Julie's Cuban Restaurant

 

Some weeks ago I was really craving a mojito and I had the idea of going to have dinner to a cuban place, so I decided to try Julie's Cuban Restaurant. The place is a really cool cuban cantina located at 202 Dovercourt Road, Toronto. Julie's is open from Tuesday to Sunday during summer hours opening at 5:30 pm. I strongly recommend making a reservation before going because the place gets really busy.

Julie's Restaurant is distinguished for its coziness and good vibes, and as soon I got in I felt I was in a cantina in La Habana thanks to Gloria Estefan who was playing in the background (thanks Shazam for identiying the song). I got there by 5:30 so it wasn't an issue to get a table, but when the waiter was seating us, he told me that there was a reservation at 7:30 pm for that table but I thought it was plenty of time for me to enjoy my cuban meal.

 

 

To start with my cuban experience I decided to get a lemonade.. Just kidding, of course I started with a perfectly prepared mojito, which I wish had free refills since it was $10. My girlfriend, on the other hand, decided to get a cuba libre (rum and coke) that she didn't want to share with me at all; apparently it was very good. It was prepared with cuban rum as expected and its price was also $10. Both drinks were very good, especially the mojito that had the perfect amount of mint leaves making it very refreshing.  

When we finally ran out of alcohol we started ordering some tapas. We had Yuca con Mojo ($8) that was basically a root vegetable similar to a potato (cassava) with a mojo sauce made with lemon, garlic and onion. I found the Yuca con Mojo interesting because of its acidity and I think it would be a good alternative as a side dish. We also had Platano Maduro Frito for $5 (sweet ripe plantains) and Chorizos for $7 with a red wine sauce. I would recommend the Platano Maduro Frito for those who like sweet dishes. The menu also offered a great variety of vegetarian tapas, which I found pretty cool for those vegan friends looking to try something new.

Then, as a main plate I ordered Ropa Vieja ($19) to share with my girlfriend. The server who was really nice during our experience told us that it was the most traditional dish, so we decided to give it a shot. The plate consisted of pulled steak stewed in tomato, served with black beans over rice. I really enjoy the combination of beans and rice and the shredded steak was perfectly seasoned, so all the ingredients in the dish came together very well. Some other main plates offered in the menu were shrimp in spicy tomato sauce, beef and pork hash, breaded pork, and grilled chicken stuffed with plantains and plenty more, all ranging between the $17 and $22 range. 

Finally, as a dessert we had a Tres Leches (Milk Cake), which is a cake filled with three types of milks, whole milk, condensed milk and evaporated milk with a heavy milk topping. The cake was good and I'm sure milk lovers will really enjoy it, but I thought it was just too sweet for me. 

Overall,  the dining experience was very good, the food exceeded my expectations, and the staff was super friendly. Although, I did find most of the dishes to be overpriced, I would recommend Julie's Cuban Restaurant to everyone especially if you want to try a different type of food.