Cuban Bistro
28 Main St.
Alhambra
626-308-3350
Ever had a meal when maybe the appetizers were great and the entree was average or worse? Well that's what I experienced at Cuban Bistro in Alhambra. What great appetizers but the entree left a lot to be desired.
Yes, I normally don't order appetizers. After all if I had appetizers and entree, I would weigh two tons, instead of one ton. But I went with my girlfriend and her colleague and they wanted appetizers. So whatever my girlfriend wants she gets.
We ordered the Camarones Empanizado,$9.50, fried shrimp with a red bell pepper aoli sauce. WOW the shrimp was fried to perfect. A nice light batter and the shrimp was big and tender. What a wonderful way to start our meal.
Then we had the tora de cangrejo, $6.50, which is a large crabcake with lobster cream sauce and topped with a fruit salsa. I didn't care for the salsa but wow what a great crabcake. Since I'm from Baltimore and grew up on crabcakes, it takes a lot for a crabcake to impress me. And this crabcake did it. This was great. Almost no fillers, just crabmeat in every bite. Now they only give you one big crabcake and it's well worth the price.
My entree was the halibut al ajillio, $16. Now halibut is my favorite fish. I love it. But I know it can be dry if it's not cooked properly. So damn this was halibut was bone dry. It was seasoned with garlic seasoning, you get a choice of garlic or tropical salsa. And the garlic didn't add much flavor to the halibut. I wasn't impressed and should have ordered a chicken dish. Oh well.
Service was acceptable. We waited a little for refills of drinks. It seemed to take a little longer than normal for our entrees to arrive.
I would go back to Cuban Bistro again. I would love to try their other entrees and their Cuban Sandwich. But this is much better than that Cuban restaurant in the Orange Curtain.