Guacaya Bistreaux — Restaurant in Minneapolis

Overall solid food, with some items very good while others leaning towards mediocre. The best item in my opinion was the jerk chicken, with the chicken very tender, juicy, and flavorful. Even with the jerk BBQ sauce, I was able to taste the softness. Having braise kale on the top, along with corn risotto at the bottom, made the dining experience that much better, because if one perceived the chicken to have too much sauce, then using either two could neutralize the taste a bit. The risotto tasted like grits, which may be a negative to some, but I personally love grits, so I didn't mind at all.

The pineapple rum cake was solid as well, having a bit of the rum taste, along with piña colada ice cream that elevated the overall flavorful. As for the mariscada, the best tasting part was the purple heirloom grits, because it contained the taste of all the seafood in there. The scallops, shrimps, and clams themselves tasted relatively mediocre. There was a bit of a fishy taste that wasn't completely gone.

I didn't enjoy the miss river beet salad because of several reasons: 1) the beet pieces were tiny and there wasn't enough, but instead way too much green lettuce and other veggies 2) not sure if the sauce was balsamic vinegar, but it was very strong, too strong to the point of making the beets taste nothing like beets themselves 3) there wasn't enough feta crumble or candied pecans, and if there were more, the sauce taste wouldn't be as strong. Normally I love beet salad, but unfortunately this one fell short.

With all said above, this is a solid place located in a lively neighborhood and I would still recommend it for those looking for a relatively upscale...

One of the best meals I've had in my life. Every dish was perfect or better! Started off with the best ceviche in my life, followed by the Patagonian Shrimp, also perfect. Don't skip the jalapeño slices; they accent this perfect dish! Followed that up with the best Jerk Chicken I ever had, with a beautiful risotto. We also had the truffle Yuca. Our server Aling loves her job, and it shows: we narrowed down our choices and got her input; also perfect. A warm hearted soul, and expressive. She could tell how overwhelmed we were and gave really sweet feedback why she loves working here. The owner/head Chef Pedro, a Panamanian fellow, also with a big heart was very appreciative of the positive feedback, and you could feel the pride in his work when he spoke. This isn't our first visit, but our first dinner. We discovered the place ( its gorgeous and the music sublime) relatively accidentally last year when visiting the Twin Cities from Canada for the Red Hot Chili Peppers concert for brunch. Hooked instantly, we came back 3 weeks ago for the Yacht Club Festival and again this weekend for Metallica. No way we are we missing this place, and we are taking our MN besty Shirley for brunch tomorrow! Oh, and I never order desert but i was so sad it was over that I ordered the Pineapple Rum cake. Yes, it was perfect. Can't wait until morning! One of the best meals of my life and I'm a hobby chef. Scientifico...

My experience at Guacaya was quite disappointing, and the high cost was not justified. I come from Madrid, and while I didn’t expect to find a paella at the level of Spain, I definitely didn’t expect burnt and poorly cooked rice. The portion sizes were very small, which made the situation even more frustrating. Part of the rice ended up on the floor, and we ate the other part because we didn’t want to risk spending more money at a place that had already let us down.

The rest of the dishes were also not up to par. The meat was overly seasoned, which overshadowed any positive flavor it might have had. The service left much to be desired; I didn’t feel that the staff was really attentive to our needs.

Additionally, I was surprised by the policy regarding bringing a cake to celebrate a birthday, as they charge you $25 just to cut it. It’s also worth mentioning that they don’t offer refills for Coca-Cola, which is unusual in many restaurants.

If you don’t show up for your reservation, they charge you $25 per person, which I find excessive. And if you decide to go with a group of more than five people, be prepared to shell out over $250 for a meal of very poor taste.

In conclusion, did not meet my expectations, and I wouldn’t recommend this place to anyone looking for a good dining experience. There are many better options where you can enjoy a nice meal without feeling like you're throwing...