: NYC
Reviews written: 28
Trusted by: 41 members
About Me:
There is a lot of variation between brands of cottage cheese.
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