Clear 32° » 5-day

You are not logged in

New York Magazine

Skip to content, or skip to search.

Skip to content, or skip to search.

Home > Restaurants > Café Habana

Café Habana

17 Prince St., New York, NY 10012
at Elizabeth St.  See Map | Subway Directions Hopstop Popup
212-625-2002 Send to Phone

  • Price Range: $

    Key to Prices and ratings

    Upscale
    • Almost Perfect
    • Exceptional
    • Generally Excellent
    • Very Good
    • Good
    Cheap Eats
    • Best in Category
    • Excellent
    • Delicious
    • Very Good
    • Noteworthy
    • Very Expensive
    • Expensive
    • Moderate
    • Cheap
  • Reader Rating:

    6.2 out of 10

      |  

    14 Reviews | Write a Review

  • Cuisine: Caribbean, Latin American
View Slide Show
Photo by Andrew Karcie

Official Website

ecoeatery.com

Hours

Daily, 9am-midnight

Nearby Subway Stops

F, V at Lower East Side-Second Ave.; 6 at Spring St.; B, D, F, V at Broadway-Lafayette St.; J, M, Z at Bowery

Prices

$10-$14

Payment Methods

American Express, MasterCard, Visa

Special Features

  • Delivery
  • Lunch
  • Take-Out
  • Reservations Not Required

Alcohol

  • Full Bar

Reservations

Not Accepted

Delivery Area

Grand St. to 4th St., Allen St. to West Broadway

Profile

In traditional dives, taste often surpasses style. Café Habana is no exception. The cramped quarters in this Cuban eatery, located on a residential corner off Elizabeth Street, may scare away patrons desiring cushy seating and quiet conversation. But the perfectly seasoned roasted pork, grilled steaks and sautéed chicken makes this café a delicious dining destination. The Mexican-style grilled corn, a gooey mixture of fresh corn topped with chili powder, melted cheese and lime, is a crowd-pleasing, albeit messy, delight that comes with a cup of individually wrapped toothpicks. Follow the corn with the marinated skirt steak with rice and beans, and a mojito, and soon you'll forget all about the sardine-like setup. — Joy Armstrong

Extra

The space is tiny, so prepare yourself for at least a half-hour wait to be seated. Once you make it inside, settle in and try not to move until after the meal. Otherwise, you'll bump the waitstaff.

Recommended Dishes

Cuban sandwich, $7; pollo mirador, $12.25; mango and jicama salad, $8.65

Related Stories

Featured In

6.2 "Mixed Reviews"
Average Reader Rating
on a Scale of 10		 Write Your Own Review
57% Would you go back?
50% Would you take a date?
21% Would you take kids?
21% Would you go on business?
28% Would you go on a special occasion?
Food: 7.3
Service: 5.4
Décor: 6.5
Value: 6.1

Not good at all looks quaint but the staff ain't move on !!!

quecarofueeso1 from 10016 | Posted on 8/29/09

Overall Rating: 4 (Not Recommended)
Food: 5
Service: 2
Décor: 6
Value: 4

We stopped into the Habana because we thought the place looked quaint. We reviewed the menu outside and decided to go in. Yes the place is small but that was ok. The decor was cheeky and we had an expectation of inexpensive but good tasting. WE WERE WRONG. We ordered pancakes with fruit. and the eggs with chorizo. The pancakes were tasteless, thin and lack luster the fruit was fresh but warm. The eggs with chorizo came with black beans. You could smell chorizo but not see them.. The eggs were scrambled and over done and not visually appealing at all. We were hungry and we ate it all yes but , we left there very very disappointed. We ordered 2 cafe con leches and got to leches w/ a drop of cafe. If you are going to serve inexpensive food at least make sure the coffee is satisfying. P.S. the coffee was served in malted milk glasses why? I suppose the resturant gods do. I'd critic the staff but dare not waste more time on this sham of a latin resturant. Perhaps they should not serve breakfast.

DIRTY-FILTHY-GROSS

brownhornet from 02351 | Posted on 5/30/09

Overall Rating: 1 (Not Recommended)
Food: 6
Service: 1
Décor: 1
Value: 5

You get what you pay for here. The wait staff is unusually arrogant. Yes, the corn with cheese is pretty great but otherwise the food is mediocre. My biggest complaint, thou, is the "DIRTY" factor. The bathroom is one big germ and the woman next to me found a "special" treat in her drink. Rather than giver her a new beverage all together they just poured the drink into another glass-Gross!!! When she asked for a new one the waitress was rude. The whole experiece was less than desirable.

Read All 14 Reviews >>

Advertising

Latest News Near

Advertising
Advertising