Bongo's Cuban Cafe

Gloria Estefan and hubby Emilio have created a rather far-out interpretation of Old Havana. It would have been better if they put as much imagination into the menu. Pros: Beautiful building, great balcony view of Village Cons: Blah Cuban food at Expensive Prices;no dance floor more

My wife and I had a couple of days in the Orlando area, and have eaten at a Latin/Cuban restaurant in our Midwest hometown, so were attracted to try ""authentic"" upscale Cuban food. In the middle of the afternoon, service was a bit slow. The stuffed potato appetizer was very good, but unfortunately was the highlight of the meal. It seemed as though the chef substituted saltiness for the real flavor we expected. I had a creole dish, which was OK but nothing memorable. We had two kinds of rice, white and a rice with black beans, both were primarily salt-flavored. For dessert we tried the chocolate tres leches, which again was OK but not as good as we've had at a quality Latin/Cuban restaurant in the middle of Kansas. All in all, Bongo's was overpriced for what at best was mediocre food. We were looking for a memorable dinner, and went away modestly disappointed. Pros: Attractive setting Cons: Food Mediocre to Average, Service Slow more

I went to Bongo's on the last of my vacation with my pregnant wife, who was craving some cuban food. Since we were at Downtown Disney we figured we would try it. We ordered a cuban sandwich and a steak sandwich and they were both dry and taste less, even the fries were soggy. The server didn't bring us bread until we saw some other table receive bread, so we asked for some. We also asked the waitress to split the tab in two and she didn't even get that right. The only thing that was good was an appetizer that was a potato stuffed with meat. It was pretty expensive for tasteless food. My wife which is pregnant and will almost eat anything did not like it at all, and I only ate it because I was starving. I felt like I needed to put ketchup on everything. The food was dry. Pros: Nice Location Cons: Horrible food more

It was my last night on vacation and was tired of park food. My friend Rachel and I thought we would celebrate by splurging a little. We invited another friend of ours from the area to join us. The three of us were seated quickly but remained at our table for some time without any acknowledgement. We ordered drinks and the server left only to return 10 minutes later with no drinks. We gave our order and asked for our drinks. Twenty-two minutes later still had no drinks or bread. I got up and talked to the manager. He said he would take of us. The drinks arrived 15 minutes later and wrong. We sent one back and it was returned again wrong. The foor was mild at best. Our bread arrived after our plates were removed. Our server came to the table all of twice, drinks and food was delivered by many different people. The bill arrived at full price. Speaking to the manager he offered no explanation or discount. Save yourself some aggrevation and skip this place all together. Pros: live music Cons: everything else more

My boyfriend and I have passed Bongos before and admired the resturant and thought it would be a great place to eat. appearances can be decieving though.... Well I was so excited to eat there finally and get some ""authentic"" cuban food well it was yucky! we ordered cuban fried chicken that came dry, plain and with a side of white rice and a few peas scattered on the plate...the rolls were cheap and the flan was not very good either. what really freaked me out was no more than 2 minutes after ordering our food was already brought to us making me wonder if it had just been sitting out... I do not recomend Bongos to anyone it is too expensive for what we got! for 2 people eating plain rice a thin slab of unseasoned fried chicken and a few peas we ended up paying over 70 dollars! Cons: bad food, too expensive more

We were promptly seated, although we arrived at a low-traffic hour. The server was courteous and promptly brought our drinks and our bread. The spanish food was not out of this world...Both Franc and I have tasted better food at small Mom & Pop establishments. It was expensive. It was not incredibly tasty but it was not a yuck fest either. The atmosphere was great, especially since they feature a live band on Friday and Saturdays where you can dance. Unfortunately, we didn't get to stay but we've heard it's great! We give it a 3 ""yummies"" out of 5. Pros: atmosphere, drinks, live music Cons: expensive more

I've been there a couple of times and the story is the same. You get the typical immigrant arrogant attitude. The staff seems not to care as they get tips automatically charged to your bill. The food seems more suited to being sold in vending machines or served at a school cafeteria. The ambience is OK, but it doesn't make up for the bad service, horrible food, and absolutely horrendous people waiting on tables. Bongo's is one of the worst places I've ever dined as well as super expensive. Stop by and give the place a glance as it is attractive and tropical, but eat elsewhere. Save your money. Pros: Curb appeal, Location Cons: Bad staff attitudes, Expensive, Horrible Food more

I went to Bongos for dinner after reading an advertisement in Disneys brochure. The ambience was okay, atmosphere was lively, and the menus looked appetizing. The quality of my food was poor and equivalent to food offered in a hospital or school cafeteria. The appetizers were marginal and my shrimp in tomato sauce looked and tasted like tiny, day-old shrimp in ketchup. My girlfriend ordered breaded chicken and they served her breaded veal. Our waiter refused to acknowledge the mix-up, even after she showed him the dark veal meat. This was acceptable because she also likes veal, but the quality and presentation of the dinner was horrible. I still gave 20% tip on my $100 bill since I dont want to penalize our waiter for poor management. I eat-out 3 to 4 times per week & this was the worst restaurant that Ive visited in 2 years. Go someplace else. Pros: Location, Interrior Decoration, Looks nice Cons: , Overpriced, Food more

ONE OF THE MOST ROMANTIC TIMES I HAVE EVER HAD. THE FOOD, AMBIANCE, SERVICE, AND WINE WERE ALL WONDERFUL. FELL IN LOVE WITH THE PLACE AS WELL AS MY WIFE (THEN FIANCE) ALL OVER AGAIN. Pros: FOOD, ATMOSPHERE, PRICES more