Where to Find the Best Cuban Restaurants around Boston

Boston might not be in the midst of its Cuban restaurant heyday at the moment—we’ll never forget El Oriental de Cuba, Old Havana, Chez Henri, and Mucho Gusto—but fortunately the city and its surrounds are still home to a few spots for soul-warming spices in a heap of picadillo or the sublime, caramelized sweetness in a mound of maduros, not to mention heaping plates of ropa vieja and classic Cuban sandwiches. Here’s where to find Greater Boston’s best Cuban (and Cuban-inspired) cuisine.This guide was most recently updated in February 2025; watch for periodic updates.

---

See also: Where to Find Boston’s Best Caribbean Food

---

Doña Habana

The cuisine at this Roxbury restaurant and lounge is as bold and varied as the mojito list—which is to say, very. After all, there are dozens of refreshing rum- and mint-anchored libations, spiked with everything from mango puree to chopped jalapeños, that will have you hitting up the outdoor patio anytime you’re wander-lusting for a trip to the tropics. (That patio is also the perfect place to enjoy an eye-opening horchata cocktail over brunch.) Food-wise, meanwhile, you’ll find everything from starters of mini Cubanito sandwiches and spring rolls to a beautiful fried whole snapper and other mains made even more tantalizing with garlicky sofrito sauce, citrus-spiked mojo, and more. Feeding a whole family? Spring for the slow-roasted whole suckling pig, which comes with rice, cassava, and plantains.

11 Melnea Cass Blvd., Roxbury, Boston, 617-708-0796, donahabanarestaurant.com.

Gustazo Cuban Kitchen & Bar

“Gustazo” means “great pleasure” in Spanish, and that’s exactly what you’ll feel at this pair of Cuban restaurants in Cambridge and Waltham, where the focus is on shareable (and super-craveable) small plates: Must-tries include the empanadas, crispy pockets of pastry dough stuffed with beef picadillo, and the mussels in a rich and creamy chorizo sauce that gets sopped up with locally baked Iggy’s bread. There are a few larger dishes, too, including standouts like grilled ribeye with pineapple chimichurri and slow-roasted pork served with charred onions, rice and beans, and maduros. Not one to put pork on your fork? Behold the stellar selection of vegetarian options, including roasted cauliflower topped with Manchego cheese and pistachios; spinach-and-feta empanadas; and the fan-favorite corn fritters with brown butter honey, goat cheese mousse, and sunflower seed pesto.

2067 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge; 240 Moody St., Waltham, 855-487-8296; gustazo-cubancafe.com.

La Fábrica

This lively Central Square restaurant and club dances from Cuba to Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, and beyond, often fusing multiple cuisines into one intriguing dish; see the “Latin sushi roll” section of the menu, for example, which gives ingredients like sweet plantain a Japanese spin. Those with a hankering for Cuban might try the ropa vieja mofongo, which blends the savory Cuban shredded beef dish with a Puerto Rican plantain mash. Sip on a mojito (spicy or passionfruit-flavored, perhaps) for a fun night.

450 Massachusetts Ave., Central Square, Cambridge, 857-706-1125, lafabricas.com.  

Mariel

According to the minds behind COJE Management (the same team behind Lolita, Yvonne’s, and more), their glitzy hotspot Mariel takes its cues from the “faded elegance” of pre-Cuban Revolution Havana: The mix of weathered-looking murals, plush banquettes, and big planters filled with palm fronds certainly do lend to a chic and buzzy scene. You won’t just come for the scene, though. There’s a strong menu of contemporary Cuban-inspired cuisine, including snacks of pork empanadas (basically a Cuban sandwich in empanada form) and yucca cheese puffs; shareable plates like the can’t-miss steak churrasco with Iberico sausage butter and the luscious fufú gnocchi with garlic-brown butter and aji picante; and hefty feasts like a 16-ounce miso Chilean sea bass with noodles and veggies. To drink? Mojitos and daiquiris in various flavors, plus other creative concoctions.

10 Post Office Square #120, Downtown Boston, 617-333-8776, marielofficial.com.

Para Maria

While the Envoy Hotel’s restaurant isn’t explicitly Cuban, chef Tatiana Pairot Rosana—who grew up in a Cuban family in Miami—certainly infuses elements of her background into her flavorful cuisine. A guava glaze sweetens a salmon filet, for instance, which is served atop coconut rice, while tacos are filled with mojo pork. At brunch, there’s a morning-friendly take on a Cuban sandwich (it’s served on an English muffin and topped with a sunny-side up egg); at lunch, there’s a more classic version. You’ll find these dishes among others broadly inspired by Latin American cuisines, from spicy corn churros to chorizo and cheese empanadas. All together, it’s an enticing combo that should attract locals as well as tourists to the Seaport hotel.

70 Sleeper St. (Envoy Hotel), Seaport District, Boston, paramaria.com.