Habana + Mojitos = Good Times

Habana is located at The Lab in Costa Mesa (California), right off Bristol Street. At first, we got a bit confused because we kept seeing The Lab’s sign next to Habana’s sign. Well as it turns out, The Lab is the name of the shopping center where Habana is located! Hah! It sure fooled me! Anyway, the location itself is a bit inconspicuous and easy to miss. We ended up walking in a circle before we noticed where the restaurant was located. Parking is not abundant, but this isn’t a busy shopping center we didn’t have any problems finding a place to park.

Habana offers indoor and outdoor sitting, being lunchtime, we opted for outdoor sitting. I kind of regret not sitting inside since there interior decor seemed interesting. It had a very “old world” feel, complete with candles, aged walls and dim lights. On second thought, I had to rely on my trusty iPhone’s 2-megapixel camera for pics so being outdoors was probably the better decision.

There wasn’t any wait so we were sat promptly and our drink orders came quickly. I ordered the “Ropa Vieja” (Old Clothes in Spanish) and my wife and friends ordered the Paella (serves two) and the Skirt Steak, which was a brunch entrée.

The Ropa Vieja, which is a traditional Cuban dis,h consisting of shredded pork in a tomato sauce base with black beans, rice and plantains. The pork was a bit on the sweeter side but not enough to gross me out. I did finish the whole thing so I can’t say I didn’t like it. I haven’t had Ropa Vieja before so I couldn’t really tell if that’s how it’s supposed to taste like. I love the plantains! Wish they gave out more.

I did try a spoonful of my wife’s paella. I think they did a good job with it because the rice did not come out too soggy and they didn’t skimp out on the saffron and seafood and meats. It would have been nice to see some lobster and crab in there, thought.

I didn’t have any of the Skirt Steak dish so I can’t comment. It does look pretty good though, specially that egg on top…hmmmmm

Our entrées were accompanied by a couple rounds of Mojitos (traditional, rasberry and blueberry) which were “okay”, I have had better Mojitos elsewhere. My main complaint was that there wasn’t enough sugar cane juice in it, but there was plenty of mint and rum!!! After few rounds we had a lot of laughter and smiles. Wife was in a very funny-mellow mood that whole afternoon. Good Times!

Unfortunately, I didn’t take any pictures of dessert. Wife and I ordered the Fried Bananas, while our friends opted for a Chocolate/Coffee Mouse Cake. The bananas were battered and deep friend and served with free fruits and vanilla ice cream on the side. Tasty! No complaints there.

Tasty entrées
So-so Mojitos
Great ambiance and good service
Expensive! The bill for a party of 4 was $135 + tip