CaÑa - Oakland

Came here on my birthday because I wanted something different. I got Beef Empanadas, Ropa Vieja I believe. Food was bomb. I need to try the other stuff.

On a quiet mid-week night Cana closes down the main seating part of the restaurant in favor of focusing on the small café space attached to the kitchen. Smokey and loud this actually adds some vibrance to the space that other reviewers remark happens on the weekend. I was in the mood for something differnt and Cuban food looked to scratch that itch. I came with some friends so we were able to try a few drinks and dishes. I will caveat that everything tasted VERY good but the 'average ' star rating comes from the price. We started with some grilled plantains and the beef and chicken empanadas. The plantains were tasty about 6 small pieces), starchy and sweet; just the way I like it. The empanadas come out 2 in an order $14 each. The picadio beef) were filled with ground beef, olives and spices served with a green caper sauce. The chicken were filled with shredded and succulent chicken served with a garlic green sauce. Wrapped in a crispy dough, a little more butter and a deeper fry would have put it over the top. The chicken were the winners here. We got fried chicken sandwiches which were served with a side salad and came as a decent size fried cutlet on grilled bread and all the fixings. Flavor bomb that blew it out of the water. We also got a grilled chicken platter flowing over with black beans, rice and roasted vegetables. Again, the chefs know how to cook some chicken and the flavor of the beans were so authentic. We wet our whistles with mojitos, $14 and a glass of rioja wine $18) meaning each of our bills came to about $70 pp with tip and tax. For a shared app, 2 drinks and a sandwich in a cafe? I love to support local, I know we have an inflation issue, but I can 't rationalize the food to price ratio. I hope that the next calendar year sees prices normalizing so I can come back for my Cuban fix w/o stressing the wallet!

Please do yourself a favor and DO NOT COME HERE. My friend and I came to Caña this past Sunday and had such a bad time. We didn 't get our food for almost two hours, yes, two hours, and they only brought one of our plates out at first, even though we ordered at the same time. When I tried to hunt down the waitress to see where my friend 's plate was, she rudely told me, You can enjoy your food What restaurant does that? If the order got missed or forgotten, take accountability and apologize for not having both of our meals out at the same time. My food obviously got cold after waiting 40 mins for my friends to arrive, so I didn 't eat it. There was no apology or anything; I even had to dispute getting charged. The one star goes to the gentleman who was taking care of those who ordered bottomless mimosas. He was prompt with his pouring and ensured my friend got a nice buzz. The restaurant has a good vibe (the DJ was enjoyable), but the service and long wait time quickly make this place worth avoiding, especially if you 're hungry.

Good quality food and the customer service team was knowledgeable and extremely helpful!

We came here on an unplanned St Patrick's Day. At the bar was a few locals watching Puerto Rican baseball. It was your typical Oakland bar scene with an old hipster couple, a construction worker and some other random Oaklandites. The portions are huge for a post pandemic, pre recession restaurant. If I had one complaint, the food was served lukewarm, which gives the impression that it wasn't made fresh. Overall, it was a positive experience. BB