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Asia de Cuba
Category: Restaurants Asian Fusion Asian Fusion [Edit]
Mondrian Miami1100 West Ave
Miami Beach, FL 33139
(305) 514-1940
- Hours:
Mon-Sun 7 am - 11:30 am
Mon-Fri 11:30 am - 3 pm
Mon-Thu 7 pm - 11 pm
Fri-Sun 7 pm - 12 am
Sat-Sun 11:30 am - 4 pm
- Attire:
- Dressy
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Valet
- Price Range:
-
$$$$
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- No
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Delivery:
- No
- Take-out:
- No
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- Yes
- Good For:
- Dinner
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
- Noise Level:
- Average
- Ambience:
- Trendy, Upscale
- Has TV:
- No
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
110 reviews for Asia de Cuba
Review Highlights
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"Plantain Fried Rice with Avocado Salad, Great." In 8 reviews -
"The Calamari salad was equally delectable." In 18 reviews -
"For the entree we tried the Palomillo of marinated lamb." In 4 reviews
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110 reviews in English
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Review from Carolina M.
Miami, FL
2/13/2012
Great ambiance as it is expected by hotels in SoBe.
The service was good, but it could, be better. Went with my husband and we liked everything we tried.
I have tried the one in NYC years ago, but was happy to see that the Miami spot is doing it right as well.
The food if Asian with a touch of latin flare and it is delicious.
The thai beef salad was good, we also had the Black Cod as main entree and it was perfectly cooked!. The edamame rice side dish was delicious, the noodle box was ok, tuna tataki was yummy and the mojitos were strong but way to sweet.
Overall a good experience, i am a fan of the Mondrian and always have been and Asia de Cuba is just a nice addition.
Great spot for a romantic dinner. -
Review from Liza R.
4/29/2012
Our party of 5 was just arriving after a very busy Fashion Week. We decided to skip the bar and eat a late dinner before they closed. We asked if this was ok and the hostess was snippy with me. We ended up seating ourselves since she was obviously preoccupied. The server was extremely unprofessional and seemed put off that she had to take our table, she was very vocal about wanting to leave. My brother in law even called her out on it and she faked a smile and said "no, it's fine. I will take care of you".
We only ordered apps and drinks. Everything was overpriced. I think the standard of service must drop towards the end of the night because this food was just meh.
The real kicker here is when one of our guests went to the bar after dinner to ask the rude bartender if she could have a cigarette and he said "that's a nasty habit" and walked away. Excuse me? That is assuming and unprofessional. All he had to say was no.
The bathrooms were disgusting, toilet paper everywhere.
I won't be back until the service and attitude gets a tune up. -
Review from David G.
Miami, FL
3/17/2012
Poor service + ok food + small portions + great ambiance = 3 stars...
Seems as though these places hate when you present a Living Social or Groupon.... As soon as we got there we loved the ambiance. Then it was a little awkward when when stood at the host stand forma couple minutes as employees just walked by us.
We finally got table and when we told the server we had a travel zoo voucher which is basically like a Groupon, his demeanor changed. It was as though it was a huge inconvenience for him.
So basically it included 2 Mojitos, 2 apps, 1 salad and 1 entree and 1 dessert to share. 10 minutes went by and still no Mojitos. Then the salad, and 2 apps came out all at the same time which I thought was a little odd. But still no Mojitos. Half way through the apps, the Mojitos finally arrived which tasted like syrup.
The entree was ok. Very small to share though...
Dessert was good. Vanilla cheese cake.
Needless to say, it was no that because I was in great company but I would not recommend and definitely not go back. Way too many good places to choose from in Miami. -
Review from Marb U.
Miramar, FL
5/20/2012
Excellent experience! Great restaurant when you're looking for an elegant, modern and hip atmosphere with lots of beautiful people.
Visited on a rainy Friday night around 9pm. The place was pretty packed and the lounge music was playing on the background. Went with a Travelzoo deal i had received for my Bday.
The service was excellent. Everyone was very friendly and seemed pretty happy to be there.
The food was amazing - Fresh and tasty as I like it. I was amazed that the portions were large given that the the presentation was extremely elegant. Our plates were changed about four times as we completed each course.
= Calamari Salad - so good!
= Tuna-Tataki Picadillo - it was amazing!
= Noodle box - I liked it b/c i just love my veggies, however it seemed to have too much soy sauce.
= Black Cod w/Edamame Fufu, this was delicious. The freshest fish I've had in a long time. Even when compare to the snapper at Prime 112. The Fufu tasted like if it was made from green plantains.
= Plantain fried rice w/avocado - just love it...
= Pineapple cheesecake - Wow! I'm still remembering how good it was. It has to be one of the best desserts I've had in a long time.
They have a great selection of wines. We ordered a bottle for $55. In all, this is a great place to visit for a date night or even large groups. Great food and very entertaining.
If you're looking for a fast meal, this isn't the place for you. However, if you're searching for an experience and want to have a 2+hr dinner, you will enjoy it.
Definitely looking to go back... -
Review from Maxine L.
Miami, FL
5/16/2012 Seated via OpenTable
We ate there on Mother's Day, but in the evening in order to try the regular menu. Chilean sea bass was listed on the menu as from a sustainable source, so I had that. Very well prepared and a large portion, but the star of the plate was the corn flan with crab meat . My companion had the seared tuna on wasabi mashed potatoes - also good, as expected. We shared the Thai beef salad, only mildly spicy, although the server cautioned us a couple of times about the chili in it. Desserts were huge - obiously meant for sharing, but I managed to put away most of my fancy banana split /brownie concoction. Service was appropriately attentive. The atmosphere of the place is starkly modern, not cozy. Altogerher a nice meal, but for a tab of over $200 for two, I don't think I'll be back soon.
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Review from emely j.
4/19/2012 1 photo
It was as if we left south beach and teleported to the movie, Alice and Wonderland. The stark white décor inside the Mondrian Hotel's Cuba de Asia had crazy over-sized chairs and off-scale accessories throughout. A nice meal had been why we came but I can say the entrees out-shined the appetizers and any ceviche (my favorite of the entrees was the sea bass). But onto the happy ending. Dessert was a layered Caribbean carrot cake with cream cheese frosting with lemon grass and black currant ice cream. Perhaps that is what made it a little more Caribbean that regular carrot cake. The portion was average but most likely you will be pretty full and open to sharing. It was indeed a nice way to end the meal along with an espresso to kick back into gear. I can definitely see myself returning during the daytime for a sweet brunch and dip in the beautiful pool.
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Review from Jessica C.
New York, NY
Who would think Asia De Cuba sounds like a place for brunch? I had brunch on a Wednesday (so pretty quite) the eggs and bacon where yummy! Try the tomatoes with black sea salt and pepper.....mmm....mmm....good! Very fresh! Can't beat the view of the Bay!
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Review from Brett L.
Miami Beach, FL
4/25/2012
I would venture to say that in the 2 years I've lived in SoBe, this has been the best food experience thus far! We had reservations for 8:30pm on a Thursday and although we were running late, when I called the hostest told me they would hold our reservation. I debated taking my guest here or Joe's Stone Crab and the ability to make a reservation at Asia de Cuba was what tipped the scale, so I was impressed they would hold it for us as well. The restaurant was full (it was Ultra Week, everything is busy) but our waitress was very attentive and did a great job!
We wanted signature drinks, so we ordered some off-the-wall caipirihnia's (sp?) and mojitos. Mine was a chili passionfruit and although it sounds gross, the sweet and spicy really grew on me after a few sips. The other drink was equally as bold and when the waitress realized it wasn't being sipped on, she quickly offered to replace it!
The food never went wrong! We had a few drinks each, two appetizers, main courses, and dessert- every bite was savory! Miami restaurants have a habit of overcooking steak for some reason but my steak was on-point! Every dish was a true unique blend of (as the name suggests) Asian and Cuban, but all very different from one another. There is so much differentiation in Asian cuisine from various countries and they do a fabulous job of representing many of them here! It's not Asian food with Cuban accents, it's not Cuban food with Asian notes, it's one or the other or both!
We spent probably 2.5 hours dining and enjoying the atmosphere and the cuisine. All said and done, it wasn't too extravagent- around $270 (including tip)- and well worth every penny! I can't wait to go back! -
Review from Ute L.
1/16/2012 5 photos
Five Star service - three star food - 1 star prices = 2 star rating.
Our waiter Gus was excellent throughout the entire meal. I was really excited to try this place because I love Asian food and was curious on their high end spin. It's all fancy menu descriptions ("crispy" calamari versus "fried" calamari) and well presented food that lacks in flavor.
First of all- $19 mojitos. Let that sink in for a moment.
The appetizers are anywhere from $11 to $22. The beef dumplings were a total disappointment. I have had better dim sum at Kim's Chinese Restaurant. The beef was dry, dense and bland. In Chinese cooking, the dumplings are filled with a mix of spices, veggies and minced scallions, this was all beef and just not good.
The noodle box appetizer is a rice noodle sheet wrapped around sauteed veggies. It had nice flavor and I loved the noodle wrapper but found it pretty oily.
The miso glazed sea bass is a rip off. You pay $38 and you get what appears to be a 4 oz serving of fish with a side of black and lima beans. Bull%$@. I've cooked tastier fish at home and the beans were bland.
Moving right along to the side dishes. Shanghai noodles were pretty authentic and very similar to the noodles I had in Shanghai, except there they use freshly made pasta and this was dried. Once again, I found them too oily.
The Plantain fried rice is one of their specialties and I really liked the sweetness added by the plantains and the avocado. But again, we're talking $8 for fried rice. The sides are large enough to be shared, which was a good thing because that sea bass was gone after two meager bites.
The pineapple cheesecake was wonderful and a generous portion to my delight. The BF thought it was too sweet, lucky me, I finished the whole thing.
Definitely will not be back. The prices don't match the quality of the food. There simply isn't the wow factor you'd expect from a place and a menu like this. -
Review from Crystine W.
New York, NY
Asia de Cuba was by far the best meal we had while in Miami with its gorgeous view, location next to the water, and attentive servers.
I purchased a TravelZoo deal that featured dinner from a pre-fixe menu for two people: 2 appetizers, 1 shared entree with 1 side of choice, and a dessert:
Appetizer 1, Calamari Salad: This was amazing! i thought it would be grilled/broiled calamari, but they fried the calamari and then used that to top a mixed green salad filled with palm of hearts, banana, avocado and some nuts. I wish they would bottle up whatever vinaigrette dressing they used because it so delicious (yet flight).
Appetizer 2, Noodle Box: This was my least favorite item that we had, not very memorable. It is a summer-roll type of rice crepe and veggie mix inside. I was not a fan of this.
Shared Entree, Seared Alaskan Cod: The fish tasted like heaven and cut like butter. Reminded of a Chilean Sea Bass sort of texture (which is one of my favorites). Portions were actually quite large.
Side, Fried Rice: Tasty and crunchy with bites of cashews, so good! If you have a nut allergy, then avoid this choice. It was topped with a guacamole and normally I love guacamole on everything, but the rest of the dishes were so delicious and filling that I wasn't fully enjoying this side.
Dessert, Pineapple Cheesecake: WOW in taste, make sure to save room for it. 'nuff said.
Service was excellent - our server checked in with us frequently to make sure that dinner was going well, our drinks were filled, and we were enjoying the food without being overbearing. I would come back and pay full price even if it were without the TravelZoo deal! And if you happen to come across a great TravelZoo deal like I did, make sure you buy 2 or 3. You'll WANT to keep returning to Asia de Cuba. -
Review from Marisa Y.
Miami, FL
3/27/2012
As the decor was very beautiful, the food was overpriced as well as the drinks, not worth the money for either, nothing tasted good or remotely close to what they are charging you, the service was extremely poor, one waiter in particular, a hispanic guy with a thick accent and very rude, i am spanish so this is not a racist comment since i am 100% proud of my nationality. But this guy was just horrendous!! The bathroom's were disgusting and this was at the end of a yearly Miami Beach Fashion Week show, so there were plenty of people but either they were not prepared or just not thorough in interviewing their staff. Not Pleased will never visit again!! Unfortunately neither will a very large portion of people in the Fashion or Art business, since we are all connected in the same business and word travels!!
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Review from Nidhi J.
San Jose, CA
We were looking for a brunch place with a covered patio since the weather decided to not co-operate. We decided to check out Asia de Cuba at the Mondrian.
The service was bad and the servers were distracted, its not a fun experience, when after you make an eye contact with your server, you still have to flag him/her down.
The food quality was not the best, let's say they need to redo the brunch menu and add better/healthier options. The desserts were plenty but there was nothing outstanding. Overall not an experience to remember, except the view was awesome! -
Review from Dannielle C.
North Miami Beach, FL
3/8/2012
Wow! Food was amazing here! Service was a bit slow, but a great selection offered! Ideal for date night, especially on a beautiful night!
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Review from Albs R.
Los Angeles, CA
9/6/2011 1 Check-in Here
NEVER AGAIN ! I was actually really excited to try this place, but my elation stopped at the cool décor that adorns the hotel lobby. The food was a mixture of eclectic combinations that ended up tasting average with some really horrible service:
*Cocktails: tasted mostly of hard booze and spice though the presentation was nice * Calamari salad: very yummy the best part of the night * Thai beef salad: definite fail *Chicken skewers: nothing out of this world * Palomillo of lamb: again nothing out of this world and didn't really taste like lamb *Salmon: the same as Red Lobster's * Beef short ribs: good flavor but small portion * Fried rice: my mom's tastes way better * Mexican Donuts: Dunkin Donut holes with some warm dulce de leche on the side.
What was really disappointing was the fact that our entrees came about 30 minutes apart from each other. When we called several waiters to speak to the manager about this, they refused and half- assedly tried to explain to us that their whole concept was "sharing dishes".... Umm ok, well maybe my friends as I don't want to eat our meats by themselves like tigers, and "share" the fried rice 45 minutes later.
So I guess things COULD have been a whole lot worse, but given the hefty price tag and the automatic gratuity I was really expecting to be Wowed, and it just didn't happen. Next time I want some average Asian dishes with slow service I'll head on over to PF Changs... -
Review from Amol P.
12/3/2011 Seated via OpenTable
The decor inside the mondrian is pretty classy .. all decked up in white with gorgeous crystal chandeliers not to mention the sweeping waterfront views of the miami skyline. It was a bit breezy that evening nevertheless we decided to sit in the outdoor patio area.
I had the Jalapeño, Cilantro Margarita jalapeño and cilantro infused milagro tequila, cointreau, fresh lime juice, splash of pineapple and my wife had the Passion Picante grey goose, passion fruit purée, splash of cranberry, red pepper flakes. I preferred my cocktail which had the right amount of kick due to the jalapeno to my wifey's that was on the milder side despite the red pepper flakes.
For appetizer, we had the Lobster Shiitake Potstickers watercress and cherry tomato salad, vanilla rum and lobster coral sauces. They serve 4 pieces that literally melt in your mouth ... The other recommendation from our server was the asian pesto grilled shrimp that we ordered but later cancelled since we did not want to stuff ourselves.
We had the Coconut Mustard Seed Sustainable Chilean Seabass crab and corn flan, cilantro chimichurri verduras, jalapeno plum coulis as entree. The flan was creamy but the best pairing was the side of plantain fried rice with avocado that really elevated the palate. The entree portion was quite sizeable with the rice and we were pretty full by the time we finished the last morsel on the plate.
The dessert was the coconut cake which had coconut written all over it. It was alright, nothing special.
5 stars - decor/ambience
4 stars - service & food
After dinner, we lounged around the pool area which offered great views of the harbor and the skyline in the distance. All in all, a great dining experience on our trip to miami. -
Review from Mel P.
New York, NY
3/5/2012
Only came here for breakfast since we were staying at the Mondrian. The menu was limited and the food was basic but not in a good way.
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Review from Chasitiy P.
New York, NY
9/29/2011
This food sucked worst than hunt's point after 10 pm.
WHYYYYYYYYYYYYY
I'm a huge fan of the Asia De Cuba in NYC and was exceedingly disappointed by the lack of favor and finesse. Not to mention, the all white decor seemed a bit chintzy. The only upside was my cocktail-Cucumber Ginger Margarita-quite refreshing.
Now you officially have "The Supreme Touch" -
Review from Annette B.
Miami, FL
8/15/2011
Honestly, I would have rather gone to Chilli's.... Ridiculously over priced for what it is. There's plenty of fine dining in Miami and if the food is worthwhile I'll pay the price, but this restaurant wasn't even worth the $35 you pay for Miami Spice.... Read my experience below.
So a group of friends and I decided to do Asia de Cuba for Miami Spice... BIG MISTAKE. I guess it is safe to assume that since your doing Miami Spice you are considered "inferiors" here, but not only did we order several drinks each, we also ordered items from the regular menu.
Our reservation was for 7:30pm and we did not leave until 11:45!! It was like the waiter would take an hour break every time he'd come to our table (and mind you the restaurant was about 30% full!). He didn't even take our order until about 8:30pm. The drinks were good, can't complain, but he did mess up the order brought the wrong drinks and charged us for them in the end. Then as soon as we finally got to order, two of the main items from the menu were not available. So we went on to order the next best thing... and well it was whatever to say the least. FYI: Do not order the noodle box, and do not order the salmon. I'm just glad we ordered the fried rice on the side, at least that was edible. The desserts were good, carrot cake was my fave. But it was three slices to be shared within eight people... and of course we all liked the carrot cake lol.
Another mission was paying. We actually had to ask the manager to bring us the check because our waiter was nowhere to be seen.. She then told us to split the checks ourselves, we did.. then the waiter came back with the ORIGINAL invoice as if we hadn't received it. So when he finally understood what was going on, he took the split check to then come back to tell us it was too complicated and we wouldn't be able to do that. ANYWAYS, we were already aggravated at this point since it was past 11pm and we just wanted to get the hell out of there. Then they tried to force tip on us, that they had TAXED to say the least for that horrible service.So finally, we at least convinced them to let us pay seperately for the tip and we gave the waiter a 15% tip to be kind instead of the 20% "FORCED" tip. I give them two stars for the tasty drinks and the delicious carrot cake... that is all. -
Review from Corleen H.
Milwaukee, WI
8/21/2011 1 Check-in Here
My husband and I returned to Asia de Cuba after a fabulous time last year for Miami Spice. Unfortunately, this year's Miami Spice experience was disappointing.
Our service was slow, but there was a table of 15 outside with us, so I can give a little benefit of the doubt there. The decor was beautiful.
Our food was another story. We ordered the Thai Beef Salad and the Calamari as appetizers . Last year's Thai Beef Salad was the reason we came back, but this year was substantially overdressed. The beef was also lacking the flavor that had made it stand out last year. The Calamari was OK, but uninspiring.
For entrees, we ordered the Palomillo of Marinated Lamb and the Beef Short Ribs. The lamb was exceptionally greasy and the short ribs were lacking a zing I would have expected from the sauce.
Desert was actually pretty good - a carrot cake that was moist and flavorful.
We ordered cocktails that were less than stellar. Very boozy tasting and not well balanced. The Sunset bar across the hall had a completely different menu and had much better drinks. I had a Chili Passion Caipirinha that was excellent.
Despite the bad food, I do have to give the staff credit for trying to make things better. I mentioned my disappointment with the beef salad and ate very little of the lamb. They actually took one of our Miami Spice entrees off our bill. They also tried to get me a different drink when I mentioned I didn't like the first one.
So not sure if this was a bad night or the food has just declined. I'd approach with caution. -
Review from Maite H.
2/19/2012 1 Check-in Here
Loved the decor and ambiance. Loved sitting outside near the pool. Our waiter was friendly and quick. We enjoyed the calamari salad, which we couldn't get enough of. It had some fried calamari, greens, bananas, and avocados. The dressing was citrusy light and went hand in hand with the ingredients in the salad. We had the ahi tuna appetizer as well which was also very tasty. Our entree was the seared Alaskan Cod which was perfectly browned on the exterior but completely moist inside. Perfection! We had the fried rice everyone raves about and we too were raving about it as we continued to serve more of it onto our plates. Love the fried plantains concoction with fried rice, just a great mix of sweet and salty. We had the pineapple cheesecake as our dessert. I'm not a cheesecake or a pineapple person but couldn't stop taking another spoonful. The cheesecake was super creamy.
Great experience at Asia de Cuba, I'm sure we'll be back again! -
Review from Ninni N.
Montclair, NJ
4/11/2012
This was our "fancy" dinner for a bachelorette celebration in SoBe. The hotel is gorgeous and the modern decor was beautiful. We sat outside and the mosquitos were killing me, wish kind of ruined the experience for me, but I won't let that skew my opinion of the food/drinks. To start, the dirty martinis were well made and a champagne toast was a good start. The non-alcoholics had the exotico boosters and thought they were way to sour/tart and didn't even take more than a sip. The best part of the WHOLE meal was the calamari salad as an appetizer. It doesn't sound like much, but it was different from other fried calamari and really good. Unfortunately, it was all down hill from there.... None of us were really impressed with our entrees. Coconut Chilean Seabass sounded great on the menu, not so much. It was served at room temperature and the texture of the whole plate was mushy. Then there was the Spiny Lobster Wok Chi...was another great name for a mediocre dish. It was too spicy, for not even saying "spicy" on the menu. Our best menu choice of the Paella looking dish for two, but I still could have gotten a better one from a Spanish restaurant back home. We did try the coconut cake and the chocolate cake. Glad we passed both around the table because they were really dense and a spoonfull was enough. Overall, I wouldn't go back if the meal cost us $1000 or $100 (maybe just for the calamari...haha)
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Review from Yami A.
Miami, FL
9/30/2011
I must say with the past mixed reviews I was a bit hesitant to try this place out... But so glad to report that this place was WONDERFUL!!!
We decided to go with the Miami Spice Menu because the choices were things we enjoy eating and seriously who's gonna pass up a good deal.
For apps we had the tuna tartar (melted in your mouth) & crispy calamari salad (perfect combination of flavors with the cashews, bananas, & the zesty vinaigrette). For dinner we chose the salmon (another perfect combination of sweet & salty and cooked just the way I like it) and the beef short ribs (tender & flavorful as can be). The dessert was quite a surprise for us because we are not bread pudding people. This was served piping hot with the most tender pieces of pear along side, & a cool light cream sauce over it that had the perfect hint of alcohol, it was delicious when combined.
The host, waitress & servers were as pleasant as can be. 5 STARS all around here, without a doubt we will be back! -
Review from Kaiming W.
Miami, FL
5/17/2011
The brunch here is abso-frickin-lutely fantastic. It's a bit pricey (brunch with a mimosa will run you about $50-$60/person with tip) but well worth it on special occasions.
For your money, you get a choice of main entree, which is not buffet style but brought out to you. Options include eggs benedict, maine lobster and blue crab omelette, paella, slow roasted asian black pork lechon asado, and a few others. I had the slow roasted lechon and it was juicy, tender, and really flavorful. On top of the main entree you get a wide variety of mouth watering buffet selections including different kinds of fresh baked pastries, spanish tortilla, cured salmon, and seafood ceviche. Finish your meal by stuffing your face with fruit tartlets or one of the other dessert options. Of all the buffet choices, make sure you try the fresh fruit and berries with orange and island rum chantilly. The chantilly is orgasm-inducing.
I've yet to try the dinner at Asia de Cuba but I'll try to update this once I do. For starters though, try the brunch. You won't regret it. -
Review from Jen L.
Manhattan, NY
1/21/2012
Had a really awesome time here at my bachelorette party. We were sat right away and staff was really welcoming. The atmosphere is really classy/beautiful/chic. Food was really tasty. Portions were much larger than the waiter made them out to be. (he was a little out there.. telling us too much personal info about himself.. but that's a whole other story.. haha) That was the only downside to this place in my opinion. Overall, if you're looking for a unique dining experience in Miami.. this is the place. Great place to go with large parties. I noticed some of the reviews from others were not so good about this place, that was not my experience, so i would recommend.
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Review from catherine k.
4/16/2011
By sitting at the bar I was able to avoid many of the customer service issues that many of the reviewers suffered. The bartenders were attentive without being intrusive and were always there to supply a refill.
The food however was unsatisfactory. I've eaten at many fine restaurants and have no problem paying insane amounts of money for a delicious meal. Unfortunately, the food at Asia de Cuba failed to impress me. The char sui short ribs were coated with an incredibly sweet honey glaze. The ribs were very tender and melted in my mouth but I found the dish cloyingly sweet. Furthermore, it tasted nothing like char sui.
I also tried the fried rice based on the recommendations on yelp. I found this dish exceedingly disappointing. It was basically rice sautéed with plantains and soy sauce topped with guacamole. The one thing that is essential to any fried rice is "wok hay", the breath of the wok, which gives food a rich depth of flavor. Wok hay was nonexistent from the fried rice which in my opinion means that they should not even be able to call this dish fried rice.
This is yet another insanely over priced mediocre Miami restaurant. -
Review from Jessica M.
Miami, FL
8/17/2011
My boyfriend and I came here last night to try their Miami Spice menu. I went for last year's Miami Spice with some friends and really enjoyed it. If I were basing this review on decor alone, I would give it a 5. The space is super modern and all white, with oversized furniture that makes you feel like you're in Alice in Wonderland.
Since I have to review the food too, here goes. When the server came to take our order, we asked about a couple of the entrees on the Spice menu. He clearly knew we were both ordering from that, but he proceeded to tell us how great the sea bass was. It wasn't on the spice menu, so I wasn't going to order it. When I glanced at the regular menu and saw that the glorious sea bass was $48, I was a bit insulted because he knew what we were here for. Overall service by the waiter was adequate. The runners were much friendlier and attentive than our server. One guy saw that we were trying to take a picture of ourselves with my phone and offered to take it for us.
We ordered the spicy thai beef salad, the calamari salad, the short rib entree, and the palomilla of lamb entree. We also ended up ordering a side of the plantain fried rice, which I had remembered from my previous visit was very good. The salads were both tasty and generous portions, but the beef salad was overdressed, while the calamari salad was underdressed. The short ribs were excellent, and I thought the portion size was fair. The lamb palomilla was good but it came to the table lukewarm. The portion size was also fair. Our side of plantain fried rice was also very good and a generous portion. Dessert was underwhelming. The night we went it was mexican donuts with a cajeta dipping sauce. Of course fried dough with sugar and caramel sauce is good, but where is the chef's creativity? I would have preferred something more innovative.
If the Miami Spice meal we had is indicative of what the restaurant has to offer, I would suggest going on someone else's dime. It is way overpriced and just ok. FYI, automatic 18% tip added too. -
Review from Justin K.
Los Angeles, CA
Expensive but good. Food was decent that night, but not fantastic for the prices you are paying.
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Review from Joseluis A.
Miami Beach, FL
8/19/2011 1 Check-in Here
asia de cuba. fancy cuban/asian fusion cuisine. my favorite thing about this restaurant is the setting. especially outside by the pool. nice and romantic, not that im either of those, but you know what i mean.
i went for dinner with miss aussie and we took advantage of miami spice month. the menu sounded really good, we got a calamari salad, came with cashews and sliced bananas, good stuff. generous portion. we also got the noodle box and i did not understand this appetizer at all. it was like a rice noodle tamal filled with asian veggies. it was just ok, a bit chewy.
for main dish we shared the lamb palomilla and the chair sui beef. the lamb was good, came topped with stir fried veggies, escabeche style but the char sui beef was excellent. the only thing is that none of the main dishes come with a side, like rice which is a very cuban/asian thing to do.
then for dessert we got some 'mexican doughnuts' with caramel. i dont care for desserts so i cant really say those were bad or good.
we enjoyed our meal, we sure did, the service was impeccable and the wine list was decent, i expected the most affordable bottle to be $100 but theres actually more then a few that go for half of that.
i just did not love the food, the rest of their regular menu also sounds very appetizing but the prices are a bit steep. proceed with caution. -
Review from John O.
Grand Rapids, MI
11/24/2011
The lobster mashed potatoes are amazing.
-
Review from William O.
Miami, FL
11/12/2010
To illustrate my simplicity, I'll start off by saying that this is probably the fanciest restaurant I've ever been to. I'm Miami born and raised, and despite noticing that the dress and garb of other patrons were similar to mine, I felt woefully under-dressed and out of place.
I'm a beer and sandwich kind of guy.
That being said, Asia de Cuba put before me one of the best meals I've ever had. Ever. Once I got past my initial discomfort, I was tended to by a very nice waitress who made it easy to look past the glitz that I'm oh so not used to and focus on the menu. Having gone for Miami Spice with my girlfriend, the menu was limited, but honestly, if I went again during a normal time, I'd probably order the same thing (sans appetizers).
The meal went as follows:
Chinese Boxes (a medley of vegetables packaged in what I presume to be some sort of thin dough) and Latin Style egg rolls (with shredded pork and beans) as our appetizers, a lamb palomilla as our main course, and both plantain fried rice and long beans with chicharrones in a hoi sin sauce as our side dishes.
The appetizers were underwhelming, so I'll gloss over them to get to what blew me away.
The palomilla was massive. Massive. MASSIVE. More than enough for two. My girlfriend and I failed to finish it. It was perfectly cooked and seasoned just enough to add flavor, but not so much that the taste of lamb didn't shine through. The chicharrones and long beans were amazing, contrasted very nicely by the hoi sin. My favorite, though, was the plantain fried rice. Really, I would've been happy to sit somewhere with a beer and one of those Chinese take-out packages full of this stuff. It was that good.
Asia de Cuba also had a decent wine list. We ordered a nice Beaujolais that was sweet and the perfect light complement to the heavy meal we shared.
I'm giving it a four because I'm something of a savage (as you can tell from my utter aversion to the niceties of the restaurant and by the five I gave to Mike's at the Venetia), though I'm sure someone a little more refined will be happy to give it a five.
Would I go back? Hell yes. If ever they introduce some sort of sandwich, I don't think I'll ever leave. -
Review from Christina T.
Manhattan, NY
9/18/2011
I've never experienced a WORSE restaurant in my entire life!!! We went to Miami with my husband and our friends for a New Years getaway. We had NYE dinner at Asia De Cuba... for $400 per person. But we decided to enjoy the night at one of the "BEST" restaurants in Miami. The ambiance was nice and modern. We had ordered the obligatory pre-fix menu of 8 courses and it looked tasty. The meal started very nicely. We had delicious appetizers. The problems started when the entrees began to arrive. The entrees were family-style to share and some of them came too early (we were still working on the first couple of courses) and we asked them to slow down. After that we literally had to wait an hour to get the next courses and the food was cold. Service wasn't very good. We waited too long to get attention from the waiters.
To top it off, three members of our party got food poisoning from dinner and the night ended early...
Over the following few days, the staff listened to us very careful and eventually agreed to not charge us for the dinner. Later on, they changed their story and refuted we had food poising and charged us anyway. Never again will we go here....
There are so much better choices in Miami, such as Hakkasan or Blue Door -
Review from Miguel F.
Miami Beach, FL
9/15/2010
Where do i begin??????
WOW this meal was good -- and when i say meal, I mean it was more like a feast! Hands down -- the best Miami Spice meal, I have ever had.
I went with six friends and because the food is all made to share, we ate a lot!
To begin -- the decor inside the Mondrian is amazing. They did a great job. Now back to the food..
Spicy -- Calamari Salad, Thai Beef Salad, Short Ribs, Plantain Fried Rice with Avocado Salad, Chinese Longbeans with Chicharrones.
All of these dishes were to die for, especially the salads. The longbeans were also delicious. If there is a must -- i would say the Thai Beef Salad.
Medium -- Braised Beef Spring Roll, Roast of Pork, Serrano Wrapped Shrimp
The spring roll was good -- a spring roll with ropa vieja. The pork was also good a little sweet because its glazed with honey. The shrimp which i was so excited to try were okay. They had a weird after taste.
Mild -- lemongrass skewered chicken, black beans. The chicken was the worst part of the meal -- and they weren't even that bad LOL. The black beans -- hard to compete with my mom's :)
All the desserts we picked were outrageous -- mini mexican doughtnuts (A+), coconut invasion, and cuban opera (chocolate cake)
As you can tell, i absolutely loved this place. I recommend to RUN not walk to Asia de Cuba before Miami Spice ends... -
Review from Ane P.
12/31/2010
Fantastic. I will go again and again and again.
Located under the Mondrian hotel, this white walled, elegant restaurant is one not to be missed. You have the option of dining outdoors, overlooking the well manicured greens and pool--this was a nice place to sit on a warm night. EVERY.SINGLE.DISH. was to die for. Sometimes I dream about their plantain fried rice with avocado salad. Other times, it's about their lobster mash.
You have to taste it to believe it. -
Review from Vanessa V.
Miami, FL
8/15/2011
Meh. This place thoroughly let me down.
I made a reservation for 8 via Yelp's Open Table app for 7:45. Very convenient. We arrived on time, and were seated inside. The hotel is adorned beautifully, has stunning views of Biscayne Bay, and a very unique and impressive "floating staircase". Hotel decor is just about the only thing I loved about the place.
We came for Miami Spice to try a new place, and we will never be back to eat here! The food was mediocre at best. First off, two things on the menu weren't available, one of which we wanted to order: the Thai Beef Salad. Here's what we all ordered:
Tuna Pica: It's a tuna tartare picadillo style with olives, almonds and coconut with vinaigrette over wonton crisps. It was good, nothing extraordinary, still good though.
Calamari Salad: The calamari tasted good, but the portion served was pitiful. It was a HUGE bowl filled with greens to the top, then sprinkled with a few calamari. Not something to share.
Lemongrass Skewered Chicken: I couldn't really taste the lemongrass, but the chicken was really good. It had a Thai chili marinade that was subtly spicy and flavorful, grilled pineapple and lychee on the side as well. I'd give this plate 3.5 stars, it was really appetizing, and everyone agreed.
Noodle Box: It's sauteed Asian vegetables wrapped in rice noodles with mushroom chili broth and hoisin sauce. Let's just say my friend left 75% of it on the plate, and no one else even touched it.
Sweet Soy Salmon: My friend ordered this plate and said that it was lacking flavor and that she was disappointed with it.
Beef Short Ribs: I ordered this entree and it was really good. The short ribs were served boneless and the orange chili sauce was really tasty. It came with two tostones topped with a bit of congri rice. The mix was really interesting and I enjoyed my plate a lot. I'd give it 4 stars.
Plantain Fried Rice with Avocado Salad: This was off the regular menu, not the Miami Spice, and I'm glad I ordered it. It was served in a large bowl (enough for two) and topped with avocado. I never thought I'd like a mix like this, but it was savory and delicious. The only complaint was that I couldn't really taste the plantains too much. I wish they would have been a bit sweeter. Overall very different and yummy.
Dessert: It was a chef's selection that came with chocolate coffee cake, carrot cake, and a banana vanilla cake. The best by far was the carrot cake. It was scrumptious! The best I've ever had actually. It's just too bad I'll never be back :-/
So, why 2 stars? HORRIBLE, HORRIBLE SERVICE!!! First, the waiter brought some of us the wrong drinks. Then, he would disappear and we wouldn't see him again for about 20 minutes. The restaurant was NOT full, and yet service was slow, slow, slow! We sat down at 7:45, and didn't leave there until 11:30. Almost four hours!!! We had to ask the manager for the bill because our waiter had disappeared for about 40 minutes. Many other tables were seated, ate, and left before we even got our bill! Then he finally showed up later, with the bill that we had already gotten from the manager. At first they said they could split up the bill, and then they came back with the check saying they "couldn't". We were all dying to leave 3 hours into it, and yet we had to wait for what seemed like an eternity to get out of there! I've been to restaurants that took long before, and it was never a problem, because service and food was always excellent and the experience was pleasant. This was NOT the case at Asia de Cuba. -
Review from Christine P.
Miami, FL
9/28/2010 1 photo
Stopped in for a Miami Spice lunch on a Saturday with out of town friends.... and was completely impressed. Sometimes I feel like the service isn't as good when they realize you're getting the M.S. menu - but this was not the case. We got a table outside by the pool, and everyone was very attentive.
You pick what you want - and your meal is served all once in a bento box. It comes with calamari salad and coconut rice in plantain leaf... and I also ordered the black bean soup, bbq chicken and tuna tartare on garbanzo chip.
Everything was delicious but my FAVORITE was the tuna tartare. I don't usually order that - but I'm sooo glad I did. The tuna was chopped in little pieces and mixed with almonds, raisins and some sort of sauce on a garbanzo chip. DELICIOUS. Wish I had gotten MORE of it.
Dessert was a flan with some mint in it... I prefer the regular flan de queso from La Carreta, but this was an interesting take.
The Mondrian Hotel itself is GORGEOUS - and just so different. The view outside by the pool is amazing,
One note... it's a little hard to find if you don't know where it is. Take note of the "1100" in the address... and look for that number, because there isn't a big blaring sign along West Ave (which is mainly a residential area).
Will definitely be back. -
Review from Erika K.
Poway, CA
8/31/2010
We were staying at the hotel, and had breakfast here. The food was so so, but very expensive. But we figured it was a hotel restaurant.
The server was extremely rude. She charged us for coffee ($6), which actually should have been included with my meal. When I asked her about it, she told me that she has to charge me because my partner drank most of the coffee. (I mean, my partner also drank some of my OJ, was she going to charge me extra for that too?) She just refused to take off the charge, so I finally had to ask for the supervisor, who quickly took off the charge.
The bill (after the coffee charge was removed) was close to $80 for two people. I would have expected better service and food for that price. -
Review from Tal T.
8/11/2010
This review is based on dining at Asia de Cuba for Miami Spice lunch [$22]
I finally made it to Asia de Cuba! We drove up to valet the car because it was raining, and the team quickly took care of us.
Asia de Cuba is inside the Mondrian Hotel, which was designed by Marcel Wanders. His taste is distinctive, and the ambiance of the hotel spills over into the restaurant. In actuality, the dining area of Asia de Cuba is just an extension of the hotel lobby, not a seperate dining room or area. The stark bright white chairs, tables and floors are not contrasted by anything, leaving the decor lacking for my taste.
A friendly hostess seated us and freely offered the Miami Spice menu. Having already seen it, we were ready to order quickly, and were able to do so. Our waiter's excellent attitude was friendly and professional, without becoming stuffy or pretentious.
Asia de Cuba chose to present their lunch offerings in a Bento Box that includes a calamari salad, choice of soup, choice of appetizer, coconut rice triangle, and choice of protien. I enjoyed the concept and presentation of the five small items together in the box. It worked well for lunch, keeping what can be a lengthy experience efficient.
The actual calamari was lightly battered and tender, but the dressing begged for more citrus and less banana. The Gazpacho had a good base but was made too heavy and the flavor overpowered by too much olive oil.
The Tunapica appetizer was a tartare like mixture served on wonton crisps. This was a tasty dish that I would order again, but I could not discern the flavor of all the items listed on the menu and thought the black currants and coconut added a sweetness that wasn't necessary.
The coconut rice was amazing. The consistency was perfect and the coconut flavor was delicate and not overpowering (so many places do the opposite and ruin the rice). I chose churrasco medium rare, which was perfectly cooked but underseasoned. A sweet soy sauce accompanied it, but I missed chimmichuri. I also tried the salmon, which was glazed in a sweet sauce.
Dessert was flan and unmemborable. I think it was supposed to be organge flavored but I didn't taste much above the custard.
Overall I was a bit disappointed in the food. The five dishes in the Bento all had undertones or a strong presence of sweet flavors (except the gazpacho, which was just too oily). Being more of a savory lover, this didn't jive with me. The strong points were the service, price point, presentation, coconut rice, and tunapica. -
Review from Camille P.
Chicago, IL
6/21/2011 Seated via OpenTable
I can't understand why this place gets such good reviews. No thank you! It was like an extremely expensive PF Changs... but not as good.
-
Review from alice s.
New York, NY
1/11/2009 ROTD 9/6/2009
Nestled in the brand spankin' new Mondrian, Asia de Cuba is one of my new favorite restaurants on the beach.
As you walk in you are greeted by slick, sleek and sexy white. There's a photoshopped photo-realistic picture of a bratz looking girl that adorns the front wall.
As we waited for a table, we grabbed a drink at the bar. I had a passionfruit picante cocktail- passionfruit, vodka, spice mix and red pepper flakes. Yummm. A perfect balance of sweet, salty, spicy and tang.
We nabbed a table outside and had an amazing view of the bay as well as the large scaled-Alice in wonderlandish motiff of the pool.
The food is thoughtful, playful and fresh. We ordered a beef salad with paper thin slices of perfectly seasoned and spicy beef carpaccio that was countered and complimented with lightly seasoned greens. We also split an ahi tuna with wasabi mashed potatoes- again, a perfect combination and play on textures, spice and flavor.
Be sure to make the mondrian the top of your list of places to check out! -
Review from Theo H.
1/19/2009
One of my top meals of all time. Came on a Monday after making reservations earlier in the day. Sat between two tables of three gorgeous girls and shared the following with my buddy:
-Calamari Salad
-Spring Rolls
-Potstickers
-Scallops
-Coconut Cake
The calamari salad and scallops were probably enough just by themselves to make the entire meal worth the hype, but the ice cream that came with the coconut cake was out of this world.
I'm already fantasizing about my next trip back.
