Martino's Cuban Restaurant - Somerville

Having lunch with family, just returned from two months Manila visit. We ordered tortilla chips with salsa and guacamole for appetizer. House Specialty Entrees are Shrimp in garlic lemon sauce and cilantro. Sweet fried plantain and rice on the side. Roasted pork in garlic sauce, peppers, onions and black fried beans and sweet plantains on the side with tangy mojo sauce. Combo Cubano, a sampler platter with croquettes, meat pies, stuffed clams, fried yuccas and plantains. Restaurant is not fancy, just regular and normal Cuban restaurant. Quiet and good for romantic dining. They offer buffet on weekday lunch. BYOB. Serving staff are courteous and helpful. Serving is average for an average menu priced at . Only curbside parking, first come first to get a parking space. Ha, ha! Come and try their authentic Cuban cuisine.

I've been to Cuba. I've had true Cuban cuisine. This place is f*cking delicious. We had appetizers, but we woofed them down so fast (because they were so amazing! that I forgot to photograph them. The entreés were divine. I almost ate the whole plate clean. Dessert; Tres Leches cake was yummy and the Flan was the first Flan I've ever liked in my life. The espresso was blow-your-mind strong (in the best way possible . I'll be back, for sure.

I don't usually give 5 stars often, but when I do, it's because of how the establishment made me FEEL more so than just the taste/quality of the food. From the time I entered in, until the time I left, I was made to feel so very welcomed and as if I were a part of an extended family.. Mr. Martino does just that for his patrons. What an adorable, energetic, full of life (even probably in his 80s), man! I just really pray to be that when I'm blessed to be that age. He just came back from being away for a few months for a hip replacement, but that didn't stop him from dancing. LOL. Oh... yeah, the food was delicious. LOL. We ordered a very decent amount of food from apps (chicken croquettes, homemade pork skins with fried plantain chips, and empanadas) all were a bunch of tasty, fried goodness. I LOVED the sauce that came with it, almost like the thick juice from a put of stewed beans). For my entree, I got the ground beef with raisins and olives in a tomato based sauce. It was so tasty! Coupled with yellow rice, black beans, and a side of sweet fried plantains. The only thing was that the beans were a bit too salty for my liking.. We ended the meal with a slice of tres leche cake.. YUM, YUM, YUM. It was perfect. The milk was perfectly saturated throughout the cake not a dry spot. Full of flavor just enough cinnamon. My husband is obsessed with finding the perfect Cuban sandwich since our time in FL, and I took some home for him.. he was NOT disappointed. He actually wants to come back for dinner, because he believes if the sandwich was that good, the other food must not be too far behind. So, I guess that means we will return!

Came here for the first time on a Friday night for dinner we arrived a little before 8:00 and they were pretty packed but we did manage to get a small table for 2 by the window. It's a quaint little place with a homey feel but the tables are rather close together. To start we ordered some empanadas they were pretty good 4 crispy empanadas served with a nice dipping sauce. Then for our entrees we ordered the house specialty grilled Cuban style steak Palomilla Con Mojo Crudo and the house specialty Camarones Al Ajillo- Shrimp in a garlic lemon sauce with cilantro. Both entrees were served with rice and beans and sweet plantains. We both enjoyed the food. I personally would have just preferred a little more seasoning. I also thought the portion size was perfect. Now onto my favorite part of the meal... Dessert. I just had to try this Tres Leches Cake that looked so good in all of the pictures and it did not disappoint! It was just perfect. The Cake was moist, the sweetness of the milk combined with the cinnamon was perfect and it was topped off with the most delicious homemade whipped cream... I would go back just to eat this again. So in closing it was a pretty great dinner.

Been DYING to try the buffet at this place for the longest. Was given a wonderfully fresh salad as an intro to the buffet. I'm guessing it was dressed with an avocado, cilantro, lime dressing. Absolutely delicious BUT super salty. The buffet was equally as delicious, seasoned perfectly BUT the selection was sort of disappointing. Soup, croquettes, black beans, rice with chicken, rice with chorizo, white rice, bbq chicken, pork chops, beef stew. That's all. I guess I expected more. Maybe something fried. Maybe something crunchy. But again, all very tasty. The plus side of the buffet? The flan! It's EVERYTHING! The staff was lovely and friendly. Bathroom was immaculate! I could literally just eat in there...lol. I'll be back... I'll just order ala carte.