Mambo Grill & Tapas — Restaurant in Salisbury

(From 2018) My wife and I have very high standards when it comes to several ethnic cuisines, Cuban being among them. Mambo Grill & Tapas is excellent and no kidding, likely the most authentic Cuban food you'll find North of Miami! (I've searched and nothing I've found is better.) The food is absolutely fantastic, the beer selection is also expansive with MANY craft brews and Misty, the bartender is very educated on the selections. The Mojito is superb. Service here is also top notch! Friendly, efficient, and committed to customer delight. The prices may look a tad high on your first visit but remember this: you get what you pay for... After you've had your meal, the prices will seem reasonable. I'd recommend a dish, but it's too hard to nail one down as they are all fantastic. The Sampler is to die for and is an entire meal in itself! We live in Charlotte and there's nothing that even comes close to this gem! Don't cheat yourself - if you're in Salisbury, dine at Mambo Grill & Tapas.

2024 UPDATE: We actually moved to Salisbury after I'd written the above review and immediately became regulars here. Consistently the food and service were always 5-star and above. I have famous friends who are super-chefs (literally people you see on TV and read about or books by them) who I honestly think would have a very hard time surpassing the authenticity and quality of Mambo's Cuban food. Seriously, my experience is that Mambo is Michelin star level good. Even when they were in the throes of remodeling and/or COVID and only doing to-go (no dine-in) for limited hours on limited days, the quality stayed superb. It's family run and uses authentic family recipes, which is very obvious on the first bite. If you like (nay, LOVE) Cuban food, you owe it to yourself to go here. (If you've been to Sol Food Puerto Rican in San Rafael, CA before they got "big" (if you know, you know...), this is the Cuban cuisine equivalent with a nicer atmosphere (sorry Sol, and yes "Chuck from NC" still loves you too. ;-))

Unfortunately for us, we've since moved to AZ but any time we even get close to Salisbury (CLT, GBO, WS, etc.) we find a way to come back to Mambo. It's...

Dropped in spur of the moment Saturday afternoon about 4:00 for a bite to eat. We didn't know they had reopened, as they had been closed for a lengthy period of time for an extensive remodel. We were asked if we had reservations even though there were plenty of tables open. Of course we didn't, and were told if we could be done in an hour and a half they would seat us because they had other reservations. This kind of turned me off but we decided to go ahead and eat. They seem to be short staffed at the time, and it took a few minutes to get drinks but that was okay because it allowed us to look at the menu. We finally got our food order in, and once it did come noticed that a lady sitting next to us who had been there longer than we had still did not have her food. However, it did come shortly. We ordered the Picadillo and Hemingway chicken, both with yellow rice and black beans. Both dishes were very flavorful and good, however the Hemingway chicken was somewhat tough and chewy. The rice and beans portions were generous, but the main entree portions were small for the price. I understand we are in a time of inflation, but was expecting a larger serving. I have been a fan of Mambo for many years, but was unimpressed with our last visit. I know every business is struggling to recover from the pandemic and labor shortage, as we are experiencing the same. Perhaps a future visit will show improvement, if we decide to return. One thing worth mentioning is that this restaurant is extremely loud even with less than a full house. So expect to have to listen closely and talk loudly to have a...

I came from miami in 2012 and since my family and I got here we have been looking for a cuban restaurant in North Carolina. I would like to apologize to every Cuban restaurant in Miami but this restaurant has a little magic cuban old lady in the back cooking and they tell you that its there chefs. This abosolutely is THE BEST CUBAN FOOD I HAVE EVER HAD. Mind you i came from Miami and im not kidding they put every restaurant to shame down there. I cant wait to go again and I cant wait for the 3rd - 100th time im going to go. Your restaurant is truely a piece of heaven in the middle of North Carolina. If your unsure about coming to this restaurant take my word for it, your going to eat authentic Cuban food. I cant remember the last time I ate so fast. Thank you ! Blah blah blah yes the service was amazing, restaurant clean and elegant, but you can go to any restaurant and get good service & a pretty place to sit. But authentic cuban food like mambos... Yea good luck. By the way no heart burn after. These people know what there doing. Also there flan is really on point. Not to soft, not to hard just perfect. It was delicious till the last bite and did not become overpowering after a while. Im just really impressed with this place. I cant wait to...