Casona

06/05/2008 Posted by SBClinton

I love Casona! My Mother and I dine at Casona often... My schedule and lifestyle allow me to travel back and forth between Tampa, Florida and Cherry Hill. Also, I am half Cuban and know what is authentic and Neuvo. Casona does both - very well. The ropa vieja, lechon asado, picadillo and the arroz con pollo are very tasty and true to the caribbean flavor. The paella is bursting with fresh seafood, fluffy safron rice, chorizo and juicy chicken. They have great options for steak lovers! Casona's filet is fabulous! If you are in the mood for a good Latin style steak - try the churascco. It's as good if not better than any you could get in a Brazilian steak house. The in excellent in house coffee and dessert bar are available to make your favorite coffee, tea, smoothie, flan and of course the famous "tres leches" cake. Casona is run out of a renovated colonial revival manse with a grand wrap around porch. The beautilful landscaping and caribbean colors make it the place to be - expecially when the weather is nice. Service at Casona can seem relaxed, but what many people do not realize is that it is supposed to be at this pace. At times, we have experienced delays with food timing and extended waits in between courses. The two times this happened, we were informed by our server of the issue and we were fine. Don't miss Sunday brunch. The variations on classics like "arepa eggs benedict," "churassco steak and eggs," combined with French toast , waffles and omlettes truly set Casona apart. I and many, many others support Casona, and we want them to succeed. This is why, some of us have decided to review them in such detail.

Pros: Upbeat vibe, well prepared and presented quality food, friendly staff, dedicated owners

Cons: closed on Mondays

05/07/2008 Posted by karart

I've gotta jump into this conversation... Casona is a gem of a restaurant and cafe bar. The food is exceptional, beautifully prepared and presented. The cafe bar is fantastic ; the best coffee service in town! This old house was restored and renovated; adding a beautiful historic presence to the block with a gracious welcoming wrap around dining porch. The staff is fun, engaging and well informed; service is professional. I love eating at Casona. It's a delicious getaway from the usual fare. Don't miss the porch dining.

Pros: atmosphere, appitizers, coffees

Cons: none!

05/06/2008 Posted by MariaAndSam

Me and my husband have visited Casona on many occasions. The restaurant is spectacular, and the porch is our favorite place to enjoy a five star dinner in a calm, tropical atmosphere. The service is excellent and friendly. Some of our favorite dishes are the mariquitas (nacho style plantain chips), paella, the roasted pork, and the benedict eggs for brunch are superb. For dessert, the best of all, and a must have, are the exquisitely handcrafted flans. Our favorite flavors are the chocolate and coconut. My husband has been to Spain many times on business and has had flans from all parts of the country. He swears that they don't compare to the flans at Casona.

Pros: Excellent food, service, atmosphere, etc.

Cons: No Cons

03/13/2008 Posted by oscymad

I was shocked to read the review before mine on this site. Me and my better half were also at Casona on Sunday for brunch. We have been there many times, Casona has become our favorite place. It's funny, we were there for around two hours this past Sunday. We saw the owner open the door to the porch once to retrieve something. We also saw him apologizet o the guests sitting next to the door. He then went around and asked us and others if the temperature was OK for them. I tell you I saw this with my own eyes - this person is lying. Casona has the best brunch this side of New York. I should know - I live there. We love that we can bring our own for mimosas, ect. Cuban food is not usually spicy, but the huevos rancheros have a nice kick. The byo classification does not do this place justice. This place is a world class, full service restaurant. I glad that they have so many supporters and regulars. People like Casona so much because the food is great, the place is beautiful, the owner and staff are personable and professional and it has a cool Latin vibe. Shame on those who try to bash this and other places Stay home or get lost!!!

Pros: Best Brunch this side of NYC, beautiful facility, caring and friendly staff, great food

Cons: You may be subjected to unreasonable customers' stupity and inpatience

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful

03/10/2008 Posted by Ariadne

My first visit was for brunch on Sunday. I felt very disappointed in the ambience and service and it was not crowded--so--no excuse! Twice one of the staff opened the door behind me letting cold air in. I do not think the restaurant captures any Latin feeling at all. I felt it took a long time for the food to come and my waffle was not hot. The food was okay--I will say the bacon was delicious. The servers were indifferent and lacking in personality. No hospitable feeling. I don't understand why people like this place.

03/02/2008 Posted by jbeagle99

As a former chef, I do not hand out stars easily. I agree with a previous reviewer that too many people give out 5 stars when everything is not perfect. I know I am not Zagats or Michelin, but a restaurant needs to really shine to earn 5 stars. That being said, I really liked Casona, service-5, food-3.5, ambiance 4. We were seated on the edge of the porch (25 degree night) yet we were very comfortable. Our waiter was attentive, really knew the menu, and ended up making very good recommendations. We had the crab cocktail special that was that was a bit pricey at $12.95, but turned out to worth every penny. The flavor combination of cilantro, mango and jumbo lump crab was fantastic. I really enjoyed my cheese empanadas, which had plenty of flavor and were nice and hot. The Caesar salad was the biggest disappointment of the meal. The whole leaves of romaine lettuce and large slices of proscuito made for way too much work, but the dressing was very good. This is a case of presentation getting in the way of the food. The entrees were the stripped bass with the best risotto I ever had, and a Churrasco steak that was under cooked. The steak, which was ordered medium, had tremendous flavor, but the thick end (about a third of the steak) was really rare. Our desert was a decadent flavorful 3 milk cake. I have long been a fan of Cuba Libre, and I am really glad to say that South Jersey can now easily compete with Philly when it comes to good Cuban cuisine. Love the BYOB – our meal was under $100 before the tip.

Pros: good service and good food

12/19/2007 Posted by honor75

I have been to most of the high end restaurants in Collingswood several times and Casona has become my favorite. Anyone can see how much attention and love went into the renovation. It has a working fireplace and is well heated and cooled. The restrooms are nice and very, very clean. There is another popular restaurant in Collingswood who's restrooms are filthy. If the cleanliness of a bathroom is an indication of how clean the kitchen is - Casona is the winner. I'm amazed that no one has brought this up before - especially women. If you visit Casona before lunch or brunch and have a cafe con leche, you can meet and chat with the owner. He is a professional who cares deeply about his community, customers and staff. He has made changes that would put most people out of business. Even I had some concerns about the food and service. Not that the food was ever bad, just simple and stupid things that could be easily fixed. They were. The service is attentive and sweet. Each person working there are happy to make every detail of your experience pleasant. Lazy and sloppy servers were the problem. Fortunately for Casona, all those have moved on. The other restaurants they went to are not so lucky. The steaks here are great. The paella has generous amount of moist, plump seafood over a sea of fluffy saffron rice. The have classics like ropa vieja, lechon and picadillo. Desserts are homemade and decorated nice. Brunch is divine. The lunch menu is small but includeds the famous "Sandwich Cubano." They also cater. I write this review in the hope that you will try Casona and others that may have had some issues. No restaurant is perfect, but the fact that they try so hard makes it such a great place. I am embarrassed and ashamed of some of the nasty and misleading comments about Casona and other fine restaurtants on this and other sites. Try them for yourselves and judge. For those who may have been dissapointed before - give it another chance.

Pros: Lovingly restored mansion with a working fireplace and wrap around porch. Great food!

Cons: Service still needs some tweeking - sorry guys

12/08/2007 Posted by chazelvez

What a refreshing change! I love Italain cusine, but there are Italian restaurants galore in the South Jersey/Collingswood area. The Latin and and Cuban spin is just great! We love the brunch on the weekends, and the lunch has become a regular meeting place for our office nearby. Dinner has great steaks for the Gringos, Lechon and crazy-wonderful plantain nachos for everyone! Save room to share the Tres Leches and have one of the great coffees. Glad they don't serve bread---saves room for more menu food! Be careful though, the free nuts are almost too hot! Ask when the house Cuban jazz group will be there!!

Pros: close cheap parking most days. best ambience in town. free everywhere around holidays

Cons: must have reservation on weekends, arrive early to park nearby. i ate too much!

11/04/2007 Posted by mailesky

My boyfriend and I have been to Casona many times and we really enjoy it. I thought it was a little odd when the owner asked me to review the restaurant on this site and others. Now I can see why. This is time consuming, but I am happy to do it. Happy to write about one of my favorite places in Collingswood. If I didn't like it, I would offer suggestions to the management. I would not bash the place and try to harm their reputation. There sure are some mean poeple out there. The steaks are very good at Casona. The churassco is an outside skirt steak and it charbroiled. The fielt is one of the best I've ever tasted. The paella is good and big, made with the freshest seafood. I also like the Habana maduro. It's a whole ripened plantain stuffed with shredded roast pork or seasoned ground beef. The atmosphere is festive and fun - feels like you are on vacation somewhere. The whole building is beautiful - inside and out. The service is very good also. I was there for brunch today and the kitchen got a little backed up. It was worth the wait though. That happens sometimes at Casona and I asked why. I was told that it is not that they are not prepared. Thirty custom ordered brunch entrees firing at once can easily create delays. That is what I thought. If we were in a rush, we could have gotten out of there faster, I'm sure. Reagardless, I experienced major delays at other restaurants that were not busy. Go figure. At least they are honest (Casona.)

Pros: Feels like a vacation somewhere in the Caribbean, good quality food and friendly service

Cons: Minor delays sometimes with getting your food,

10/11/2007 Posted by suniedog

My husband and I have been to Casona several times, and yes once we did have a delay with a reservation. Why is this place being singled out so much for an industry wide situation. The party at the table we were watiing for took much longer than anyone anticipated. Also, we came with two more people than what was on our reservation and they couldn't and wouldn't seat us on the porch where our reservation originally was. Yes I was ticked off. Yes I became impatient. No, I didn't act like a nut, because I couldn't get my way. They explained the stiaution to us and we eventuially relaxed and enjoyed our meal. Think about how badly a person or persons must behave to be asked to leave. I know the owner and after dining at Casona yesterday, he asked me to review it. He has never been anything but professional to me and the others I have sent to Casona. The food is very good and the servers are sweet and attentive. It's a great place for large partys. I'm glad the pace is doing so well. We will be back soon, I'm sure.

Pros: Pretty restaurant and porch, good paella, desserts, coffee

Cons: Slow service at times