I've driven pass this restaurant many times and had never tried it. I'm glad I finally did. The Cuban Kitchen is off the El Camino Real and there is a small parking lot. The meals are inexpensive and the food is absolutely amazing. The ingredients themselves are extremely simple (rice, beans, plantains etc.) but go together exceptionally well. I tried the polls a la milanesa, bistec plate, and cubano sandwich. Both we're wonderful and full of flavor. If you're looking for inexpensive, hearty food - look no further. read more

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Another 5 star culinary experience! Great Cubano, sampler sides, and Plantain Burrito. Courteous staff and owner-Lynna. Def coming back. read more

Cuban Kitchen - Cuban Near Me - San Mateo, California

The Ropa Vieja is deelicious! The tostones, the maduros, the maltas, the pulled pork sandwiches....oh my, just go! It was all so, so good. Everything was on point and so savory. And every order comes with a side of arroz y habichuelas (rice and beans) that are made to perfection. I really liked the garlic sauce for the tostones too. And they had three different sauces available by the tables for you to choose. The service was wonderful and quite friendly. When people asked what was this or that, they were made to feel welcome and everything was explained with a genuine smile. Loved that. The location is so convenient on El Camino Real in San Mateo (right next to Jack's Prime). Did I mention the music? If you are a classic salsa lover...you will be happy as you chomp on your tostones. The only thing that I would gripe about is that every time I go in, it's a bit warm for my taste. But one can always get it to go, and it appeared to me that many did. We stayed and I survived. The food was worth a bit of warmth, imho, lol. read more

Cuban Kitchen - Ropa Vieja - deelicious! - Cuban Near Me - San Mateo, California

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Food came uncooked. First visit not impressed with staff. When asked if it could be cooked a little more My plate was taken away. Not knowing if I was going to receive a replacement. read more

The Best sandwich they have is named that for a reason. Great flavor and meat cooked perfectly. Will definitely return....

I love this restaurant. Every dish is so flavorful. My favorite are papi's shrimp and their delicious black beans. Wonderful and helpful staff. I hope this place is around for a long time. read more

I was born in Cuba. I grew up in Miami where great Cuban food can be found at every corner. I've lived on the west coast for three years and this is the first place I find that has great, and authentic Cuban food. The beans are how you know if a Cuban spot is legit. Most places sell you canned Goya beans. Not here. The beans were perfect, not too hard (undercooked) or too soft (overcooked). The plantains were also great. That's hard to do. The plantains need to be at the right level of ripeness and it is very easy to burn them because of how much sugar they have. The tostones were also great, even after a 40 minute DoorDash drive expedition. Some customers complaint that some of the food is not authentic. I don't think those reviews are accurate. The plates I had were the most authentic I've had on the west coast by far! I can't wait for how much better it will be to eat at Cuban Kitchen in person instead of waiting 40 minutes for my order to arrive from DoorDash. read more

Covid review. Got to the parking lot called them and the guy came out and out the food in my open trunk. Empanadas were great, so was lechon and the Maduro quesadilla. Weird but their chips and guacamole are amazing because the chips are house made and oh so addicting. Only reason not five stars is they forgot our drink and the sauce for the quesadilla. We will be back! read more

Amazing employees and delicious food! On a busy night they accidentally forgot an item and made special effort to appease the situation. I will definitely be returning for another delicious meal. read more

Tried this place with my wife for the first time and we were both blown away. Our new go to for lunch. About to order everything off the menu next time. read more

I been trying to find a Cuban place in the area. Came across this place while on a delivery for DoorDash. After my shift, I just had to come back. The food was awesome! The sauces on the side are great! Just gave the food a little kick! I ordered the Bistec and Cuban sandwich, super delicious! Everything was cooked to perfection! The music as well is great, good vibes. Definitely coming back to try the other items. read more

Cuban Kitchen - Cuban sandwich - Cuban Near Me - San Mateo, California

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Wow!! Everything was absolutely delicious!! We got the bistec plate and the ropa vieja plate. They come with rice, black beans and one complimentary plantain. We also ordered yuca fries, which I loved also. There were 6 large fries I wish there were more in an order! But only because I love them! Great place to order for take out or dine in. I'll definitely be going back there during the summer because they have ample outdoor seating. The condiments bar was self serve. My favorite was the green one but I can't recall the name. It went very well with the meat on the plates. Two thumbs up!! read more

Cuban Kitchen - Cuban Near Me - San Mateo, California

Great place to eat. I have been eating here since it opened. Since the pandemic I have been ordering here regularly to support them. But my last 2 orders were wrong, very disappointed . Maybe I will give them one more try to get it right. read more

Amazing Cubanos. Delicious, crispy bread, tender meat, well balanced, and flavorful!!!

The best Cuban food in town! I've been eating from here for many years and their standard are really high up for some traditional Cuban dishes, like Ropa Vieja, and street food, like cubano sandwich or tostones. Their service is amazing as well! Very friendly crew. One time they messed up my order and after fixing the problem they immediately added a free item. Really love this place! Cuba por siempre! read more

Fist time trying this place. A patient referred me there. I ordered the chicken Milanesa, side of yuka fries and a beef empanada. The food was really good. The only thing that was odd was I only got 3 yuka fries ‍ guess that's why is was only a little over 2 bucks. 1dollar per fry. Guess the cost of yuka has gone up. A nice little recommendation: charge more and give more fries. 3 lonely fries are like a joke for a side. Service was fast. Water napkins and other sauces were off to the side for self service, didn't really mind that much. Will come back to this place because the food was good and this is the only Cuban place in that particular area. read more

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Very smooth pickup. Just parked in a spot and texted the number of my parking spot. I was way early, but they texted me an updated time and were quicker than I thought! Staff who brought it out was professional and friendly. Delicious food as well. Cubano checked all my boxes. Very even balance of flavors and textures. I could taste every unique ingredient in there. Will go back again and bring more friends. read more

Was finally able to check this place out and everything was delicious and the service was excellent! My husband and I had the bistec and the garlic chicken and both were marinated to perfection. The chips and yucca fries were awesome too and all of the sauces and dips that went with it. The kids had the cubanos and per my foodie teenage son, "It's the best cubano I've ever had. Better than Porto's and Versailles!" He said it was they way the pork was marinated and seasoned. Better than the others. He couldn't stop talking about it even when we got home. He ate the rest of the leftovers later that night and really didn't want it to end. I wish we could've had dessert too but we were too full! Will be back for sure! read more

Ok seeing the Cubano craze, the closest seems to be this place. When you advertise "The Best Cubano" I had tonput it to the Test. It's actually a decent size sandwich ( not Little Lucca size) and it does the job of filling your tummy. No leftovers so it does it in the taste dept. $16 + tip gets you Cubano, rice and beans ,soda and Yucatan fries. The fries are good. Overall super clean and friendly, tasty. For the price I'll be back after watching the Chef a few more times. read more

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Have lived in the area for many years and finally stopped into Cuban Kitchen for the first time today. Sorry we waited so long to discover this delicious gem. We had the Lechon and Vaca Frita plates (paleo versions because we are on keto). The food was amazing! We will definitely be back. Spices both complex and subtle, meat tender, juicy and cooked to perfection. The service was friendly and helpful, too. The owner (I think, I didn't get her name) surprised us with a sample of the special weekend rice and beans dish (made with bacon- yummy- so much for keto ). Loved this place and expect this to become one of our regular stops. read more

Stopped in for a late lunch and am very pleased to have found a new favorite! The cubano, yucca fries, and limeade were all amazing. The ingredients were all high quality, but especially the bread and meat. (Cubanos are often greasy in a bad way, but this was not.) The outside seating was also lovely and everyone wore a mask. An excellent experience! read more

It's great to have a place to eat authentic Cuban food. Cubano sandwiches are on point. Yucca, plantains, are a must. We came when they first opened and they have expanded their menu and keep adding little Cuban touches to their place. read more

Cuban Kitchen - Cuban Near Me - San Mateo, California

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I just received my DoorDash order from Cuban Kitchen and it's delicious! I ordered the chips and guacamole, as well as the Best Cubano, and you can really taste how fresh they both are! The bread on the sandwich was also still toasty and not soggy by the time it got to my apartment! I definitely recommend and would order again! read more

We just finished eating and the food was amazing! My wife is Cuban from Santiago, Cuba and she said it is very authentic!

Great food and friendly service! We were in the mood for Cuban after watching a TV show with Cuban sandwiches. We looked to Yelp and gave CK a try.. no regrets! We got "the best Cubano" and ropa vieja platter. Finish your dinner with a Cortadito and pastelitos de guava We'll def be back! read more

Cuban Kitchen - Cortaditos and Pastelitos de Guayaba - Cuban Near Me - San Mateo, California

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One word. Bistec. This was the best sandwich I've had in years. The steak was just lean enough, and had so much flavor from the marinade and grilling. What a find. A+ service, great menu options. Run, do not walk over to Cuban Kitchen‼ read more

I'm not sure what the hype was all about the Food was ok and I speak from experience on Cuban since I've been to the actual country and have Cuban family who cooks authentic Cuban food The service was horrible and there is a woman that definitely has the worst customer service and attitude. She was rude and took the condiments away from our table without even being nice about it, such attitude which kind of ruined my meal to be honest, two other incidents in the one hour we were there and just RUDE. The only reason I'm giving the second star was for the ropa vieja aside from that they need to improve their customer service since it's shit thanks to that woman in the front read more

The food was inspiring, customizable, and healthy, and what really stood out was Cuban Kitchen's staff. Our group of friends was getting together for the first time in a long time and were so excited to see each other, lots to catch up on. The staff were patient and friendly as we ordered our food, which was delicious, because good food + good company = the best kind of dining experience. It wasn't until a while later that we looked up and realized that the restaurant had closed an hour ago! Not only did the staff not rush us out at any point, they even kindly offered to take a photo for us on our way out. An extra bonus is that this restaurant is away from the jam of downtown San Mateo. Thank you, I'm definitely going back! read more

I don't know what happened, maybe new cooks but the food isn't good anymore! There's nothing "Cuban" about the food anymore, everything is so spicy, it's not like what it was when I first moved here and came in. So upsetting that there's no diversity of foods in the Bay Area. This place really upset me with the food, I thought I was going to get some awesome Caribbean food. read more

I absolutely love this place. The food is authentic Caribbean food. I go there every time I'm craving for Cuban food. Their takeout service is a bit slow but I assume is because of the volume of orders they get. I totally recommend Cuban kitchen! read more

Excellent food and great service! We were so happy that our dinner delicious and ready upon pickup. I was thoroughly impressed when the owner called me later to apologize for packing the wrong drink in our bag. She offered to credit me back or exchange it or give me a store credit. I thought it was very kind of her to take time out to contact me and address the issue. But it was not an issue to me. I'm perfectly satisfied with our experience. This's my 2nd time eating here. My favorite dish is the ropa vieja and empenadas! So yummy we also had the Cuban Sandwich and the Guava cheese cake!! OMZg!! Too good. read more

This is the most unprofessional restaurant I've ever been in. There was a woman working there without a mask on who was wiping her nose without gloves on. When asked why she wasn't wearing a mask she began to scream that these were her people and she didn't need to wear a mask because she knew where they had all been while screaming at another customer to put their mask over their nose because she didn't know where he had been. She was rude, unprofessional and down right disrespectful. I will never eat at this establishment as they seem to have no control over their employees and don't seem to care about the health and safety of their customers. I've never heard an employee talk like that in a business establishment. What an absolute joke. Shame on her. read more

Great food and amazing staff. Lovely family business and staple for a good meal. The empanadas are incredible and so is the garlic chicken. I love that they do seasonal drinks or desserts as well. read more

Amazing service and even better food. Lena was patient and understanding with regards to dietary restrictions along with just making us feel right at home. Could not recommend enough. read more

What a delicious experience! The steak, shrimp was cooked perfectly! But the Black Beans OMG yes please! If you come have the lime lemonade mojito it's the business! The service was awesome and so gracious. Next time we're in the area, we'll stop by for some more yumminess! Thank you Cuban Kitchen! #oaklandlove read more

My wife and I recently moved to the Hillsdale area and stumbled upon this wonderful little place across from the Hillsdale Mall. All I can say is . . . WOW!!!! Yes, that's FOUR exclamation points (coming from someone who tends to limit my grammatical hyperbole). I honestly cannot remember the last time I had such incredible, authentic Cuban food. I highly recommend the lechon plate and the salmon; we ordered both, and they were cooked to perfection. I'd give this place six stars for the service and milieu, which matched the quality of the food. Every item was just outstanding. We will definitely be coming back for more soon. read more

I came here on 3 different occasions with 3 different people and they all loved it. I had this cute cashier girl that was very informative help me. She'd had great customer service everytime. The steak and the flan are really good . The place is very clean . They have guava cheesecake. I didn't know there was such thing as a guava cheesecake before coming here. THe yuca fries are sooo good too. read more

This place has the best Cuban Food hands down! Nice portions, the prices are awesome and everyone from the cooks and food preparers to the owner are fantastic people!! The BEST customer service...can't say enough. If I could give them a "20" star rating I would. I promise you won't be sorry....and the place is clean....I'm a germaphobe...you could eat off the floor here. Highly recommend!!! Crazy if you don't check it out!!! And I don't put my name on anything if it isn't the BEST... Enjoy, Rocky Cologne Www.ijoke4u.com read more

Wish Cuban Kitchen was in Hayward. I crave it all the time. Expensive but I find myself saying f-it ITS WORTH IT!

After passing this place many times, I decided to give it a try . My client wanted to try something different so this place came to mind. I had the Cubano and he had the Pork sandwich. Both were very good. I also tried the rice and beans combo which were also very good. Great value. Parking can be a challenge . The young lady taking orders was great. Had a smile and was very helpful. The lady bringing the food not so much. Not so hard to look for a number and bring food. Are you number 8 no I am number 2 are you sure your not number 8? well I have this little number they gave me at the counter that says I am number 2. read more