3.5 stars
I was in…read morethe mood for a new dinner destination, so we decided to make a reservation at Rumba Cubana's Jersey City location. I had walked by the place in the past and noticed that they had a really nice patio, and I had hoped to sit out there on the beautiful evening, but it was simply too packed when we arrived. Instead, we were taken to a spacious table inside, which still had a great atmosphere with fun music and a general buzz in the air.
Our server was nice, but approached us way too quickly to take our order. We rushed to put in our beverage requests, but noted that we would need much more time to study the vast food menu. I ordered some sort of mezcal and passion fruit cocktail, which was very good and not nearly as sweet and full of juice as it looked. I also tried a sip of my companion's Old Fashioned, which used quite a few bourbons, making it very strong. It had a nice cherry sweetness to it, though.
When we were finally ready to select our food items, we decided to start with bowls of their "Mama Fela's Chicken Soup". For $4, we were expecting small cups of broth, but the portion was much more generous. The soup was very flavorful and included chunks of spiced chicken on its bone, small cobs of corn, and riced noodles. Though it was enjoyable, it was also very greasy, and you could see the dots of oil throughout the broth.
When our server came to clear the plates to make room for our main courses, she did a doubletake to inspect the knife that had been at my place-setting. I had initially thought that the blade had some sort of pattern on it, but she caught the fact that it was actually dirty. When I looked closer, I noticed a shoe print on it, which was so gross. Thankfully, she went to replace it, though I made her also bring me a new fork and napkin, as the two pieces of silverware had been wrapped together in the sheet of cloth.
In terms of the entrees, my partner had only positive things to say about his Ropa Vieja, and I concurred that my simply grilled Seabass with olive oil, white wine, and garlic was fantastic. Though the fish was prepared in a very simple manner, it was seasoned and executed with perfection. Both of our meals came with our choice of a single side dish. While my companion liked his rice and black beans, I found my seasoned vegetables to be way to greasy. The medley of cauliflower, broccoli, carrots, peppers, onions, and zucchini were swimming in a heavy garlic butter.
Despite a few mishaps, we liked our meal at Rumba Cubana for the most part. I would go back, but I would definitely avoid the vegetables next time.
