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Little Havana Restaurant

4.5 star rating
based on 14 reviews

Category: Cuban  [Edit]

12727 Biscayne Blvd
North Miami, FL 33181
(305) 899-9069
  • Price Range: $$
  • Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
  • Attire: Casual
  • Good for Groups: Yes
  • Good for Kids: Yes
  • Takes Reservations: Yes
  • Take-out: Yes
  • Waiter Service: Yes
  • Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
  • Outdoor Seating: No
  • Alcohol: Full Bar

14 Reviews for Little Havana Restaurant

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Photo of Brian G.

 

31

112

Brian G.

Brooklyn, NY

4 star rating
05/30/2008

I found the food quite average here. One of the few real restaurants open late in the area it seemed. The shredded beef was pretty good but my boyfriend didn't like his steak very much at all.
I liked the fried yucca a lot and the service was better than other Miami places.
The tres leche cake brought this review to a four...SIMPLY AMAZING!

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6

7

Marc Kevin H.

North Miami, FL

5 star rating
04/18/2008

No-one ever believes me when I tell them the best Cuban restaurant in Miami isn't in Hialeah or Little Havana, but in North Miami. The menu is filled with both traditional pre-revolutionary Cuban dishes (a lot of seafood), and the roast pork and picadillo Americans expect. The price is fair for the large portions, and the service is top notch.

It's a great place to bring out of town guests who aren't familiar with the food, as seating large parties is rarely a problem, and the menu is varied enough to satisfy everyone.

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2

8

Ramon C.

Miami, FL

4 star rating
07/14/2008

The last place I expected to find great Cuban food was North Miami , but searching for a lunch place I found Little Havana on Yelp. The menu is pretty extensive , but the Lunch menu is where I will focus on. They have a different soup everyday as well a different entree. In addition they also have a set lunch specials that are not only good in terms of taste and portion size and they don't break the bank. I've had several meals there and they all have been great. I had the 'Fricase de Pollo' most recently and it was delicious. The Fricase sauce was a perfect accompaniment  to the white rice. The chicken was flavorful and fell right off the bone. This is one of those places that I will be returning to sooner than later.

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1

1

Raul R.

Pembroke Pines, FL

4 star rating
07/14/2008

I've been to a lot of Cuban restaurants in South Florida seeing as though I am Cuban myself.  This place has some of the best Cuban food I've tasted in quite a while. Granted, I only went for lunch, but the food was excellent. I highly recommend the Cuban Steak with the Chimichurri sauce and a cheese flan for dessert. You won't be disappointed.

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Elite '08

112

916

Rob C.

Miami, FL

4 star rating
01/05/2008

I agree this place is good (nice full menu), as good as any of the other often-named cuban places.  Nice chicharrones flavor (chunks = whole pieces).  Fish in langostine sauce was ok, good plantains/rice/beans, etc.  Sometimes Zagat is on target.

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8

48

Alex R.

Chicago, IL

5 star rating
01/15/2008

This place is simply fabulous.  First of all, it's HUGE.  We were promptly seated in the smaller of two (but possibly more) giant ballroom-sized rooms.  We had a reservation, but it was completely unnecessary, as there was no wait, even on a Friday night.  

The menu was extensive.  I tried the Ox tail, and was blown away by the flavors and tenderness of the meat.  The steaks were excellent, too.  Actually, everything was delicious.

The only thing I could possibly complain about were the dozens of freaky animal heads on all the walls of the whole restaurant.  Some of them were pointed toward the table at which we were sitting, so it was a little bit disturbing.  Despite that minor decoration setback, the food is just too good to pass up.

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8

37

Burns D.

Fort Lauderdale, FL

5 star rating
12/18/2007

Dios Mio!!!

Now THIS is where you want to go for the best Cuban food in town. Despite the fact that it is so far north, it's better than any of the places on Calle Ocho, features attentive but not hovering service, and the kitchen absolutely nails everything on the menu.

Plus, the location makes it a shorter trip if you are coming down from Broward, particularly if you are meeting someone for their ridiculously cheap lunch, and that someone works in Miami.

Also, they make a mean Paella, but it is only available a couple of times a week. I apologize for not knowing the paella schedule, but I'm certain you can figure it out with a quick phone call.

It's a big place, so it would also be a good choice for dining with a large group or for a special event.

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Photo of Gary L.

 

17

29

Gary L.

Irvine, CA

4 star rating
08/01/2007

Lucky for this Californian boy, we have Versailles over here on the west coast and I can already say, it's my favorite Cuban restaurant so I might be a little biased here.

Little Havana basically has the same formula of success as Versailles with affordable meals with decent portions. The restaurant almost had this strange American feeling but the waiters and bus boys let you know clearly this was a Cuban restaurant in its truest form. As a general recommendation the arroz con pollo was excellent and the authenticity of the foods were spot on. I'm still in favor of Versailles due to the slightly cheaper pricing as well as the killer mango shakes, but hey Sangria isn't a bad substitute.

But I would highly recommend checking out Little Havana if you're tired of people pointing you to Versailles.

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Elite '08

94

387

Quinn E.

Jamaica Plain, MA

3 star rating
01/19/2008

I know, three stars sounds harsh compared to the rest of these reviews. And I'll admit, I liked my meal just fine. But the mojito was totally gross. When I go to a Cuban restaurant, I expect the mojito to be as good (or even better!) than what I can make at home. This one tasted like a juice box and looked like ecto cooler too, and the mint wasn't even muddled. To me, that's unforgivable. I'd give it one star if the food and service wasn't so good.
The waitress was very good, accommodating and friendly. I was drinking water nonstop and my glass was never empty. It was no problem getting a table for 8, including a wheelchair. There was no wait, even on a Saturday night. The food and drinks came out very quickly. The parking lot was a nice bonus, too.
The sangria held its own, but seemed a bit pricey at $16 a pitcher. I'm not the biggest fan of Cuban food, but the rest of my group is and they said their meals were ok. The pallamillo was not hot enough according to them. My roast pork was good, but not great and the shrimp dishes looked really good.
Maybe Little Havana is the best Cuban food in Miami, but to me it just wasn't that great. And good god, don't mess with my mojito.

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3

7

Jonah H.

San Francisco, CA

4 star rating
03/03/2008

Great Cuban food.  I always hit this place when I'm in Miami.

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Photo of Madalina C.

 

25

126

Madalina C.

Los Altos, CA

5 star rating
09/10/2007

This place is absolutely sublime. They have their own parking lot, where there's always enough room to park. The parking is free, no valet. The restaurant has a 200 people capacity and there are a lot of waiters there happy to serve you. I love their enthusiasm. My husband and I went out to dinner there a couple of nights ago. I had the fish fillet, which was without a doubt...the best fish I have ever tasted in my life and I am not crazy about fried fish...My husband had a pork fillet with a sweet and sour sauce on a fried pineapple bed....mmmm....my mouth is watering again when I think of it...We started with a shrimp cocktail that was delicious and ended with flan as dessert. My husband tried the cheese flan, I tried the egg flan-the original flan and they were both delicious. I do not know how to grade this restaurant, because we spent 8-9 days in Florida and this was by far our best experience. This restaurant deserves way more than just 5 starts...everyone should go try it out at least once...This is something to remember...
I am sad now that I came back to Cali and don't know a lot of good cuban places around here...This restaurant and the experience...the food...the atmosphere...the people...they will all stay with me for a while...And our dinner was about $60 without tip...What do you say about that???? super affordable considering all of the goodies we were blessed with.

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Photo of Manuel G.

 

0

16

Manuel G.

Miami, FL

5 star rating
06/27/2007

Most people in Miami will tell you Versaiiles ,or La Carreta, when asked about a good cuban restaurant, ok definitely maybe .However "the real best" Cuban restaurant is this one,the vaca frita,picadillo,arroz con pollo ,lechon asado and churrasco are second to none,the prices are just right,and service is excellent,it's location betrays it's authenticity.Try it and you won't be disappointed..

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Photo of Marsha M.

 

0

16

Marsha M.

San Francisco, CA

5 star rating
06/17/2007

For original review with many pictures, please see http://www.guiyanggal....

When asked for a good Cuban restaurant, the evil concierge recommended Versailles in Little Havana. A Cuban restaurant with a French name? It sounded wrong at the very beginning. With high expectations and the anticipation for the best Cuban food in town, Tim and I still drove there as quickly as I could. We had to drive fast partially because Tim was hungry. When men are hungry, they become grouchy.

The environment was just like Denny's. The food was OK. The oxtail strew was good, but not exceptional. The grilled black bass was nothing to write home about. Disappointed, we cursed at the concierge and concluded that there must be a deal between the concierge and the restaurant; otherwise, how can an honest concierge recommend a lousy restaurant like that?

When I was trying to find out a special restaurant to take Tim for his birthday, I checked out the recommendations for Cuban food in Miami and was taken aback by the search result - The Versailles was rated very high at citysearch.com. Honestly, I don't get the hype about this restaurant.

For authentic Cuban food, Little Havana is a much better choice. While there, we ordered the "First Start Combo for two" ($26), which actually can feed 4 people. The lamb shank is tender and a bit spicy.

The grilled chicken and steak is juicy and flavorful. The best is the shredded pork, similar to the Carnitas available in a Mexican restaurant, but better. You can make your own shredded pork sandwich with the black beans and warm, fresh-made rolls, and then dip it in the sauce from the beef stew, just like French dip. Not healthy food, but different, exotic and tasty. If you can somehow manage to forget a balanced diet and the fat concentration in the fried plantains, it was tender, sweet, melting in your mouth. Fantastic for a couple of small bites.

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Elite '08

27

851

JD N.

Miami, FL

5 star rating
09/06/2006

Excellent! Food was good, ambience nice, good service, good prices.

The churrasco was good, and so was the vaca frita. The other table's yellow rice with chicken looked superb.

The food was definitely one of the best Cuban I've had in Miami even though this isn't really that close to Little Havana! But that's the point, they brought Little Havana to northern Miami; hence, the name.

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