Fabulous Dinner at Favela Cubana

Last week, Caryn (thoughts in italics) and I were invited to dine at Favela Cubana, serving up both Brazilian and Cuban cuisine (not fusion).  Located in Greenwich Village, this restaurant surprisingly is set back so far off the street that it reminded me of the a strip mall in the ‘burbs.  Favela Cubana has a fabulous outdoor seating area, and while it wasn’t quite warm enough for dinner outside, I could definitely see this restaurant as a top spot for outdoor dining.  Since it is so far back from the street, you are able to eat a meal without the distraction of people-watching. Now, people-watching is half the reason why I love to sit outside, but for me the real plus was that you won’t be bumped into by walker-bys. There’s plenty of space for several tables so you can eat comfortably and still people-watch if you want to.

We settled down and kicked off with spinach and corn empanadas as well as cod fish croquets.  I was a little scared to try cod fish, as I never had it before, but I enjoyed the croquets and they were delicious.  I also am a huge fan of empanadas and the fact that they were stuffed with spinach, one of my favorite veggies, made me extremely excited.  Compared to any empanada I’ve had in the past, these take the cake.  I thought they were so much more flavorful than those that have been stuffed with just meat.  Moving forward, veggie empanadas will be my way to go. Agreed that these are the best empanadas that I’ve had to date, but still I’m not a huge fan. Maybe they’re too bready for me…I really don’t know what the deal is. But I definitely prefer the veggie version (especially with spinach) over any of the meat varieties that I’ve tried. I’ve had cod fish croquets several times and these were quite good. I really liked the dipping sauces that came with both as well.

On to the next course.  We kicked off the meat course with ropa vieja, which is braised beef with olives, onions and peppers.  This was Caryn’s favorite dish of the night. This was outstanding. Sweet and savory, a fantastic combination for meat dishes (but this coming from the girl who’s favorite BBQ meal is a very saucy pulled pork sandwich) . I would go back to the restaurant just for this dish, so needless to say it comes very highly recommended from me. I enjoyed it as well, and when we threw a little hot sauce on it that was sitting on the table, it added the perfect kick.

Also on this plate was a tasting of the picadillo habana.  This was made with ground turkey, onions, peppers, garlic, cumin, paprika and olives.  Now originally this is a beef dish, but they switched it to turkey to create another option.  Personally, I wish they kept the beef.  As much as I try to enjoy ground turkey, whether its in tacos or burgers, I don’t really like it (maybe because I grew up on beef tacos).  This dish though reminded me of chili, and while I ate it, I could have done without it.  Rice and beans were also served with these dishes and while they were good, not very memorable. I liked the ground turkey and almost always make that substitute in my own cooking. My issue is that as Laura noted, it was pretty much just chili, or the inside of a taco. While it wasn’t bad, it wasn’t an original dish so I guess I wasn’t very impressed and I wouldn’t order this again if I returned. But if you’re at all wary about trying a Brazilian or Cuban dish, then go for this because it will be familiar.

On to the fish course.  This was my favorite course by far.  To start, I had the camarão a baiana which was sauteed shrimp with roasted peppers, onions, tomatoes, yellow rice and coconut milk.  I’ve been on such an Indian kick lately, that it reminded me of a sweeter tiki masala sauce, and also also a dish I had a few weeks back at Esperanto. It was absolutely delicious and my favorite part of the night. The coconut milk definitely added depth to the dish, but luckily it wasn’t too heavy like a tiki masala sauce, so it didn’t overpower the vegetables or shrimp. We also tried the balcalhau, which was cod fish with a black olive mashed potato. Black olives are a favorite of mine, as are mashed potatoes.  After each bite, you could taste a strong aftertaste of black olives.  For me, this would have been a welcomed addition on any dish. For me, it is not a welcome addition. I like green olives but not black, so these were not my cup of tea. But everyone who likes black olives really seemed to enjoy this side dish – a creative twist on an old favorite.

Finally – dessert.  We indulged in a passion fruit panna cotta and flan. In the past, I’ve found panna cotta to be very gelatin-like but this was super creamy.  The flan was excellent as well.  I’m not much of a dessert person but I could not stop eating it. Agreed, both were delicious. If you’re full at the end of your meal I’d suggest the passion fruit panna cotta because it was a little lighter and more like a mousse.

If you want to indulge in this tasting menu, you can get this tasting for two for $60 – less than what two restaurant week meals would cost you.  What I liked about this tasting menu was that it wasn’t too much food.  You could eat the meal, be satisfied, without having to unbutton your pants at the table (yes, I’ve done that before).  If you want to just order individual entrees, you can do so for between $14 – $24.