How can you watch the sabres with no TVs?
This looks like a really cool restaurant but why do all places that want to have this look choose a Typeface like Papyrus for their logo. Its horrible, overused, and doesn't fit the vibe.
A few of my friends and I had a few pitchers of sangria and shared some tapas last week -everything was delicious! Aside from the whole ambience, I was amazed by the prices - huge pitchers of sangria for $13..and I don't recall a single bottle of wine that was more than $15!
We've been waiting for weeks for the paper to come off the windows. So glad to see this place open, and thrilled to have this place in/near the neighborhood. We are so there!!!!!!
Great food, Great Sangria, Great Mojito, just a GREAT place... their correct reservations number is: 835-0729
This place looks great, I'd love to check it out. How are the 2 connected, are the builldings side by side, or is the back patio the Sangria bar? It's great to know that the prices are so reasonable too... usually for this kind of ambiance you have to pay a little more.
and YES nb3004, please let's get away from Papyrus! A nice font when it first came out, but so completely overdone in every kind of signage everywhere you turn, there is absolutely no uniqueness left in its look. Can't wait to visit your new place, Mr. Greason... and if you're ever interested in a redesign I'd be happy to help ;)
i was just about to comment about the use of papyrus, but i see it has already been done!
This guy's put in a ton of money brought his family here opened up a business WITHOUT a dime in government money (see Bass Pro) and folks are harping on him for not having TVs or using a particular font, lighten up guys!
I'll definitely check out this place, it looks fantastic he's definitely put in a lot of work and the menu sounds delicious.
This place have flat screens everywhere... I SAW them with my own eyes.... STOP by they will show the game in one of them for the sports fans....
I think this is a great place and I am still going to go there. I just feel that if a graphic designer was hired to do this logo/sign it was poorly done. Papyrus is overused and difficult to read. On top of that it was originally designed "as a font that would represent what English vernacular would have looked like if written on papyrus 2000 years ago." source, which doesn't fit the look of a tapas bar in my opinion.
"Worried about the font on the signage? Seriously?" Yes this is how business' brand themselves to the public, and using a typeface that is used at every other restaurant or boutique shop is not a way to make your place stand out.
All that being said i am still eager to try the food and see what the interior looks like.
Agreed--I am definitely going to check this place out and kudos for what looks like a really nice new bar and restaurant. But yes, the font really does matter--whether you're consciously aware of it or not. A company's identity is built upon its logo, its font family and color palette... and the usage of all elements together ensures a consistent message through this look and feel. It is the foundation of a business' professionalism and it portrays to the public characteristics that the company wants potential customers/clients to recognize.
Sorry but I get pretty excited when it comes to design ;) The mini-lesson aside, papyrus is just one of those things that has become so common it can hardly be appreciated anymore--in fact, its use has generally become regarded as the unmistakable mark of an amateur. Believe me, guys, if you haven't already, you'll notice it everywhere now!
couple funny examples of others who've also noticed: Papyrus Watch Just Say No
Despite all this, my feelings about the sign on the front will certainly not stop me from patronizing this cool new establishment. The food sounds delicious, the interior looks relaxing and cozy, and the menu doesn't seem too pricey. I'm looking forward to checking it out. Best of luck!
Went last night and loved it! Great ambiance and nice menu selection -- also reasonable prices. The owner was awesome, came around to each table to introduce himself and ask how everything was. Check it out and try the flan! It is homemade there and fabulous!
I was very excited when I read the article on Havana House/Sangria. It's been a while since I have been to an actual tapas bar being that there aren't any in Buffalo. So we decided to stop by yesterday and as soon as I walked in I was impressed with the decor. We ordered Mojitos which were delicious, refreshing, and really hit the spot. Unfortunately, that is where the great experience ended. The menus came and we were looking for the rest of it (we thought maybe our server left out a page or two in our menus) but no that wasn't the case. There were about a total of 8-10 dishes listed and none of them tapas. I inquired and was told that tapas were served on the "lounge side" but our server was happy to accammodate and brought us the tapas menu. It looked like a great number of selections but then we were informed only the highlighted selections of the menu were available. This left us with only about 6 choices, none of which were very interesting. No ceviche, no empenadas, no media noche, all of which I would have liked to try. I also noticed there were none of the items you would expect to find on a tapas menu like bacalao croquettas, puntillitas, or deep fried boquerones. So we decided to order a couple items off the regular menu only to be told that they were out of one of them ( helpful industry hint: if you're. out of an item with such a limited selection to begin with, you should probably inform your guests when you drop the menu this will avoid alot of frustration). We just ended up getting another round of mojitos which tasted watered down compared to our first and a couple tapas which were underseasoned and seemed very uninspired (picadillo served with saltine crackers out of a box? c'mon). Believe me I would love to see this place succeed. I suggest you take this great idea that seemed so inspirational in your article and run with it. Don't feel you have to do some half assed, watered down, buffaloized version of something that is so simple yet great when executed properly to appeal to the market. Trust me there are plenty of us looking for some authenticity in this town and would appreciate it. Best of luck.
I was at Havana/Sangria a week ago, and had a great experience. My friends and I sat outside and tried items from both menus. The tostones top top were delicious; I had never had plantains before. We also had the pane y tomate, which seems like a simple dish but was simultaneously fresh and rich (and addictive). The paella was tasty, served on a platter rather than in the pan. All three sangrias were fruity and light, and Lex hinted that he might have a spicier version in store for winter. Service was helpful, attentive, and friendly. The charming Lex came over and spoke to us several times, and informed us that several items on the menu were unavailable as the restaurant had not yet had its Grand Opening. Compared to the other tapas restaurant in Buffalo (Toro), I would call it more laid back, with a menu (and name) that suggested Central America more than the Med (which would explain the departure from the expected menu). All in all, I loved it, and will be back many times.
all those tapas you cited are not from the cuban or spanish cuisine, the MEDIA NOCHE that's a cuban sandwich not a tapas... tapas are served at SANGRIA LOUNGE and you you said "G'punk" they accommodated you to served tapas at the HAVANA HOUSE DINING room... THIS PLACE ROCKs!!!! good job lex and all havana/sangria Team....
I would love to see this new local business succeed, and applaud Lex's efforts in establishing a truly lovely, inviting space. However, I must report on the utterly unprofessional, unfortunate experience I had at Havana House last night.
After having dined happily as a party of two at Havana House two weeks ago, I recommended the spot to a group of friends, and we booked a dinner there as a group to celebrate a special occasion. When I ate there two weeks ago, the owner came around to our table and others, another hostess checked on us several times, and our food was quite good, with the standouts being the ceviche and the tres leches. Last night, however, the restaurant seemed busier, and there were signs early on that it might be an awkward night.
After ordering some drinks and placing our food orders, we waited literally an hour before we saw any food. During that time, there were no attempts made by our server or the hostess (who did come by once to pour sangria from our pitcher into several of our cups) to acknowledge our inordinate wait for food, to offer us bread, etc. My friends and I, a very good-natured group, waited patiently, hoping that when the food arrived it would have at least been worth the wait. Then, one tapas item appeared, and its recipient was forced to either watch it grow cold, or to eat it in front of those of us who were still waiting for food. Orders continued to come out like this, at a snail's pace, with no rhyme or reason or logical sequencing. Meanwhile, over 30 minutes after having placed orders for ceviche, our server informed 2 at our table that the kitchen was out of ceviche. There was no attempt to compensate or even apologize for this (given that the news was arriving much later than professional standards would dictate), and our still-hungry fellow diners were forced to look at the menu again, choose from the handful of options that the kitchen *wasn't* already out of, and know that this re-order would mean an even longer wait. After 2 hours had passed, three of us still had not seen our first *and only* ordered food item, our entree. After about 2 hours and 15 minutes, our entrees - all of us had ordered vaca frita - at last arrived, and were beyond disappointing. For $14 each, the portion of beef was small, and, more to the point, it was tough and virtually unchewable, as well as tasting utterly unseasoned (in contrast to its description on the menu). Its saving grace was that it came with a side of beans and rice, which, while simple, allowed us to fill our bellies after a ridiculously long wait for food.
What strikes me about this experience is the fact that at no point did the waitstaff or management acknowledge that things were going horribly wrong. During our 2 hour and 15 minute wait for food, no one came to our table with bread, with explanations, with apologies, nothing. And when it came time for our bill, there was no attempt whatsoever to compensate us for our wait, for the disappointments of being told the kitchen was out of ordered items over a half hour after orders were placed, etc. And, to add insult to injury, the staff foisted business cards at us as we attempted to leave, seemingly unaware of how unpleasant our dining experience had been.
Given how flustered our waitress seemed, how many items the kitchen was out of, and given our inordinate wait and the lack of acknowledgement of it, my sense is that this business was not prepared to be busy and to keep up with a full dining room. Even if one chalks this up to the learning curve of being a new business, I still find it baffling that no one looked out for us during our long, awkward, foodless wait as paying customers there, and that no attempts were made to apologize, discount, etc. - all of which sends the message that the management and waitstaff regarded our experience there last night as "business as usual". If that is the case, I would not return to this establishment, and I would caution others against spending there hard-earned money, and their precious time, there.
On July 18, 2008, my family and I took my husband out to eat at this new cool looking place for a celebration. The ambiance was nice. The place was clean and neat and the music was ethnic. I love food and fine dinning so it was refreshing to see this place. I especially love Latin food, Puerto Rican, Cuban, Dominican or other Caribbean islands. I will start with the fact that the mojitos and sangria were the best and only thing positive that came out of the whole night. The rest of the evening and food was a total disaster. The menu is limited and basic. The food staggered in over an hour to two hours time frame. One plate after another staggered on our tables, I have never experience this. First we ordered appetizers, two civiche one which was to be without peppers and four pastillos. It should have been a huge red flag when first only two pastillos came out then 5 minutes later the civiche. The other two pastillos came out after several more minutes. The civiche without peppers came out and it looked like dirty water. My brother-in-law looked like he had to go fishing in the water to find the fish. This of course was unacceptable and he sent it back, especially seeing presentation of the other civiche. It was then one of the two plates of rice and chicken made its way to the table and 10 minutes later then next one arrives. They tasted more along the lines of Chinese fried rice. The steak dinners took even longer then that. I guess had the food been so scrumptious the time factor could have been overlooked. His place is obviously not ready to accommodate those that can appreciate true ethnic food and cannot handle large groups. The food was flavorless and lacked anything that resembled traditional Cuban cuisine. The steak was overcooked and came off more like a beef jerky and the white rice and black beans were a true disappointment. While on a second bite my sister noticed a white unidentifiable object in her beans. I examined it and it appeared to be fish. When the waiter asked if we were satisfied, we began to explain our dismay and we did not get through 30 seconds before the owner came out YELLING at us and being totally irrational. He blatantly called my sister a liar and said she must be making it up. He screamed he is a kosher cook and no mistake could ever take place. He did not even take a moment to examine it. Mr. Greason was unreasonable and refused to even have a civil conversation with myself. I am level headed and spoke in a normal non-threatening tone, while he carried on like a lunatic. Well, of course then all hell breaks loose and my brother-in-law, who has just about had enough of this, feels attacked, then says he’s going to leave. Mr. Greason causes a scene. I tried several attempts to speak with the owner to no avail. Finally he realizes that I am going to pay for what we did have he begins to yell at the wait staff and asking if he speaks English because he wasn’t prompt in finding the order. This man was abusive not only to us but to the waiter. His food was and restaurant receives poor marks. If he thinks he is capable of running a business like that in Buffalo, he does not understand the power of a word. Buffalo is small and word of mouth is everything. Unless he is willing to change his attitude and the food ---his business will not last long, I will never go back.
I am one of the unfortunate ones to eat or try to eat at this establishment. I in an attempt to have a night of dinner out with friends and family decided to partake of the new hot spot for my birthday. First let me not totally blast the restaurant; the atmosphere was great and the location is good; and I do not blame the wait staff. But thats it; I and my friends looked at the menu and thought that maybe some pages slipped out and asked and was told that the menu is complete (as a suggestion one in our party suggested that they add more items and some without things people don't eat 9 items on a menu won't get you far in a city known for eating), well anyway we ordered our appatizers of Cervece. My order came out and looked very good; however the next persons to come out took an extra 45 min and this is unacceptable in restaurant time (but maybe it was because he asked for the peppers to be left off); but that does not explain why it came out looking like dish water with fish floating in it; (Can someone help me with this). Well to move on we ended up ordering four vacas fritas and two plates of Arroz con Pollios for the children with us. Now during the 1.5 hour wait we did receive some good drinks and we were checked on (and while being checked on asked about the wait) and were told that the chef is sending out other things to other tables. Note to Lex you can't keep children(ages 4--12) waiting for their food for 1.5 hours and then send out one plate. Sorry a little aggravated still that my B Day was ruined. Moving on we had to split the childrens plates when they finally came out and then we had to split the other when it camo out about 20 minutes later. Needless to say the children finished before our food came another 20-30 minutes later. Our meat was extremely underportioned and the food; for a lack of better words tasted like paper to me; this made our party upset and this is only the beginning. One of our plates had some sort of unknown white object in the black beans and when reported to the waiter; the owner/ operator/manager/chef/customer service person came out and yelled at us and accused us of lying; and accused my party for trying to skip on the bill, and planting the item in there ( I don't know about anyone else but yeah I travel around with what ended up being fish in my pocket) keep in mind we are still seated and flabergasted at this point that this is happening. Well to be accused of this made one of our party heated as they say and he got up and started to leave. Another of our party stayed to rectify the situation and lex who was very rude did not want to talk and come to some agreement; he simply said he was going to call police (for trespassing). After the rest of our party was leaving my wife and I (I had to finish my Mojito) stayed to remedy the situation and this is when Lex started yelling at me and my wife (who must have known my anger was rising and told me to step back). Again her we go with the police; (question what happens when you threten to call the police on the police) HMMMMMMMMM_ (nothing Lex). The wait staff at this point intervened and was trying to remedy the situation; and they were yelled at (somebody needs people skills----Lex); after intervention from the wait staff and my wife saying she would pay for the drinks and Arroz con Pollo because we (an Engineer; Peace Officer, Business owner; and Dr.) were not trying to skip on the bill. (I know I am a little all over the place which should some indication as tyo how upset I am). Back to story-after a compromise with the wait staff and bartender Mr Lex says he is not going to give us a recipt; so that we can say we paid; starts yelling again at his staff and my wife (at this time enough is enough, and I suggested in a not so friendly mafiosio type of way he not do that again, and treat people like people). We left and were not happy at all with our experience
1.Mr Lex you pompus arrogat **%*#@ what you did not know is you were talking to two women (my friends wife and mine are of hispanic orgin and they cook that type of food a lot. 2.You should be aware of the customers dietary limitations and just because someone orders something without peppers; that does not make it a compliant- that make it a request. DUH It doen not matter if the rest of the world knows cervece comes with peppers if I do not want it on my food ten as the cook you are obliged to serve it to me that way. 3. Children don't want to sit there and watch other children eat--if you are going to bring out an appatizer or food bring them out close together (10-20 min apart is not acceptable). 4.Common practice says you do not come out yelling and acusing your patrons of lying and planting food to avoid paying the bill (you never know who people are-we could have been critics). You take the loss and smile--it happens to all of us; I have had to do it with my business; it gets you farther in life. 5.Treat your staff like you would want to be treated--especially in the middle of the restaurant don't scream and accuse them of being stupid--that could have been someone in my parties family; and may very well be the reason people are patronizing you place from the beginning. 6.Add seasoning to your food & let people know if something is not available right away; increase the menu size (I see and know a lot of big Cubans and they did not get that way eating 9 things all their life) 7. Just sell me the business and I will show you how it should be done----I knew I should have bought that building last year.
On a good note those Mojitos were slamming !!!!!!!
I am one of the unfortunate ones to eat or try to eat at this establishment. I in an attempt to have a night of dinner out with friends and family decided to partake of the new hot spot for my birthday. First let me not totally blast the restaurant; the atmosphere was great and the location is good; and I do not blame the wait staff. But thats it; I and my friends looked at the menu and thought that maybe some pages slipped out and asked and was told that the menu is complete (as a suggestion one in our party suggested that they add more items and some without things people don't eat 9 items on a menu won't get you far in a city known for eating), well anyway we ordered our appatizers of Cervece. My order came out and looked very good; however the next persons to come out took an extra 45 min and this is unacceptable in restaurant time (but maybe it was because he asked for the peppers to be left off); but that does not explain why it came out looking like dish water with fish floating in it; (Can someone help me with this). Well to move on we ended up ordering four vacas fritas and two plates of Arroz con Pollios for the children with us. Now during the 1.5 hour wait we did receive some good drinks and we were checked on (and while being checked on asked about the wait) and were told that the chef is sending out other things to other tables. Note to Lex you can't keep children(ages 4--12) waiting for their food for 1.5 hours and then send out one plate. Sorry a little aggravated still that my B Day was ruined. Moving on we had to split the childrens plates when they finally came out and then we had to split the other when it camo out about 20 minutes later. Needless to say the children finished before our food came another 20-30 minutes later. Our meat was extremely underportioned and the food; for a lack of better words tasted like paper to me; this made our party upset and this is only the beginning. One of our plates had some sort of unknown white object in the black beans and when reported to the waiter; the owner/ operator/manager/chef/customer service person came out and yelled at us and accused us of lying; and accused my party for trying to skip on the bill, and planting the item in there ( I don't know about anyone else but yeah I travel around with what ended up being fish in my pocket) keep in mind we are still seated and flabergasted at this point that this is happening. Well to be accused of this made one of our party heated as they say and he got up and started to leave. Another of our party stayed to rectify the situation and lex who was very rude did not want to talk and come to some agreement; he simply said he was going to call police (for trespassing). After the rest of our party was leaving my wife and I (I had to finish my Mojito) stayed to remedy the situation and this is when Lex started yelling at me and my wife (who must have known my anger was rising and told me to step back). Again her we go with the police; (question what happens when you threten to call the police on the police) HMMMMMMMMM_ (nothing Lex). The wait staff at this point intervened and was trying to remedy the situation; and they were yelled at (somebody needs people skills----Lex); after intervention from the wait staff and my wife saying she would pay for the drinks and Arroz con Pollo because we (an Engineer; Peace Officer, Business owner; and Dr.) were not trying to skip on the bill. (I know I am a little all over the place which should some indication as tyo how upset I am). Back to story-after a compromise with the wait staff and bartender Mr Lex says he is not going to give us a recipt; so that we can say we paid; starts yelling again at his staff and my wife (at this time enough is enough, and I suggested in a not so friendly mafiosio type of way he not do that again, and treat people like people). We left and were not happy at all with our experience
1.Mr Lex you pompus arrogat **%*#@ what you did not know is you were talking to two women (my friends wife and mine are of hispanic orgin and they cook that type of food a lot. 2.You should be aware of the customers dietary limitations and just because someone orders something without peppers; that does not make it a compliant- that make it a request. DUH It doen not matter if the rest of the world knows cervece comes with peppers if I do not want it on my food ten as the cook you are obliged to serve it to me that way. 3. Children don't want to sit there and watch other children eat--if you are going to bring out an appatizer or food bring them out close together (10-20 min apart is not acceptable). 4.Common practice says you do not come out yelling and acusing your patrons of lying and planting food to avoid paying the bill (you never know who people are-we could have been critics). You take the loss and smile--it happens to all of us; I have had to do it with my business; it gets you farther in life. 5.Treat your staff like you would want to be treated--especially in the middle of the restaurant don't scream and accuse them of being stupid--that could have been someone in my parties family; and may very well be the reason people are patronizing you place from the beginning. 6.Add seasoning to your food & let people know if something is not available right away; increase the menu size (I see and know a lot of big Cubans and they did not get that way eating 9 things all their life) 7. Just sell me the business and I will show you how it should be done----I knew I should have bought that building last year.
On a good note those Mojitos were slamming !!!!!!!
I went there last Friday and it was a really bad experience. First of all the lounge was so hot, that I was sweating like a pig. Ok that at the side, the service was horrible. It took them forever to first ask for the order of drinks, then they forgot half of our order. The tapas were delicious but we had "Carne Vieja" which is a typical Cuban Food. I would eat that if the price is 5 dollars the plate but not for 14 dollars. The quality and the taste was just mediocre. I guess we were paying for the decoration. I would give them one more shot by ordering a paella (which is Spanish not Cuban food) if, but probably I would not go there ever again.
Or mojitos were good! But still the overall experience was bad.
oh yeah I forgot to mention, that the menu is very limited and in top of it the majority of the items were unavailable that Friday night.
I've been to Havana House twice, and had a great experience both times. The second time, admittedly, was better than the first. And the difference was the server. The first time, we were offered only the limitted menu everyone else keeps mentioning. I have to say, however, that the selections we ordered from it were delicious and well worth the price. We noticed half way through our dinner that people on the other side of the room (and with a different server) were getting tapas. This made me sad because I would have loved to order that, but overall, we were very pleased with what we did get. The second time we went, we again were presented with the small menu, but we knew enough to request the tapas menu in addition to the entree menu. We ordered a storm of delicious tapas selections and the paella for 4, which was dynamite! Oh, yeah, and we had three kinds of sangria, and each one was more delicious than the last. I am definitely planning on going back. Everyone at our table on both visits, by the way, found Lex to be a perfect host and gentleman.
I've been to Havana House twice, and had a great experience both times. The second time, admittedly, was better than the first. And the difference was the server. The first time, we were offered only the limitted menu everyone else keeps mentioning. I have to say, however, that the selections we ordered from it were delicious and well worth the price. We noticed half way through our dinner that people on the other side of the room (and with a different server) were getting tapas. This made me sad because I would have loved to order that, but overall, we were very pleased with what we did get. The second time we went, we again were presented with the small menu, but we knew enough to request the tapas menu in addition to the entree menu. We ordered a storm of delicious tapas selections and the paella for 4, which was dynamite! Oh, yeah, and we had three kinds of sangria, and each one was more delicious than the last. I am definitely planning on going back. Everyone at our table on both visits, by the way, found Lex to be a perfect host and gentleman.
I worked in the kitchen with lex for about a week, I'm going to keep this brief, tand to the point. He has 15yr olds without working papers doing dishes, he doesn't wash his hands to prepare food, I didn't get paid for the time I worked there, he is now saying I stole money because I said I would do this, I did take a few beers out of the cooler, sue me! Any sane human on this earth would have to drink to work with this guy! He had employees who weren't paid for 3 weeks, obviously they've been brain washed by his ability to manipulate. The sangria is cheap but so is the owener, 2 words; Go Goya...lol. Thats all folks!
Report this