Chango Kitchen — Restaurant in Hoboken

Being honest, the food here is about three-star-worthy.

But the prices. The prices are from 2010, and as long as Chango keeps its menu at those prices, I'm going to keep loving them. Christ on a chopstick, I haven't seen an $8 sandwich since I was in grad school (back when dinosaurs roamed the earth)!

We started with the Tamal Cubano, which was fantastically delicious, though the accompanying sauce wasn't hot at all. A shame, because it was well-flavored--just needed a lot more capsaicin.

My Cubano was very well done, but barely had any pickle in it, which made me sad. I opted to add fries and wasn't sad about the small, thin ones I got (very McDonald's-shaped).

However, the Pechuga de Pollo Adobada con Escabeche de Calabaza was a disappointment. The grilled chicken was drastically overcooked, probably because they used really lean breast meat. The accompanying Caribbean pumpkin was interesting, but too small. The other side of rice and beans was perfect, though--great bean texture and lots of savory flavor.

With tax and tip included, our meal came out to $33. $33! You can't even get lunch for one person for that price at 90% of Manhattan restaurants south of Central Park. I could've cried with wonder at the bill. Time travel is real guys--at least financially. Just hop into El DeLorean and...

This was our first time trying Cuban cuisine and we were impressed. All the dishes we tried were well seasoned and had a really good flavor. The staff was quite attentive and answered all the questions we had. We didn’t know what to order first so we decided to get Plato de Chango which was a big plate of assorted Cuban appetizers. Everything was delicious. Their Cilantro sauce with Yucca fries was so good that we ordered extra sauce on the side. We’d never tasted anything like their Pimiento Piquidillo. It’s a must try if you’re vegetarian. The veg quesadilla was good too. In main, we had Mofongos with Roasted Pork. I felt it was a bit dry to my liking but honestly I’m not sure how you’re supposed to eat it. I will be researching more on that. All in all, we loved dining at Chango Kitchen and the fact that they had so many options to choose from. We did have to wait for 20 mins to get seated because we couldn’t find a way to reserve the table but we didn’t mind because the weather was nice. It was worth it because the food was delicious and surprisingly at a decent price....

I am admittingly hard with my scoring because I am comparing my experience to my favorites. I wish I could rate in intervals because it is better than a 3 but not exactly a 4. For starters, their menu is very creative. It takes traditional dishes/foods from central and south america and combines them into one menu. . . at times into one dish. Needless to say their seasoning/taste is quite unique. Their natural drink menu is a bit exotic. Their outdoor seating area is comfy. Service was friendly but a bit delayed. In their defense, they were short staffed and indoor, outdoor and takeout were all busy. My fam had Ropa Vieja and Grilled Fish, they enjoyed their meals much more than I did. While I liked my food, I didn't feel the Churrasco or the Chimichurri was to die for. With all that said, I would visit again. I actually want to give their brunch a try. Prices are reasonable and we were able to grab a seat without reservation on what seemed like a busy weekend evening. I would say this place is definitely...