I've been to Cuban Pete's once before a few years ago with my girlfriends since it seemed to be a popular spot in Montclair. We were not impressed then and found the food to be lackluster. My cousin celebrated her birthday here this past weekend and apparently nothing has changed since my last visit. Let's start with the food.

Owning a Latin restaurant in NYC I opted to go with some apps vs an entree since the cuisine is very similar. I ordered the bacon wrapped dates (delicious), the shrimp ajillo (also yummy), and the ham croquettes. What I got as croquettes was insulting to Latin cuisine. Tiny FROZEN tater-tot like potatoes with no flavor and so dry I asked for a dipping sauce. I offered my table to try but a couple took bites and agreed they were not good. My sister ordered the Cuban sandwich and took one bite and left the rest. It was not AT ALL your typical Cubano. The bread did not come pressed or toasted and the ham and cheese was cold like a deli sandwich. The fries that came with it also tasted old. My cousin's roasted pork was overcooked and tough to eat and her tostones were so gross and greasy she was only able to eat the one that didn't seem to have been old and refried. Another guest in our party ordered the "mango chicken" and commented how underwhelming her dish was. That the chicken itself had no flavor. I ordered a sangria and it was not good at all. It had a very unusual taste to it - almost like it has ginger in it.

The services was decent. I asked for ketchup twice but never got it. One of the guests asked for a piña colada and had to ask midway into dinner realizing it never came. We never got refills of water. It was my sister's birthday so we told our server in the beginning and midway thru dinner to bring her a dessert. We waited and waited and had to ruin the surprise because since it never came a few guests started getting ready to leave so we had to run up to him and remind him again. They eventually came with a flan and sang happy bday. They never lit the candle so my sister couldn't make a wish which was a bummer. That's the whole point of a birthday dessert.And to top it off the flan was not good at all. It was super dense and not the usual creamy texture one expects from a Latin restaurant. We waited forever for the bill, only to discover we were charged for an extra dessert we didn't order. They happily removed the extra charge.

Overall, my experience was less than sub par. The space itself does somewhat transport you to Cuba, down to the wobbly tables and creeky floors. The salsa playlist is great but I will not be returning here.