Gustazo Cuban Kitchen & Bar - Waltham
Cuban restaurant · Waltham ·
Cuban small plates & modern twists with rum cocktails
Cuban small plates & modern twists with rum cocktails
"With multiple levels, Gustazo has the space for a group night out with a menu to match. The small plates selection is flavor-packed, with plenty of easy to share options for a group — try the yuca frita and the croquetas. The bartenders shake up some incredible cocktails, and wine, beer, and mocktails as well." - Erika Adams
"Open since early 2019 (but with an older sibling in Waltham), Cuban restaurant Gustazo quickly made a splash in the neighborhood thanks to its bustling ambiance, flavorful small plates, and a cocktail list splashed with rum-based hits." - Nathan Tavares
"First impressions are important—just ask Mr. Darcy from Pride & Prejudice—and Gustazo Cuban in Porter Square knows this. You’ll immediately notice the art-house film posters and salsa-heavy playlist coming out of the speakers, which makes it a place for a fun dinner, with dishes highlighting the Spanish, Caribbean, and African influences on Cuban cooking. Get the crispy fried yuca, mussels with a chorizo sauce, and savory-sweet guava-glazed ribs, and pair it all with one of the cocktails or non-alcoholic drinks that feature ingredients like tobacco spray and lapsang souchong tea. And while you can make a reservation, you don't really need one—the seats at the mosaic tile-lined back bar are usually open and are our favorite place to be." - tanya edwards, megan zhang, dan secatore, catherine smart, jonathan smith
"Loud and friendly, Gustazo ranks high on our list as a place for grown-up fun. The kind of fun that comes with interesting cocktails, a dining room that will make you wistful for a flight to the Caribbean, and, most importantly, really good small plates that you’ll always want to order just one more of. Because who can eat just one empanada con carne anyway? They also have a location in Waltham if you don’t want to trek into the city." - tanya edwards
"Gustazo always seems to be filled with a nearly complete cross-section of Cambridge, from families and professors, to people who look like they have an entire kitchen drawer filled with NPR tote bags. They’re all here because there’s a lot to love. Start with one of the outstanding cocktails made with things like cigar-infused rum. Have some small plates that either make something familiar feel new (the garbanzo beans with brown butter and smoked almond sofrito) or are truly hard to find (the jibarito sandwich that swaps out bread for flattened fried plantains and is almost unheard of outside of Chicago). And finish by splitting a large plate of perfectly roasted pork." - dan secatore
