Only Game in Town -- Too Bad
I've heard it called "Cuban home cooking". I would call it "mediocre and common Cuban home cooking". It's like going to an American restaurant and getting macaroni and cheese and a boiled hot dog; yeah, it's American home cooking, but there's far better. So Andre's is honest, Cuban, and home cooking, but it could be all that and truly flavorful.

It's too bad there isn't another restaurant of its ilk here. As it stands, If you want Cuban food, you're better off going up to Los Angeles, where there are quite a few very tasty (and, yes, authentic) places.    [13 Apr 2001 17:10:10]

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     ­Anonymous   

Too Bad this is the Only Cuban Restaurant in San Diego
Please don't think this is Cuban food; it is a poor example of cuban cuisine. Being Cuban myself, I found it terrible, the arroz con pollo is untasty and the frijoles negros taste like out the can. Andre's restaurant needs a real Cuban chef. Que comida tan mala!    [01 Oct 2001 15:40:59]

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Recommended Dishes: the coffee , but you can make it at home

     ­cuban pete   

Caribbean Home Cooking: First Rate
Put off by the negative but vague reviews above from Anonymous & Cuban Pete, and confused because there are 2 Andre´s in SD, only one of them Cuban, I almost missed a treat. Fodor´s calls it "bare bones," but anybody who has traveled in Europe knows Fodor´s tells you where to buy jewelry and furs, and where to hobnob with rich tourists, but not where to hang out, eat well, and meet the locals. Andre's turned out to be a very pleasant, unpretentious restaurant whose presence in a business area is blocked by the nice plants in front of the big window facing the street. Andre´s is spacious, with white walls, nice lighting and white tablecloths. Because folks in the Caribbean eat so much fresh fruit, they don’t worry much about serving cooked vegetables, but I started my dinner with sopa de chícharos (great pea soup seasoned with herbs and pepper) and a fresh green salad. The soup was accompanied by freshly toasted, crackly French garlic bread, which made great croutons crumbled over the soup. I had a succulent and generous serving of pernil de puerco (roast leg of pork), served with terrific yellow rice (neither greasey nor mushy) with gandules (or guandú, as some people call it), and the best yucca al mojo de ajo (steamed yucca dressed with garlic) I ever had. Chilean merlot was crisp, delicious, and cheap. The associated grocery store had yerba de maté from Argentina, azafrán, Cuban-style coffee, ñame, malanga (otoe), dulces, aceitunas, all kinds of habas, and a dozen other items hard to find in San Diego. Folks nearby, a mix of Latinos and gringos, were rolling their eyes with pleasure at fish and bistec that looked and smelled heavenly. If you know Cuban-Caribbean cooking, and want fresh home-cooked tostones de plátano, yucca, perfect rice, fresh fish, try this place. No tacos, no burritos, no bowl of dried out totopos (a/k/a chips con salsa). This is Cuban food, and worth the short trip up Morena Blvd from I-8. Early bird prices 4-6 p.m. ¡Volveré, y pronto...!

Don David    [24 Sep 2003 16:21:46]

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     ­Don David   

Great food
What are these reviewers talking about bad food? I've had many of the dishes there including arroz con pollo, ropa vieja, bife encebolado, and they're all great! It reminds me a lot of Brazilian food. It's not a fancy place but the food makes up for anything. Best flan in town!    [27 Jan 2004 15:56:17]

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     ­Anonymous   

Authentic Cuban Food
I recently moved here from Miami and after a month, I was already craving cuban food. I did a search in one of the internet restaurant guides and found Andre's and two other restaurants. I made a few calls and found that the other two restaurants were not even 50% cuban food. Many of them had spanish tapas or mexican plates on their menu. When I asked Andre's what their menu consisted of, I knew I had found the right place. I visited Andre's that same night and was pleasantly surprised. I had found a Cuban Restaurant in San Diego that used all the right spices and cuts of beef in their recipes. It's good to know I can have a Cuban Meal escape every once in a while to remind me of my family in Miami.    [01 Sep 2004 14:16:58]

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Recommended Dishes: Carne Puerco con Morros

     ­Ms. Miami