El Criollo Cuban Bar & Grill — Restaurant in Burbank

Got a craving for Cuban the other day and my first choice was closed at an early 8pm. Not to be kept from satisfying my itch we found El Criollo. Good on them for staying open average hours. There's plenty parking available another plus. The ambiance was dark and quiet but with great music on. The volume was set so you can hear it but still have a conversation with your group. Drinks and food were excellent with good size portions. I'm not Cuban so I can't validate authenticity but I know good tasting food. Pricing is fair. There was a sign that they have dancing certain nights but it was hard to tell how or where that would take place. The only drawback to this establishment is the service is very slow. If your patient there's no problem if your starving the service will really try your patience. All in all I will definitely be...

I just had the Cuban sandwich and it wasn’t that great. My goal is to always have a Cuban sandwich anytime I’m near a new place. I was excited because this place had some solid reviews. I must note that the service was good. Five star for customer service. This rating is solely based on the sandwich. I did eat the whole meal as a note because I was taught not to waste food.

The bread seemed as if it was stale and crumbled easily. There seemed to be no mustard in the sandwich. Bland from that standpoint. The ham tasted like it was sandwich meat you buy at the grocery store. It wasn’t that good. The pork was good but there was hardly any in it!!! Overall no flavor and bland.

If I come back I may try the media noche but not high on my priority list to try and make it back. I was extremely excited and wish it was...

This is not my first time. I was here pre- pandemic when they had dj nights and live bands. But it was my first time post pandemic. At the moment, they are not hosting dj nights or live bands. But it's ok because we came for some mojitos. We found out it was buy 2 for the price of one. I ordered a coconut and mango mojito. It was delicious. The second one was even better. I love Cuban food. I grew up eating it in my town back in NJ. I ordered a shrimp al ajillo with congrí (black beans and rice combined) with maduros. It was yummy. We had some yucca fries, flan, espresso, rabo encendido with white rice and black beans. I loved the food. I also love the atmosphere. Order ahead if you're impatient. We took our time with our drinks and meals. We were treated well. I hope to be back before I have to go back...