Having had the opportunity to travel regularly to Miami in the past, I really like authentic Cuban cuisine but living in the Southwest, finding this can be a challenge. Challenge accepted! Havana is your place if you're looking for some tasty Cuban dining! I dropped in for dinner and opted for the shredded beef with black beans, rice and plantains. Also ordered a mango shake on the side and some Cuban coffee to end the meal. EVERYTHING was delicious and just as good as I remembered from authentic Cuban spots in Miami. The location was not busy when I dropped in so service was super attentive. Then dining room has plenty of seating options and was comfortable. I would highly recommend Havana - I will definitely return! read more

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Havana restaurant had been on my list for quite a while, but I was never in the area and hungry during the time that they were open until recently. They are absolutely a hidden gem, located in the back of a strip mall area and in the very corner. We came during kind of an odd hour, but sometimes that's the best time to come. They weren't busy at all. They have a menu filled with things that are much harder to find in the Albuquerque area, including a really good Cubano and lots of Latin specialties. One of the most unique things we tried was their yucca which I've only ever had fried, but this was not, and it was really good. They also had a good variety of different juices and smoothies that I would love to come back for. I really need to also try their Ropa Vieja, which is a personal favor of mine and always a good indicator of great Cuban food. read more

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Excellent food and service. Definitely enjoyed everything I ordered. Would surely go back again because I missed my Cuban food back home in Miami. I will go back when I do my cross country trip back home. read more

Was in the neighborhood around lunch time and decided to stop in for a bite to eat. Place is, to use a quote from Twin Peaks, wrapped in plastic, but that is only one part of it's charm. I had the Cuban and my partner had the Havana House Sandwich. Both were very tasty and a good enough portion that you don't really need sides. I don't know if I would explore the menu more, because the Cuban was that good. read more

It's tough to find a good Caribbean restaurant in Albuquerque. Coming from New York and of Puerto Rican descent, this place hit all of the right notes. The menu is extensive and represents many parts of the Caribbean. Service and ambiance were great. The chicken fricassee was a home run, as well as the yucca appetizer. Rounded off the meal with a great cafe con leche. Will definitely return due tie the excellent food and service. read more

Where are we going today? Havana. No, not Havana, Cuba, but the Havana Restaurant in Albuquerque. Hidden in the corner of a strip mall hosting military recruiting offices. Well, we are all veterans, so that did not deter us. Come join the boys and one girl from the VA Creative Writing Group as we venture into a new (for us) eating establishment that is sure to reward you with their excellent food, efficient service, and enough Cuban stuff to provide the ambiance you would expect from that island nation. Just click on the following YouTube video link and watch what we ate and why we recommend the Havana Restaurant in New Mexico. https://youtu.be/-SLMceXBNX4?si=k5C9UPmG-nVksh54 read more

Delicious home cooked Cuban meals. The black beans are absolutely perfect. The plantains are not greasy and the breaded steak is very good. I would have liked a little bit of lemon for my steak. read more

The overall quality if the food was disappointing. The steak we had was tough. Black-beans were tasteless etc. Just bland.

First time to a Cuban restaurant. Definitely a hole in the wall type of place. You enter into a romantic vibe setting. Tables neat and clean. Staff friendly. The food was good. I had a Cuban sandwich which was great and filling. Definitely recommend. read more

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Authentic Cuban food in the heart of Duke City. Friendly staff, outstanding service and a cozy atmosphere, is a place to bring the family, have a business lunch or go by yourself and enjoy native Cuban cuisine. read more

Service and menu were amazing! I will return as well as bring more friends and family. Very inviting and ambivalent!

A friend is having a gathering in May with Cuban food as a theme. So we decided to learn about Cuban cuisine. My first visit to this lovely restaurant. Clean, with good lighting. Friendly staff and good service. A nice menu with many choices. We opted to try iconic Cuban foods, so we went with shredded beef (ropas viejo) and Cuban chicken fricasee. Sides including rice, black beans and fried sweet plantanos. We split a flan for desert. The chicken was tender and tasty, literally "melt in your mouth" with potatoes in the broth. The rice was delicate, fluffy. Loved the plantanos. The flan: as good as it gets. Prices are very reasonable. Ambience is pleasant, with interesting dolls adorning the space. All in all, a delightful and delicious learning experience for us. read more

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We stopped in here lion a whim and Everything was delicious! Order the sautéed chicken- you won't be disappointed!!

Start off by saying the food was amazing and just exactly like what I've had in Miami. The service is great. I came in for lunch, only a couple of people inside, food came out quick and hot. The portions are on the small side, in case you come here hungry. Definitely recommend a coffee after your meal. read more

Havana Restaurant - Coffee - Cuban Near Me - Albuquerque, New Mexico

We come back every time we want delicious authentic Cuban food. The staff is very friendly and makes you feel welcomed. You can relax and enjoy your meal without all the noise like you get in other restaurants. I definitely recommend this restaurant anytime. If you haven't tried the food at this restaurant, you haven't tried Cuban food. read more

Food was decent the service was very good, friendly and helpful ambiance was nice definitely recommend giving them a try

We ordered a $12.00 Cuban sandwich. The thinnest Cuban I've ever had. Few ingredients. Some of the sand which tasted like tuna fish. Awful sandwich! We do not recommend this try to fool us restuarant. Cute place but no go again. read more

We had a favorite Cuban Restaurant in Orlando it closed quite awhile ago and we haven't had Cuban since. This popped up and figured to give it a try. Interior was bright with Cuba mementos adorning the walls. Menus arrived with a decanter of h2o. Our server was friendly, but had a thick accent so I had to really listen. It was the house sandwich with sweet plantains for me and the special - yellow rice with chicken. Ordered a drink, it came in a can. The House Sandwich was huge, half of it accompanied me home. It was moist and tasted great. The Yellow Rice & chicken was great. Rice was moist and fall off the bone tender. Glad we stopped and we'll remember this the next time we're in the mood for Cuban read more

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Cuban coffee is on point. Food serving could be bigger , I'll come back for the coffee

Havana Restaurant is a casual, unpretentious Cuban restaurant in NE Albuquerque in the Daskalos Shopping Center between Fun Noodle Bar and Rent-A-Center furniture store. The largest cross streets are San Mateo and Menaul. The seating, which is solely indoors, consists of half-booths and standalone tables, so patrons in a wheelchair will not encounter any issues. This was my first time trying Havana. The biggest draw to the restaurant was the fried sweet plantains for $5. They hit the spot! They were sweet, not too greasy, and had a slight crisp on the edges. I also had the Cuban sandwich for $11, which consisted of a baguette, ham, roast pork, pickles, and mustard. I would have preferred more pickles and more mustard for more of a kick of tartness and moisture. My love of sauces on food is a personal preference, though - other patrons may not need this. My friend really enjoyed the pork bowl he had, which came with a rice-and-bean combo and fried plantains. The service was friendly and the server, who I assumed was one of the owners, thanked us for coming in. I would definitely return and am looking forward to trying more dishes, especially because of the reasonable prices. I think the restaurant would benefit from descriptions and pictures on their menus, as only the dish titles are listed. read more

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Heard from a friend at work about Havana Restaurant as I was looking for a good place for Cuban food in Albuquerque. Being from Miami I have pretty high standards for Cuban food. I can truly say that this restaurant was fantastic . The Cuban sandwiches and fried yucca reminded me of Miami. Delicious and authentic. I had a Materva and my wife a cortadito and Mango shake. We had to take half of my wife's sandwich because they are so big. The ambience was nice and service was very good. It help if you know Spanish but not necessary. Highly recommend from the son of cuban immigrants. read more

As I was looking for a new place to try, I found Havana Restaurant and I was surprised I've never heard of it. You may miss it if you're not looking hard enough while passing by. The interior is like a cozy grandma dining room, just multiplied by a good number of tables. The server was quite attentive, welcoming, and helpful with our menu questions. The food was ready in a good amount of time. We had the ropa vieja and the fricasé de puerco. Please, don't be disappointed by the small portion because these dishes packed a punch of flavor and are very satisfying. The ropa vieja (shredded beef) was juicy, well shredded, and full of delicious Cuban flavors. The maduros (fried plantains) had the right amount of sweetness and the gris (rice mixed with beans) was a nice complement to the ropa vieja. Overall, the flavors and experience were what we wanted, and with few Cuban options here, this would definitely be our first thought if we're craving it! The only thing that could improve is a menu with the dish names in Spanish with a description in English. I think this could teach patrons unfamiliar with Cuban food about the common names of the dishes in this delicious cuisine. read more

Havana Restaurant - Ropa vieja (shredded beef) - Cuban Near Me - Albuquerque, New Mexico

Very friendly service, good pace in getting my to go order ready. Food tasted good. Was in midday so restaurant was not too busy. read more

Havana Restaurant - Menu as of 3/2025 - Cuban Near Me - Albuquerque, New Mexico

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Excellent little mom and pop Cuban restaurant that you have to search for tucked away in the very corner of a shopping center, with just a sign saying "Restaurant" above. The "Mom" was sweet as pie and, as I stopped in early for dinner on my way to the airport, it was just me and two older Latin women late afternoon. I ordered a Cuban coffee and they made it special for me without sugar! Soooo good!! For my meal, I had the Ropa Vieja. Outstanding! I have had the opportunity to enjoy this dish lots before, as I lived in SoFla for 22 years. This preparation was legit! The flavors were superb! The dirty rice was cooked perfectly and oh! those plantains! My only complaint is that I wanted more of them! They were perfectly cooked - no oily taste and they had that wonderful crisp to the edges that got caramelized! Oh YUM! I highly recommend this establishment. I'll be bookmarking, so I make sure I come back! read more

Havana Restaurant - Cuban coffee SO good! - Cuban Near Me - Albuquerque, New Mexico

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In the mood for plantains, @google AI led us to Havana Restaurant, a highly savory restaurant located in a very unassuming strip mall. Hubby got chicken, and I pork platters with plantains (my soul food) and rice and beans. Everything was so flavorful. Also, we tasted "Ironbeer" a nonalcoholic soda that reminded me of Sicilian Chinotto. The dining room and bathroom were immaculate and the waitress was sweet as a button (I got my meal based on her recommendation). Definitely a 5/5! We will return at some point #gourmetrecovery #saturday #albuquerquerestaurant read more

Excellent place for authentic Cuban food. Congris is on point and my favorite is the masa frita pork.

After moving away for a few years, then returning to Albuquerque, I'm very happy to say the sandwiches are still as good as I recalled, and much better than what we found in San Diego. The family go to is still the ropa vieja sandwich with cheese. The price, like everywhere, has gone up but it is tolerable since my wife and I split the sandwich. You should know, the sandwich comes a la carte. Their French fries are tasty and a goodly amount as well, but the sandwich is large enough that we don't really need that addition. I still swear one day I'm going to order something else! lol read more

We have very good Cuban sandwiches. It was mid afternoon, so the restaurant was empty. The server was busy with her phone which made it hard to get our check. read more

Came on a Saturday with a group of friends - we called ahead for a reservation although there was no need. It was not busy. The restaurant is tucked in the corner of a strip mall with a Honey Baked Ham store and a Big Lots. It's easy to miss unless you know it is there. The interior is simple but you can tell there is pride in ownership because it is spotlessly maintained. The tables have very nice table cloths, while the unusual lighting fixture are a bit strange. The menu is in English without Spanish names for the dishes. There are daily specials. Each plate was about $15 and came with a main protein, rice, beans, and plantains. **If you know Cuban food and wish to have tostones for example - ask for the instead of the sweet fried bananas. Ropa vieja is just listed as shredded beef on the menu.*** Our server was efficient and we received separate checks are requested. Everyone stuck with water as our beverage because there was not much of a selection - no liquor for sure. Soda by the can was available. The food was authentic and good but lacking in flavor. Example: the rice/bean combo (congri) had no flavor. The yuca was nicely cooked but the mojo sauce was tasteless also. The ropa vieja was very much shredded but the tomato sauce was like water. I make better ... In any event, I applaud the owner and staff for committing to bringing Cuban cuisine to ABQ. Because I LOVE Cuban food I will try more dishes in the future. read more

Ordered consisted of Cuban sandwich Fried Chicken sandwich Sweet Plantain Special fried pork ribs W black beans and rice Let me tell you today was my first time here and it was delicious. I enjoyed the service and attention to letting me now what I'm ordering. I've had Cuban food in Florida and this place takes the cake. I will come back. We also sampled the black and red beans they were so good. read more

Havana Restaurant - Took the left over Cuban and chicken sandwich - Cuban Near Me - Albuquerque, New Mexico

It's a cozy place with amazing food and service. The tender fried pork with sweet plantains and rice and beans was amazing. You could cut the pork with a fork and the sweet plantains were to die for. I will definitely be going back. read more

When I think of "hole in the wall" hidden gems, my mind wanders here. There's nothing too fussy or fancy about this place and they don't have social media bombarding people with pictures of their food and specials so their food is 100% the shining star. We've been here multiple times and every visit we've been blown away by the flavors. I got the special of the day- the chicken fricassee, which is basically a stew. It came with beans, rice and sweet plantains. Every single bite had me doing a happy dance from the flavor. It blows my mind how they can make beans and rice taste so darn good. I also got a cafe cortadito which was delicious. The little corner shop with a big sign that just says "restaurant " is responsible for my budding love of cuban food! I can't wait to keep coming back for more and more. read more

Havana Restaurant - Entrance - Cuban Near Me - Albuquerque, New Mexico

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Two generations of Cuban family members cooking delicious Cuban food and I have to say no disrespect to my grandmothers and parents but the flavors here are just a touch above any Cuban food I've ever had. Be adventurous and give yourself a true treat. read more

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Oh I so love this place! I been craving Cuban food and this place did not disappoint! The ropa vieja has such an amazing flavor! A little different than what I'm used too but delicious! Los platanos(plantain) we perfection. No oil flavor and sweet as can be. Makes me hungry just typing this lol. The Cuban sandwich was good but unfortunately I had better! The ribs were also amazing! I found the Congri was a little to dry for my taste but ok overall. I will definitely be going back! read more

"Ricky Ricardo" (aka: Desi Arnez) would love the food here!!! However, the music playing was Gloria Estevan... NICE! Maybe they have some old Desi music tucked away. But, I've been here for lunch several times and it's always been consistently delicious. I first tried the Cuban Sandwich which I hadn't had since my days working in Washington DC. It was yummy!! The last 2 times I had the daily Special which was the Chicken Fricasais (Cuban style) which was sooo DELICIOUS!!!! Chicken stewed with potatoes and heavenly spices, with black beans & rice, and fried Plantains. It was perfectly seasoned. A very fresh Home-cooking meal. Other Specials were the Fried Pork Ribs and Breaded Steak. I'll try them another time but other customers had them and gave them both big Thumbs Up and Smiles. A nice clean pretty interior with a few Cuban decorations like Cuban girl dolls and car license plates. Very nice friendly service plus the water is served in a big cold bottle so you always do your own refills - which I like. The banquette seats are well worn from customers although I think I must miss the peak times since I never have to wait for a table. The restaurant is a "tucked away" hidden Gem in the corner of a strip shopping center next to Military Recruiting offices. Glad it survived the Covid Shutdown when sadly so many others didn't. Great food, service, peaceful atmosphere, nice customers, ALL GOOD. Can't wait to go back with friends to show them a taste of Havana!! read more

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Yesterday was our first visit to Havana Restaurant. We were first introduced to Cuban cuisine from the TV show The Finder. This was our first visit to a Cuban restaurant. It really was a lot of fun! We went there at an off time, at about 3 PM on a Saturday. There was only two other patrons. I had the Ropa Vieja which came with black beans and grilled plantains. My wife had a Fricassee de pollo, which also came with black beans and grilled plantains. It was all very delicious! My wife and I shared a Flan for dessert. We both agree that we've never eaten a better tasting Flan than what we had here. WOW, was it fantastic! We ordered iced tea, which I found to be sweeter than I'm used to. However, this could be due either to our not knowing Spanish and our waitress not being able to speak English well. So, it literally could be something lost in translation. I'm not holding that against them. Or it could be that sweet tea is something common to Cuban cuisine, I don't know. The staff were very helpful and friendly. They came by often enough to check on how we were doing and if we needed anything more. The owner came by to chat with us some as well. It was a little hard for us to find. We had to use a navigation app on our phones to find it, so if you have a hard time finding it we recommend that you use your favorite navigation app. All in all, a really great experience. We both loved everything that we ate. We fully intend to return here! read more

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Love this place, good food, friendly service, clean. Glad to see that they were busy when I went. Buen Provecho!! read more

Havana Restaurant - Menu 7/2024 - Cuban Near Me - Albuquerque, New Mexico

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Yummy yummy! Had the Cuban sandwich, plantains, and a papaya shake. So good! Staff is very nice and helpful when asking for help on what to order! read more

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The food was just not good. The fried pork was absolutely flavorless and so dry that I couldn't eat it. 95% of it was still on my plate when the server took it away. She asked if everything was OK. I politely mentioned the pork was extremely dry and therefore inedible. Didn't faze her. The sweet plantains lacked flavor and had none of the usual caramelization found on plantains. I arrived at 12:30 for lunch. There were no customers in the place. Because of the glowing reviews on Yelp, I decided to stay. I have never seen such a discrepancy between the reviews and the actual experience. The restaurant being empty tells me that my experience is not just a one off. The prices are 40-50% higher then are listed here on Yelp. I am from South Florida. I am very familiar with Cuban cuisine. I was not holding them to South Florida standards, just edible standards. I paid my $17 bill (entree only, no drink) and left.....very hungry. read more

I have been wanted to try this restaurant for awhile. Unfortunately, we have attempted to go to this restaurant multiple times, different days of the week. First time we went at 5:45PM-door was unlocked, we walked in, their were 3 tables with customers and were told by the staff that they were closed even though their hours stated 11:00AM-7:30PM. The 2nd time it was 5:30PM and the door was locked, a couple tables of people and the employee just looked at the door and then ignored us. If your hours of operation have changed, please make the necessary changes. read more