Restaurante Habana La Macarena

In the heart of Bogotá, I had not to travel far to entertain my palette with the delights of Cuba. And delighted they were. For my expectations were surpassed by a furlong or more! Firstly, I should address the matter of portion sizes. Those who know me know I enjoy to eat. A lot. The portions were large not too large mind, but certainly large enough. Even the starter was of generous size. Every spoon or fork full was a delight to behold. The meat was beautifully tender. The wonderful combination of tastes and colourful environs was almost enough to fool me that I had stepped out of Colombia into Cuba. The staff were friendly and accommodating. The owner who is Cuban regaled me of stories of his homeland. Certainly I should like to go back to sample the live music, which I am sure to would only add to the experience!

Near La Macarena food district you find a little piece of Habana, or Varadero, orSantiago. If you want to spend a good time, some romantic or to dance son or bolero, with some mojitos, this is the place. The food is huge, not expensive, delicious and original. Well attended by owner, he has a live music group here, somtimes play music with his folks and you finish late, having a good hands shake with the retaurant team.

The food, especially the ropa vieja dish was really tasty. Service was very good but the decor could be better. However, food and music were vey good. Would definitely return

Ilhe means home in yoruba language. Yoruba is an African Language brought into Cuba by slaves forced to work on sugar cane fields from the 18th to 20th Century. African culture and Spanish culture are wonderfully mixed in Cuba, from the language to the food. In this restaurant Ilhe located up the hill of Macarena neighborhood, you won 't find a huge menu luckily), but the few dishes they have are a delight for all senses. I suggest to order the yuca con mojo , for me it is the best cassava in town with a delicious onion, lemon sauce. I should add, as Bogota is located high on the mountain, and cassava grows in low height or at the sea level, for finding good cassava in the mountain, you really need to have the skills to make the good choice, when choosing your cassava provider. Ilhe succeeds to bring Cuban Caribbean flavors, to the 2600 mts above the sea level : Bogota. I also recommend the mojito and the beans frijoles negros dormidos .I went on Saturday night, and they had Live Music with a good Cuban musician, singing the very well-known Cuban songs... At the end, my friends and I started humming some of the songs!

I've had Cuban food in Havana as well as many other venues across South and Central America. This was just a somewhat average dinner. The ambiance was rather bland and there seemed to be some pizazz lacking. I couldn't decide between the Ropa Viejos and the Roasted Pork Cuban style, but chose the latter. It was average and didn't make me want to come back for more. The side dishes were rather uninteresting and bland. There was a mandatory 5,000 peso cover charge for the guitar player/singer but his music was so overwhelmingly loud that the words and music was indecipherable. I think had he skipped the speakers and just gone with the guitar, it would have been OK. I don't know what other Cuban restaurants there are in Bogota, but I'm sure there's one that would surpass this one.