Food Therapy: Dinner at Cafe Habana!

This past Sunday, a group of us had an early dinner at Cafe Habana (17 Prince St; at the corner of Elizabeth St).  I've written about their great Cuban Sandwich for lunch (from the takeout counter next door) but this is the first time I've actually had dinner at the restaurant (the wait wasn't too bad).  And...I was not disappointed!  Yes, it was cramped (2 tiny round tables put next to each for a group of five), but it just made things cozy (I think) and the food easy to share (most definitely).

Here's what we ordered and EVERYTHING was delicious:

• Grilled Corn Mexican Style (Appetizer 1):  The combo of chili powder, lime and cotija cheese on corn is delicious.  If you like butter on your corn, you'll love cotija cheese on it!  It's kinda like butter but creamier and butter-ier (not a word, I know).  And Cafe Habana slathers it on.  I would never use this amount of butter on a corn on the cob, but since it's cheese, it's fine by me!  (It's probably not any healthier but since I'm clueless about the fat/calorie content of cotija cheese, I can pretend its healthier.)

• Cuban Sandwich (Appetizer 2):  We couldn't go to Cafe Habana and not get a Cuban Sandwich.  However, since we all wanted to try a dinner entree, we opted to share Cuban Sandwich as an appetizer.  It was super yummy, as usual.  The fries were surprisingly good...crispy (inside and out), salty and hot.

• Roast Pork:  Ahhh...this is THE dish.  Big Buddha and I both ordered it.  I had my eye on something else but Big Buddha was offering only ONE measly taste of the Roast Pork; so I knew it had to be good.  (Sidenote: Yes, we cut deals about sharing our food before we order.  This way we can try more things, unless, like this particular case, someone doesn't want to share.)  Usually, he'll offer at least two bites of his dish.  If I ordered the other dish, he'd be gloating throughout dinner that his Roast Pork was better...and it would have been true.  The Roast Pork is fantastic: flavor, soft and juicy.  More surprisingly, the rice was fantastic as well!  It's perfectly flavored with...garlic/onion/oil/salt?  I'm not sure how they cook the rice but it's one of the best I've tasted.

• Grilled Steak:  The Grilled Steak was excellent.  And for $12.50, it's a superb deal!!  The next time I have a hankering for steak, I coming back to Cafe Habana.  Plus, I'll take that rice over mashed potatoes any day.  Wait...did I really just write??  Wow.  I adore mashed potatoes...that's how good the rice is at Cafe Habana!

• Huevos Rancheros A Caballo:  I know you can't see it, but there's a grilled steak underneath the eggs.  The Huevos Rancheros was good but it's more of a brunch dish for me than a dinner dish.

• Baja Style Fish Tacos:  I don't really eat white fish (an allergy thing) so I didn't try this, but Foodette like it a lot.  If you're a fish taco fan, this may be the dish for you.

• Maduros:  Ahh...sweet plantains!  No cuban meal is complete without it for me.  I love, Love, LOVE maduros!!  The sweet plantains could have been a bit softer and sweeter but it still did the trick for me.