Fiesta de Cuba (Swindon) — Restaurant in England

I was quite excited to try something different tonight but it was sadly a bit disappointing. Firstly, I was surprised there was no option to book a table on the website, I could've easily assumed this was a takeaway if a friend hadn't advised it wasn't. When we rocked up at 8pm there was plenty of parking available and not many in the restaurant, probably 3 or 4 tables being used and a fair amount of empty tables. The welcome was pleasant enough and we were shown quickly to a table although no drink order was offered at the time and with 4 free members of staff standing talking around the payment portal I thought it would've been reasonable to have been approached within 10 mins of arrival, but despite turning round and facing the staff making it clear we wanted service, no one seemed to be watching. A woman at another table appeared to get up and approach the staff, looked possibly like they wanted to leave but no one was bringing their bill. Another issue was we were given two menus which at first looked identical but one was cheaper than the other. It was clear they'd increased their prices and forgotten to destroy the previous menus. The server confirmed this when we queried it. We ordered three tapas to start with two main courses. It did seem to take longer than I'd expected to bring out the starters, not a crazy wait but it was not at all busy and we were hungry. The portion sizes seemed a little small really for £6 each. The Patatas Bravas were no more than diced frozen potatoes in a spicyish sauce, tasted ok but not authentic at all, the Empanadas resembled two miniscule Cornish pasties which had shrunk in the wash. You could buy a massive pasty from the West Cornwall Pasty shop for cheaper than the two. Chicken filling was dry and tasteless, again just like cheap frozen food. The croquettes were tasty but in a fat fried "mum has been to Iceland" kind of way. 4 mini balls for £6. 3 for £15 but still poor for the money I felt. The server queried our main order prior to serving it up, even though she'd taken it herself, was it the Tacos or the Taco Bowl? It was indeed the Tacos and they indeed made a Taco Bowl, which delayed the mains a little further. Not blaming the server, she was sweet enough and I think she was the one who noticed it was wrong. The tacos were disappointing. I expected crispy tacos with a nice filling, what we got were 3 mini tortillas, and I mean mini, with a spoonful of fairly lacklustre alleged spicy beef. This was served with a small plate of rice and black beans. Tasteless and not worth the money. I urge the owners to go to Sally Pusseys Inn and see what you get when you order Fajitas there for the same price. The burrito looked quite nice but actually it wasn't any better than acceptable for taste and flavour. The food appears to be cheap versions of everything rather than fresh, tasty and generous which of course hits profit margins, understandable, but other restaurants in the area are nailing this with similar prices.

By no means a terrible experience but really lacking in any wow factor at any level for me. Fidel Castro would be declaring war if he could see how Cuba was being portrayed in Swindon right now...

This is the best restaurant I have ever been to for handling food allergies!!!

Considering the allergies involved were cows milk and avacado and the restaurant is Latin food I expected there to be very little in the way of options, this was absolutely not the case!

From the moment we were greeted, we were assured by our host that everything is made from scratch so pretty much any dish could be adapted. They provided a vegan menu from the outset so we didn't feel like a burden asking for it later.

The host who took our order had been allergy trained and really knew the menu inside and out - this really goes a long way with me as it is so embarrassing when the rest of the table can order but you have to wait and order separately from the manager or allergy trained host. Our host also reassured us that due to the allergies, our dishes would be handled in a separate area of the kitchen, which again just builds such confidence.

Our order went through with no issues - none of that dreaded back and forth between the kitchen and the table. The food itself was absolutely delicious and steamy hot. Our host talked us through the order when it arrived, again giving that confidence that all was good.

Overall, Fiesta de Cuba's vibe was fun, relaxed and upbeat with cheery Latin music playing throughout. All of the staff were positive, happy, upbeat souls who were knowledgeable and friendly and really provided a level of reassurance, without making you feel like a burden!

Initially we had some anxiety about trying this restaurant due to the nature of the food, but now, we absolutely cannot wait to be going back!!! My only regret is that we didn't take our hosts name to give them the much earned shout out that they deserve! (note: we were with you on Sat 02/09 @ 2pm)

To all of the team at Fiesta de Cuba, Swindon... Please, please, keep up the fantastic work! You peeps...

This booking was about 2 Saturdays ago. We waited over 1.30hrs for starters. 2 hours after we got mains they forgot one, the person that was organising the party. It was a Hend do, we were 7 people, the place was half empty.

The main reason I decided to actually make this review (when I don’t tend to do them at all, I worked in the industry for 10 years and still work with customers on a daily basis) is because I saw how much we actually ended up spending that night when it was a terrible terrible dining experience. The team was very nice and bubbly, with the exemption of 2 people that did not have a clue what was happening. The manager was nice and charming, gave us 1 round on shots on the house, and the bride got her 2 cocktails on the house. Our bill was still super high, obviously they took service charge off, but there was not further discount at all for the rest of us, I did not want to make a fuss on the night, firstly because we were at a Hend do, secondly because I didn’t want the lady that organise the party to feel bad about the choice she had made. But I have to say the food was not good, at least my burrito was terrible, we order coffee at the end, hoping at least that we would not get charge for, well we did.

This was a really bad experience and I will for sure not be returning or recommending, which is a big shame as I am Latina, and I’d love to have more places like this in the UK, but sorry I cannot.

Also the choice of music was terrible, which in my opinion was very relevant due to the venue being a Cuban restaurant, music and food should...