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    La Kueva Restaurant

    3.8 (87 reviews)
    ModeratePuerto Rican

    Order La Kueva Restaurant Takeout or Delivery

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    LA KUEVA RESTAURANT ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Moderate noise
    Casual
    Good for groups
    Good for kids

    Recommended Reviews - La Kueva Restaurant

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    Sweet plantains
    Susan N.

    This is a decent Puerto Rican restaurant located on Hertel. I've eaten here once but never had the chance to review this place. Ordered the baked chicken plate with yellow rice and beans, roast pork plate with yellow rice and beans, as well as a side order of sweet plantains. What I loved: The chicken was sooo juicy, tender and flavorful. The rice wasn't as salty as I expected to be which was great because it brought out the flavor of the chicken even more. What I didn't like: The roast pork was SO salty that it was almost inedible. Maybe extra salt was tossed on that day because I've had their roast pork before and I don't remember it being that salty. The sweet plantains were too dry and bland for my liking. Overall, I feel like I just came on a bad day. I give this place an extra star for a total of 4 because the woman was really nice.

    Frans D.

    La Kueva is a very small restaurant with only 6 tables. We were welcomed right away with a very friendly smile from the woman working there; she might be the owner. We were waiting for our friends to arrived and she served us a nice little cup of soup. Being not really familiar with the Puerto Rican kitchen, we asked her what she would advice us. Roasted pork with yellow rice (lots of it) and a cup of beans. What an excellent choice! Really a wonderful dish. She also brought us a plate with little side dishes, just to try. I had to take some of the rice home and had a little Puerto Rican taste again the next day. La Kueva (the Cave) is a nice little gem on Hertel, worth visiting.

    Interior
    Josiah K.

    A delightful, easy to miss, hole-in-the-wall locates right on Hertel Avenue in North Buffalo! La Kueva dishes up incredibly affordable take-out Puerto Rican delicacies that are satisfying every time. You can't go wrong with their pastelitos - so good. Their portion sizes are very generous. The large rice and beans is enough for a family of four - no joke! Always quick and friendly service inside. You can call ahead or just come in and order, and food will likely be ready within 10 minutes. Yum!

    Tajmara I.

    Very disappointing. I will never go back. But I absolutely do not recommend this place. The lady that gave me my order was the only thing good about here. The food is garbage though. I ordered beans, yellow rice, marinated chicken, plátanos. Well the beans May have had 8-10 beans because it was basically soup, the chicken was horrible, rice was dry. I poured the bean soup over the rice to even tolerate it. Well I wasted my money going here because I'm throwing it out

    Pernil dinner tostones and pastelitos
    Josef R.

    The food was delicious. The pernil was great, the tostones were light and crispy. The pastelitos were also really good

    Beef with Cheese Pastelillo, Pernil lunch special (yellow rice & beans)
    Callie C.

    Had a craving and was glad that Kueva was close by since I don't live in the city. The Pernil was tougher and drier than I would have liked but other than that for a first-time visit it was okay. I received my food quickly after I walked in and placed my order. The staff was pleasant and the establishment was clean.

    Erika S.

    There was a BUG in my plate of rice and beans with antennas and legs. A BUG . It looked like a roach. Bugs are a delicacy in the Middle East, but not in Puerto Rico lol Immediately disgusted post finding the crunchy bug in my food I let my waitress know. She then told me "oh that's normal they grow with the beans" ... sorry, but bugs in your plate are NOT normal. She was very nice but this is a huge red flag. Your plates should NEVER contain crawling BUGs.

    Rice, Beans and Pork
    Margarita C.

    My first visit here was last summer and since then, I've only visited about 3 times but I was definitely happy to discover a Puerto Rican resturant close to home in North Buffalo. It's nice to walk to grab some food instead of driving to the lower West Side. Most recently, I ordered the pork chop and roast pork dinners with yellow rice and beans, beef and cheese pastillos, potato balls, sweet plantains, and tostones for my family. The yellow rice was bland, roast pork and pork chops were okay, the potato balls were bland, also too mushy and the ground beef inside appeared undercooked but the rest of the meal was delicious. Loved the sweet plantains, tostones with sauce and pastillos! Wanted more! I felt the portion size of the roast pork meal was small, more like for one person, not to share for two. The pork chops came with two large pork chops though, they were a little over seasoned but I didn't mind too much. I expected more rice and more of the roast pork. I'm accustomed to sharing a dinner for two people when I order from Niagara Cafe don't expect that here. If you're Puerto Rican then you'll understand my expectation. If not, this portion size may seem just right to you. I feel bad because I didn't want it to sound like I'm giving this place a bad review. I grew up on the West Side of Buffalo and for many years I've been hoping I would see more Puerto Rican restaurants opening up in the West Side and the surrounding areas in Buffalo. It doesn't seem like many of them do so well, definitely not pulling in crowds of people regularly and they don't stay open long but I'm really pulling for this place and that's why I will visit from time to time but I have to keep it real here too. In my personal opinion, if you've never tried Puerto Rican food drive to the West Side of Buffalo over to Niagara and Pennsylvania Streets to Niagara Cafe and eat there as a first time experience to it. Order anything, it's all delicious, the food is better overall. If you need a quick fix or want to try a pastillo, then stop in at La Kueva and check it out. The staff is great, the place is small but quaint, seating is available and you never have to wait long for the food! I wish them much success on Hertel Avenue!

    Pastelillos
    Nicole L.

    I ordered one of the dinner specials with pernil and a couple sides as well. What is better than meat, rice and beans?!? The pork was tender and flavorful. The rice could have had a little more flavor but was good when combined with everything else (and a dash of hot sauce). There could have been more beans though, the container was mostly juice. The plantains were subtly sweet and cooked perfectly and the pastelillo was delicious! The meat was seasoned well and the pastry was fried golden and crispy. Portion size was good and of course with all the carbs VERY filling. My plantains and pastelillo became lunch the following day. Overall i really enjoyed and look forward to trying more on their menu!

    a bowl of chili and a plate of rice
    Rebecca V.

    This is the first time I got food from this restaurant & omg it is delicious!! I got the Pernil with rice & beans! The Pernil was so juicy the yellow rice & beans were on point!! When I say the box was over flowing with food & it was only $11 for the dinner! So I took the pic after I made a plate but the empty side was full of Pernil too!!! I would highly recommend this place! I will definitely order again, now if only they had tuna Mac salad too!!

    Cuban sando...delish..photo by @phil_eatsfood
    Phil V.

    Best cuban sandwich around these parts, the portions are huge and prices are cheap for some great Puerto rican comfort food, dont forget about the pastelillos..especially the beef and cheese..delicious, another favorite of mine is the yellow rice and beans and the slow roasted pork

    Pernil and Sweet Plantain

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    13 years ago

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    12 years ago

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    9 years ago

    The food was excellent and very inexpensive. My wife and I had appetizers and entrees and the total was $23.

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    13 years ago

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    10 years ago

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    Page 3 of 3

    Ask the Community - La Kueva Restaurant

    Kiosko Latino

    Kiosko Latino

    4.5
    (25 reviews)
    7.9 mi
    $

    Inside the West Side Bazaar, in a tight little corner stands this Latino culinary masterpiece…read more.. If you have a deep endearing love for sazon chicken, melt in your mouth pastelitos, taco soup and the best flan that you've ever had in your entire life RUN TO THIS PLACE! The sazon baked chicken is a chicken leg quarter perfectly seasoned, and moist and juicy. You'll lick your fingers its so good. Pastelitos in chicken must be the same sazon chicken inside a delicate crisp shell. A bit greasy, but that's to be expected with very good pastelitos. Theres also beef pastelitos and just take my word for it, they're just as good! The taco soup is a delicious chicken broth with beans, corn, and tortilla chip strips, salsa and sour cream. The cumin really stands out but wow! It's so refreshing. Lastly, if you go for nothing else, please try the flan. This isnt no normal baked custard with a sweet sticky sauce. This is the texture of a smooth, yet heavy New York style cheesecake, with a luscious burnt sugar caramel with a maraschino cherry on top. I love flan, I've tried it many many places, I've even made one that was absolutely delicious, but this flan deserves a FLAN OF ALL FLANS AWARD!

    I ordered take-out and went inside today. This is a cute little spot to sit inside and eat, the…read moreplace is clean. I was taken care of at the counter by the owner, all good vibes. I would bring my family inside for dinner. I noticed some Mexican items on the menu, like tacos. I'm Puerto Rican, I went in to try their Puerto Rican food because there aren't many places close to my home in Depew and once in a while I get a craving for something fried that I stopped making at home for health purposes. This is my second time ordering from Kiosko. I don't know what people are talking about when they say the food was bland. Both times I tried different foods and all the Spanish flavor was there. The only thing I saw that might be bland on the menu was white rice. Pernil isn't cooked with salt, it's cooked with mostly garlic and other seasonings. The flavor of all the items I tried wasn't grandma's cooking but it was flavorful and tasty, I got my fix. I spent $29 today on two beef and cheese pastillio's and a chicken stew with Spanish rice dinner (side salad and three tostones with sauce and dressing included). I grew up in Buffalo and having eaten at various Puerto Rican restaurants throughout the City of Buffalo, I have to say that for the portion size I received, the food was overpriced. Let's be honest, it's probably because of the crappy economy we're in and the outrageous costs of food but normally one dinner can be enough to make two adults full and have some left over. The pastillios were yummy but also too small for $4.50 plus the extra cost for cheese, I think was .75 cents on GrubHub. For that price, I need something to rave about to make me come back. If it's going to be small, at least fill it with more meat. Yelp doesn't let me pick a half star but my rating is a 3.5. A 4 only because it's the only place nearby serving this food so that I don't have to drive into the City of Buffalo. I'd love to see more people patroning this restaurant. Not sure it's in the best location for that but I certainly wish them all the best. I think one of those wood signs out by the curb offering a lunch special might bring in more customers, everyone is looking for a good deal.

    Photos
    Kiosko Latino
    Kiosko Latino
    Lunch menu

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    Lunch menu

    La Kueva Restaurant - puertorican - Updated July 2026

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