Paladar Fusion Mexico Cuba — Restaurant in San Antonio

OMGoodness!!!!!!!! 'Fabulous' was the word we kept saying throughout the entire meal.

My family and I consider ourselves "foodies". We love trying different cuisines and finding gems. This is one such gem.

In our visit, we ordered 11 items ... EVERYTHING had such fabulous flavor. (1) they slice and fry their own yuca chips. It was simple, but flavorful. This was not ordered ... it was provided free of charge. (2) Guacamole Con Masitas is a guacamole presentation w/ yuca and regular corn chips. I normally prefer my own guacamole recipe over others, but this makes me choose theirs over mine. (3) Ceviche Tropical was a perfect blend of fruits (kiwi, mango, orange juice, and mandarins), snapper, veggies, and microgreen cilantro. Again, I would choose this over my own! (4) Arroz Cremoso is Mexican style risotto with grilled chicken. I love good risotto (from mushrooms to lobster), but this has jumped to the top of that list. FABULOUS!!!!! (5) Tuna Salvaje is a seared tuna w/ citrus. It has great flavor, but for me it was a bit more tarty than I like. (6) Ropa Vieja is a tender pulled beef w/ robust flavors served w/ white rice and perfectly cooked (and tender) plantains. (7) Empanaditas are 3 hand-sized fried empanadas ... each with different fillings: lechon, ropa vieja, chicken. (8) Flautas de lechon are like no other flauta I've ever tasted. I normally don't like flautas bc they're typically over fried and the filling is always dry. OMGoodness ... this is nothing like those others. While the outside is perfectly crispy, the filling is packed with flavor and tender. (9) Posta de Huachinango is a dish you have to try. From bottom to top ... in a boat shaped banana leaf wrap is a plantain fufu; then a mojo "chimichuri-like" sauce; then a perfectly grilled snapper; and then fried strips of yuca (I think). Aside from being beautifully presented, the flavors were fabulous! (10) Pastelitos Cubanos are 2 puff pastries ... one stuffed w/ cheese and the other w/ guava. (11) Pay de Queso is a NY Cheesecake type of dessert. (12) Flan Candela is a flavorful flan provided w/ a flaming rum and cinnamon presentation.

We definitely plan on visiting this gem of place again. Ricardo, THANK YOU for such a fabulous...

Food; they think they are in NYC with their prices. Compared to the food quantity and taste. Way off. We started with the empanaditas, and they used corn instead of flower. Corn is too overpowering and it takes away from what’s inside because all you can taste is corn. The fried yucca was drowned in old oil so it didn’t taste good either. My main course was Flautas de Lechon. Well, again, they use corn tortillas with a tiny little strip of lechon inside so given the minuscule amount of lechon and the overpowering taste of the corn tortillas, after only one bite, I found myself cutting the flautas open and removing the tiny little strip of pork inside. The fried plantains were delicious. Hard to screw that up though. Wife had the Arroz Cremoso. Nothing special there. Lacks taste and for the price portions were not representative. $20 a plate.. no where near worth it. $10 the most. I also ordered the congri, a side portion of “traditional” NOT cuban rice and beans. The beans were black, but they were puréed like Mexican refried beans, and that is Not Cuban and it was nasty. Now, when you say it’s Fusion, ok great. But their menu is separate. Mexican and Cuban. So I don’t know if they meant fusion as one restaurant that serves both, or if the dishes are supposed to be infused. Definitely not the latter because again, they separate the food in the menu, and some are called traditional, but oh boy did they miss the mark! Also don’t serve alcohol. Now, that would’ve been a great heads up, announce, advertise you are a BYOB joint. The atmosphere; could have been better if they buy some sound dampers because it’s a small cozy place, but the people talking so loud plus the music takes away from the coziness. It just ecoes. But the service was good. Prompt, polite and attentive. I would go back to try other Cuban dishes, that was the only reason I went there in the first place. Because for gods sake, we don’t need another Mexican Restaurant!!!! But I won’t bother going back because of the overpriced dishes and off...

We came here for a very very early dinner (430pm) and had a wonderful meal here. It was my wife, me, and our 5 year old daughter.

Service was very efficient and friendly. The restaurant itself is beautiful inside, cozy, and very clean. Our waiter was great and gave us some good suggestions.

We ordered: Appetizer: Guacamole con masitas- best dish of the night! Perfectly made guacamole with just the right amount of citrus bite, chunks of avocado, tomatoes, and cilantro. Topped with wonderful pork bites and two types of chips. Delicious!!

Flautas de lechon - deep fried, crunchy, and with a wonderful complex flavor. The plantains on the side were beautifully carmelized and soft

Sandwich Paladar- delicious sandwich of pork with a side of chips. The bread was perfect for this, soft and tasty but strong enough to support the filling.

We also tried the malta soda which was yummy, with a sweet molasses flavor with a hint of bitterness.

Overall every dish was stellar, my only suggestion would be for both entrees to include a small extra side to balance them out. Like the flautas could use a tiny bit of rice maybe to offset the bold flavors of the rest of the dish. For the sandwich, it came with chips but just a few pieces of lettuce or something on the side might add a way to lighten the palate a bit if that makes sense.

I would definitely come back here! What...