Alma de Cuba — Restaurant in Philadelphia

Food: 3 Decor: 4 Service: 3

Came here for a work dinner while I was staying in downtown Philly for the night.

EL JEFE MOJITO 12 10 Cane, lime, mint, sugar, bitters ~Really good. Just wished there was more of it.

CEVICHE TASTING (Three), 28 SEA SCALLOP 16 celeriac leche de tigre, pomegranate, elderflower & hazelnuts THAI MIXTO 16 crab, shrimp, octopus & fluke with coconut leche de tigre & mango YELLOWTAIL KINGFISH 16 razor clam & octopus salpicon, chive & puffed quinoa ~Pretty good, although none of them particularly stood out.

EMPANADA DE VERDE 14 spinach, manchego & artichoke escabeche ~Pretty good.

VACA FRITA 28.5 pan seared skirt steak, black beans, white rice & tomato escabeche ~Disappointing. Wasn't a big fan of the twice-cooked steak, and the remaining ingredients didn't taste much better than those at a regular Mexican diner.

CILANTRO HONEY MUSTARD GLAZED SALMON 26 banana, lentil salad & fresh horseradish cream ~Pretty good. Salmon was cooked perfectly.

Vanilla Flan vanilla bean custard, candied charry puree, almond praline and red fruits ~Pretty good, although I've got a weakness for fresh red fruits and vanilla flans.

Roasted Strawberry Crepes dulce de leche, lime jelly, vanilla rum ice cream and black pepper meringue ~Okay.

Chocolate Cigar Award winning almond cake wrapped in chocolate mousse, dusted with chocolate and served with dulce de leche ice cream ~Pretty good. Chocolate was quite rich, but the balance was really good.

Service was okay. My water ran out...

During restaurant week, I went to Alma de Cuba first, where the special menu offered a limited 3-course meal: 1 appetizer (out of 3), 1 entrée (out of 3), and 1 dessert (out of 2). I chose the Hamachi ceviche for my first course, which was a generous portion of fresh, sliced yellow tail plated with red onion, lime juice, and a tangy sesame-soy vinaigrette. For my main course I had the delicious house specialty Vaca Frita which means “Fried Cow.” The twice-cooked crispy skirt steak is a Cuban specialty that came with rice, black beans, and delectable tomato-based sauce with an avocado crème. The dish was perfectly prepared and very filling! For dessert, not being a tapioca fan, I chose a spiced-sponge cake with dolce de leche, with a crème anglaise frosting and candied pecans. The cake was moist and flavorful and the pecans added a nice “crunch” to the dessert. My friend ordered the same exact 3 items, since the others had zero appeal to either of us, so I unfortunately can only comment on these dishes. But despite the limited menu choices, Alma de Cuba offered some of its staple dishes in full-sized portions, and all were delicious. The décor of the restaurant was fairly minimal, low lighting with a white-red color scheme, lending to a relaxed but upscale setting. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed the food and the experience at Alma de...

My friends and I came here to celebrate a birthday and also for Restaurant Week. The atmosphere is quiet with festive music quietly playing in the background and the entire establishment, including the bathroom, is dimly lit. Julia, our server was very attentive and was helpful with menu suggestions. The mojitos my sister and I ordered were tasty, but not strong at all and not at all worth the $10 price tag. The starters were good. I enjoyed the shrimp ceviche and the chicken croquettes. However the entrées took FOREVER to come out. Sadly, my rice was lacking flavor, but it did have a small piece of aluminum foil within the meat. The manager did assure me that it was an oversight and explained the way the meat was prepared. She asked if there was anything else I wanted in place of what I ordered; I just wanted food without foreign objects in it. The replacement was promptly brought out but by then my experience was tainted. The chocolate flourless cake was moist and the tapioca was smooth. The best parts of the meal were the chocolate cigar brought out for my friend's birthday and the service provided by Julia. I would have given 0 stars, but Julia was very accommodating even with the shortcomings surrounding the food. I do not plan on returning as tonight's experience is not one I'd...