Pambiche — Restaurant in Portland

I've been here many times since they first opened and use to rave about the food. I haven't been since the pandemic and went this week with some friends for a birthday. I was beyond excited for the Oxtail, but it wasn't on the menu due to pricing issues and even being able to get it. It's not their fault so I ordered Vaca Frita and made sure to ask for it extra crispy and it was good with char and everything, but I totally disliked their red beans and rice (It was mushy and not tasty at all). Their black beans were good but not flavorful. The Ropa Vieja was too chewy and not authentic, and the shrimp and the avocado salad was overly lemony/citrus and later I realized I needed to add salt and hot sauce to balance it. Most of the food tasted sweet and that was very weird. So it is not the way the food use to taste. Honestly my fave entree is always the Plato Cubano, and next time I would ask for more fatty pieces. We ordered plenty of desserts and we all had different opinions i.e. Arroz de coco was a bit liquidy and I'm used to a denser more creamy one; the cigar truffle is a sight and delicious taste and was all of our favorite!!! The Gauva cheese cake was good, and the Banana Pudin was excellent. The Dessert Empanada was to no ones liking and the potato and cheese Empanada was not to anyones liking. Honestly, if you are Cuban or Carribean like me you know it isn't completely authentic, but the ambiance is awesome and the service was great. The coffee and espresso are excellent. I def reccomend and will always come back to try...

We were in town visiting dear friends for the last week and taking them out on our last night as a thank you for spoiling us. The very same restaurant we enjoyed together more than 20 years ago! The food and drink were delicious and did not disappoint, however, the service was the worst I’ve had. Not even sure who our actual server was. Took forever to take our drink order, one drink was wrong and took forever for it to be remade. At one point, they told us the drink was at the back of the line because there were other orders waiting. Food came out quickly but not once did our water glasses get refilled or did anyone ask if everything was okay or if we wanted more cocktails. Long after our meals were finished a completely different server asked us if we wanted dessert. She brought us the menus and then disappeared for at least 20 minutes or more. We were looking for someone to help us, but there was not one server on the floor, despite the restaurant being fairly empty at that point. Not one plate ever got cleared from our table. We finally decided to take our desserts to go and asked for the check. That came out quickly but sadly due to the size of our party a 20% gratuity was attached which in no way matched the service. On top of that, the credit card receipt to sign was misleading with the gratuity broken out despite it being included in the total you were signing for. Cuisine of this level should be matched in the way it is presented. Rich, thoughtful...

"sugar for my bitterness" Jajajajajaj definitely aren't Cuban And you are quite unprofessional - I hope you close down soon and save others from your wanna be Cuban food.

EDIT: Received this from management.

"You come to Portland searching for Cuban food? Because Portland is a major hub for all things Caribbean, verdad? "

I come to Portland for family. Your establishment advertises Cuban Food. What you serve is far from authentic Cuban food. Thus, you lure customers in under a pretense. That's bad business. To add insult your response above. Definitely not customer oriented. Buyer beware - stay away from this place.

Oh yea, but, at the very least the word "verdad" was spelled correctly. Hope springs eternal, even if you comida does not #pambichenotcubanfood

I have been visiting Portland for over a decade. In those visits is the search for authentic Cuban food just like my moms, Cuban born, from Miami.

So, here goes. the black beans and rice were tasty. However, Cuban food is not served with coleslaw. My brother ordered a Cuban sandwich that was soggy it had to be returned.

The atmosphere is Cuban, the staff was nice, and happily the menu did not feature Cuban Mexican food like other “Cuban” restaurants in the area.

Yet, the food fell short.

Another example, arroz con picadillo (a basic and simple Cuban dish), was nowhere to be found on the menu.

Disappointing …. but we will keep trying to find an authentic...