Las Palmeras

11/02/09

In love with this place

by Gemini82

My father in law is Cuban and has brought me here many times. I love this place. I am not Cuban so I can't say if it's authentic but my father in law seems to think it is. We always have great service & the food is so good who cares if there's plastic chairs ! Yes , eating out is about the atmosphere but sometimes people think too much into it ! Sit , relax & enjoy the food.

• Pros: Chicken , Mango Cream Pie
• Cons: Far away !

05/20/09

Not so much Cuban

by Matanzero

Being cuban myself, I found a few problems with this restaurant cuisine, for example anyone that have tasted tostones knows that the plantain must be as green as it can gets. well they did serve semi-ripe tostones (sorry that is a big no no in a cuban kitchen) the owner is a very nice guy but either he figures bc of the lack of cubans in atlanta he can get away cooking crappy cuban food. My wife, which is not cuban (but have developed a cuban taste) told me even that the food did not deserve a second trip.

I encourage Felipe (owners name) to go to miami and get a refresher course on cuban cuisine, it looks to me that he has been here too long.

• Pros: Location
• Cons: Food,

06/23/08

Good Food. Doesn't feel Cuban

by GuapoJoe

I just ate here this past weekend with some friends and really liked it. The staff is great. The entrees were excellent, although the black beans were really bland. Maybe it's a cuban thing. And although I liked the rustic nature of the place, I didn't sense anything Cuban about the outdoor patio. Maybe some cuban-styled tables and chairs would have been nice (comfortable, of course). The plastic tables and chairs were a bit too cheap for me. Also, this Cuban restaurant does not serve Cuban beer. Huh? But otherwise, I recommend the place. I had the pork with onions which was amazing!!

• Pros: Pork and Onions
• Cons: Black Beans

03/01/08

Wonderful Cuban Food

by rbmorris

This my favorite place in Atlanta to satisfy a craving for Cuban. The staff is exceptionally gracious and friendly, and the food quality is great. Dining on the small patio is great when the weather is nice. Be sure to try a side of the yucca frita; it is exceptional. If you go, note that they're closed Sun-Tues.

• Pros: Great food; friendly service
• Cons: Limited seating

07/09/07

Dine on the patio if possible

by green2u

We were holed away in a second room and it was kinda stuffy. Also, each waiter thought the other was waiting on us (and thus we didn't get served very quickly). Alas, they were very apologetic and gave us free dessert. Anyhoo, I love the feel/location of the place (and nice I can walk to it from my condo). I thought the food was very good. And it was the perfect venue for a mutual breakup between my boyfriend and me.

• Pros: Location and atmosphere
• Cons: Stuffy second room

05/04/07

nice porch tucked away in neighborhood, food a disappointment

by atl30306

Went back to this small, intimate little restaurant in Midtown after a few years and if you are Cuban or know Cuban food well, go elsewhere. Things started to look bad when the black beans arrived and they were were tasteless---Black beans are easy to get right and if the aren't you know there are problems in the kitchen. The yucca a classic Cuban staple, was all carbo and no flavor. The meat dishes were just ok. , eatable but nothing special. The entrees were pricey for lunch (12-14$) in comparison to other eateries in the midtown area at lunchtime. The nicest thing was the outside patio, the sweet tea and they do a good job with the arroz con leche for dessert . Service was prompt and efficient.

• Pros: nice outside seating in quiet neighborhood
• Cons: the food lacked flavor and authenticity

11/21/06

Good cuban food

by mkivals

If there's better Cuban in Atlanta, I haven't found it yet. Casual. Servers are super friendly. Good patio...

• Pros: Food
• Cons: None

09/19/06

Ok...I guess?

by mimicatl

I don't pretend to be the most astute Cuban food aficionado, but I have some good Cuban eats during my lifetime. Having said that, Las Palmeras is ok....I guess. It's tucked away in the uber exclusive/trendy Piedmont Park neighborhood (btwn 10th and Ponce De Leon) which gives it some point. Unfortunately...the points pretty much end there. I was with a large group of people so to say I was able to focus fully on every aspect of the restaurant would be untrue. However, there were some things that were very distinguishable be it with a 2 or 20 person group. The food was ok. Nothing tasted 'bad' necessarily, but at the same time it wasn't bursting with flavor or freshness either. It's the type of Cuban food you'd expect from a really good mall Cuban place (if there is such a thing), but not a quaint stand-alone eatery. The ambience is ambience-less. I've never liked restaurants that have that 'converted office space feel' and this one did with the drop ceilings, poor lighting, and faded stock Cuban-themed photographs hung crookedly on the walls. All in the entire place had a very run down feel and taste I'm sad to say. For better Cuban food at a much better price, portion size, and freshness I'd say Little Cuba off of Chamblee-Tucker Rd. is your best bet. Las Palmeras didn't make me sick, but it didn't make me sing either.

• Pros: Hidden in a neighborhood
• Cons: Food quality, Value, Ambience

07/23/06

Disappointment

by avery99

I have to admit that after reading the other reviews my husband and I were pretty excited to eat here. My husband grew up in Miami and is Cuban, I grew up in Tampa and have had my fair share of cuban food. Las Palmeras is NOT good cuban food. The bread that came out before the meal was OK, it wasn't cuban bread but that is hard to find anywhere outside of Florida. We both ordered the Ropa Vieja. It was not the best nor the worst. The serving size was small for the expensive price tag. The black beans were not good at all, my husband makes better beans at home from a can! The rice seemed like it was boil in the bag and they also charged us $3.95 for a small plate of it. I had yuca frita which I have to say was pretty tasty and the plantains were good, but those are pretty hard to mess up. I would definately not rate this as a "cheap eat" as we spent over $50 on dinner and I only had one glass of wine and my husband had a glass of water. One other thing I want to note is that they had fajitas on menu. Fajitas are NOT CUBAN. They also had sour cream as a side and that is not a traditional cuban condiment. Overall, I wouldn't recommend this restaurant and we will not be going back. Both Coco Loco and Papi's are better.

• Pros: none
• Cons: good service, patio

07/06/06

great cuban food, friendly staff, outdoor seating

by owlatrice

Las Palmeras offers good food in a friendly atmosphere. Go there on a nice night and sit out on the patio. The waitstaff is friendly and not pretentious like so many other downtown restaurants. I am not a cuban expert, so I can't say if this is authentic or not, but the food is excellent nonetheless. The prices seem resonable to me...also their wine and beer selection is not overpriced either. This restaurant is definately a hidden gem (make sure you have good directions because it is hard to find). I took my family there and they all enjoyed their meal despite having no prior experience with cuban food.

• Pros: great food, friendly staff, outdoor seating
• Cons: street parking, irregular hours