I went to this place before and was not crazy about the atmosphere and the unfriendly staff. I recently heard it was under new management and decided to give it another try and "wow". Hostess was very nice and quick in seating us. We chose to sit outdoors to enjoy some of the good evening weather and had to say it was all extremely nice and relaxing. Good choice of back ground music that was high enough to enjoy but not to the point that it disrupted our conversations, waiter was very attentive and friendly, brought the food out in a timely manner ...which was tasty and flavorful. Waiter also recommended a house drink which was served in a big pineapple & we finished off with a tiramisu dessert. Overall I would absolutely go again and recommend this place to all.
Review Source:I would really like to rate it a 0 but they don't let me.. Let me start by saying I couldn't even taste the food because guess what THE KITCHEN WAS CLOSED?!?!? How do you close a kitchen in the middle of a Sunday afternoon!!! not to mention it was Mother's Day. The hostess was rude and the place is TINY not to mention the so called "Outside seating" was nonexistent because yes middle of Sunday afternoon and the chairs were piled up on some corner, umbrellas closed the whole deal. The radio made a big hype about this place for nothing. Would love to support my hispanic community but had to go to an Italian restaurant for REAL service. What a disappointment!
Review Source:Not sure why my review from 04/22/2013 was removed but I will repost it.
HORRIBLE HORRIBLE CUSTOMER SERVICE!!!!!
Ive been to this Mamajuanas a few times for dinner and each time there is an issue. Â Every other visit there I was able to overlook the disorganized unattentive service. Â
Such as charging $21 for a $5 beer and a glass of sangria on one night.  Another night we were  seated for 20 minutes before anyone came to greet us and take our drink order and  ANOTHER 20 minutes came back to ask me what I had ordered because they forgot to put in the order. Another time my skirt steak which I always ordered came with some strange sauce on top and was told by the waiter thats how it always comes.  Not true cause that was not the first or second or even the third time we have ordered it.
I am usually patient and feel bad for the waiters because they are under so much pressure and lets be real we all make mistakes here and there.
However this past visit was the FINAL ATTEMPT. Â
So we were seated at a table for 2 and right next to us was a large group of people that did not have enough chairs to accomodate everyone, and I was literally SAT ON by someone at the table who thought they can fit their chair next to mine. Â NO exaggeration she sat on my leg. Â
There were people standing behind me I could not scoot my chair back, to the left or to the right because this party was standing all around. Â
Again we waited at least 30 minutes before anyone took our drink order then waited another 30 minutes to have our drinks bought to us after a complaint to the so called manager. At this point  Its been an hour and still no silverware on the table.  We finally ordered food was good, but unfortunately will not be returning to this  place due to the incompetent service recieved by bartenders, waiters and staff.
I need to look for a new spot now any suggestions???
Went on a Saturday night with a friend, her kids, husband & my girlfriend. We were seated in what we later learned was the lounge area. We sat for about 15mins without a waiter coming to us and had to call this to one of the manager's attention. Apps that took about 30 mintues to arrive. Again we complained to the waiter who informed us that the kitchen was busy (no kidding guy it's Saturday night!) Ordered our entrees and proceeded to eat our apps another 20 mintues goes by and still no food. When the food did come about 10 mintues into eating a crowd of about 10 ppl crowd our table with bottles, at this point we are totally confused ..are the telling us time up ?!? are we in their seat!?! Then the music goes up like 20 decimals And people start dancing. Now we are all P-ed off and start looking again for the manager whose apology goes like this -i'm sorry but this part turns into a dance fall after hours-, which follows a blank stare.. If this is the case and I'm not upset about that, but why all of a sudden you are rushing us out, you obviously knew this and SHOULD NOT HAVE SEATED US IN THIS AREA - did you not notice the TWO KIDS with us. ARE you kidding, and then you dont even offer an real apology or compensation, at least offer to move us to the dining area!
The food was sub par I consider myself a foodie and nothing here would EVER bring me back, not even the drinks I had a tamarind margarita, it had no kick hardly tasted tequilla or tamarind, pretty watery. Food lacked salt, apps were dried out..
We came here one Thursday night in March. It was a big group, and the reservations were made in advance. The service was pretty horrible. We had to wait 45 minutes to be waited on and given water, meanwhile the place was pretty dead. The food came out an hour after we ordered, and everything was cold. For the prices the food was mediocre. Even though they took a few things off of the check it still came out very expensive, and on top they charged 20% for gratuity, which infuriated me given how bad the service was. Definitely not planning on going back anytime soon.
Review Source:NOTE: NO FOOD REVIEW HERE
So let me start by saying I didn't eat... I came here for a bday celebration during the 'club' hours. Â The place is nice enough and the music is good (lots of merengue and some bachata... hardly any salsa) and some English. Â If you want to hear spanish music (though not Salsa heavy) this is a decent place. Â Now, I really wanted to rate it 2 stars but I didn't that would be fair. I'm not a club / lounge person AT all... so it's not like I'd ever choose to come here to party... and I didn't eat so I didn't think it['d be fair either..
Dance space isn't large so know that... remember it's not a club. Â The place got PACKED! Â And I hate packed... that's just me... still since the music was good and the place is nice I gave it the 3rd star... don't want to ruin a decent place just cuz it's not my cup of tea...
Parking can be a pain, so be aware and you may have to wait in line to get in (sucks in the winter). Â We got in for free with a guest list, but be warned that there could be a cover. Â Also there is a mandatory coat check (I think it's like $4). Â Drinks can be pricey as well...
OMG This place is a gem! I came here Sunday for Brunch with 4 friends and was delighted! Â The DJ was playing great music, the waiters all came around refilling our cups with Jack Punch, the buffet was unlimited, and there was dessert!!!! All for $20!!!
I will DEFINITELY come back very soon for brunch again.
I went to this location for the first time on a Wednesday, I understand is a week day and maybe it isn't as busy but to just have 3 waiters in the entire restaurant, taking orders, picking up plates & making drinks! That's horrible! I went with a group of 10, it took us forever to get a round of drinks! Not to mention re-ordering! Another thing that really upset me was that out of the sea food section they din't have the top three choices! How is that possible! Same thing goes for desert! Out if the top three choices as well!! So in general I wasn't crazy about the place, maybe next time I go I'll think differently.
Review Source:This review is for brunch
For $20 + tax and tip you get unlimited buffet and drinks (mimosas or Jack punch).
Service: Â Friendly host and staff; they kept refilling our drinks on a regular basis. Â We were there for over 2 hours and they did not rush us. Â The Mama Juana in the heights has a 1.5 hour limit.
Food: The steak was super delicious, so was the chicken. The mangu was a little dry, but hey, it's hard to keep it moist; they have an omelet station and my eggs were done just right! For dessert, they had mini flans and chocolate ganache cake, both very good.
Drinks: I only had the Jack Punch which had Jack Daniels and other juices (I believe guava); it was very delicious. Â They also gave our group free mama juana shot and it was very smooth.
Ambiance: It was not very crowded when we got there, but as time went on, people came in. Â For the most part it was a mix of young people and family. Â The DJ was playing really good music, from Latin, to techno, house, and hip hop, and the music was loud, like a club! Not sure how I feel about people bringing kids to such a loud place, but anyhow, it was fun.
I would love to go back at night for dancing; if I do, I will come back with a review!
I celebrated my birthday a week ago on a Saturday at this place. I reserved to have me and my 2 friend's birthdays celebrated there a month in advance. Everything and I mean everything was wrong about this place.!! When I got there. The guy at the door told me I did not have my birthday there. When I mentioned one of my friends name a "guy" he then realized (talk about male chauvinist). Then I looked at his clip board and saw my name and my other friend's name there as well. I said, "look my name IS THERE". But they had it all wrong. They didn't have us together like I told them to put us. They also didn't have down that we were buying 6 bottles. I don't understand!! So much for having things planned in advance. Then two of our friends are there and they were complaining because the girl in the front told them that there was no birthday party here and made them go to the club next door. The club next door charged them for cover and coat check for no reason. One of the hosts at Mamajuana promised them free drinks and then completely ignored them. I got there at 10:30pm because I called to ask when the dance floor opens and the girl in the front said it opened at 10:30. I'm waiting, waiting, waiting, and an hour later. I still see food coming out from the kitchen, people are still eating and nothing is happening. The staff completely ignored me and I was standing around like a looser with like 30 of my friends hanging around waiting and waiting. Then around 12am.. they start sitting people down for VIP who were there after me and only getting 2 bottles. That's when enough was enough and I found the guy with the clipboard and complained. I said, "listen we are scheduled to buy 6 and we want to buy 9...what is the problem??" They sat me with two tables then moved me to 4 tables. We were playing musical chairs and the tables were small. Then I was told I was being moved to get 6 tables but the waitress said no that's reserved. Hold on so that was reserved but mine never was!!! I kept asking do I need to leave a deposit and back then when I reserved they said I didn't have too. I was left for last as if they double booked me with someone else. After musical chairs was over with, one of my friends who was celebrating her birthday and 2 months pregnant wanted some sprite. She kept asking the waitress over and over and over again. The waitress just didn't care so one of my other friends had to go to the bar and buy one for her. My pregnant friend was upset with the lack of service that she left. I followed her to get her coat cause she had my coat ticket and I wanted to know which one was hers. It took the coat check people half an hour to assist us with no one in front of us!! I started yelling.."I'm Missing my PARTY!!!" They said sorry one of the guys messed up the numbers and we're having trouble finding the jackets. How messed up can this place be?? So I finally get back to my party. The music was great at least that I can give a star too nothing else. I realize what a mess my VIP section is. No one has come to wipe our tables or give us extra cups or juice. It was a disaster. It's passed 2am and the waitress never asked me when I'd like to have my cake. I had to leave my party and find her to tell her. She then brings out the cakes but only brings out two when it was supposed to be three. I didn't want to argue because I did a lot of arguing that night and I didn't want to spoil my birthday. I had about 50 to 60 people there and they were enjoying the music it wasn't worth it. Then I tell her (because she won't do it unless I say) to bring out the champagne. She brings 3 bottles of champagne with only 4 glasses. I had to go leave my party to have her bring me more. She only bring out 4 more. Not even plastic cups. On top of that I had to not party to serve everyone champagne. This waitress on top of that over charged my card and added tax and gratuity to my tab after it was agreed a month ago that I was paying a flat rate for the bottle services. The manager tried to argue with me saying that I got the bottle after 12. Wow 13min after 12. That was never disclosed to me when I reserved a month ago AND!! I was waiting to be sat down since 10:30 and was ignored till 12am. They all saw me and my gold dress, they knew who I was and nothing. Whatever after that it was agreed that I'll get my money back. I also found out that a friend of mine who was chipping in on the bottle services gave $480 to the waitress without a tab. That was dumb of him to do but the waitress never asked anything and just generated a receipt. She should've paid attention cause it was her section. So now the restaurant owes me that money too which they clearly said they checked their inventory and will do. Now I've been contacting the manager and he does not reply to anything and I showed up today with my baby after I was told to at a set time and he wasn't there and it was closed. They are HORRIBLE!!! I put a dispute on my credit card. :-(
Review Source:Worse meal I have had ever. Serve was really slow. Waited over hour salmon and seabass  meal order.  When waiter finally brought our order fish was cold and over cooked. could not finish and end making me nauseous, fish was dry and has funny spoiled taste. Never ever going back to this over rate, over priced  restaurant
Review Source:This is the second time I've come to this place.
The first time was a Friday night to go dance and have drinks. I went with a girlfriend. The music and crowd are straight up Dominican, Â that's okay if that's what you're looking for. We ordered a bottle and tried to make the best of the night despite the lack of variety in music and people. Close to the end of the night, we were about 3/4 of the way through with our bottle when we decide to hit the restroom. Â To our surprise when we come back to our table we find our bottle gone. How does a bottle get removed from a table? We were obviously not done and our things were still on the seats. We complained and we were given two shots on the house.
The second time we returned was for dinner.
We are both latinas, we know very well what Spanish food is supposed to taste like.
We started off with passion fruit mojitos. They were pretty okay so we moved onto appetizers. Â The waiter suggested the Picada Taina. Basically a sampler.
It was horrible. Â The arepas were burned on the bottom. The chuzos were stuck on an apple and the meat was COLD!. it was outrageous. Â How can they serve cold meat? To top it off, we asked for shredded beef on the sweet plantain. They brought us cod fish instead! Â
The waiter apologized for the mix up a gave us a discount on the bill ($15). Still the billcame out to 70 for a dish that was awful two drinks and two shots.
Disappointed beyond belief.
For the prices you're better off hitting Don Coqui  in Astoria.
I hear the Inwood location is the best, but I tried out the Woodside location for brunch not too long ago and I was very pleased with the experience. Each location's website (there are at least 4) seems to have a different menu so it was initially confusing trying to figure out what was going on where. Though the Inwood location offers the brunch buffet with unlimited Jack Punch/mimosas, apparently this location doesn't have a buffet -though there were still unlimited drinks. I actually prefer a fresh plate of food to a cold subpar buffet, so this worked out in my benefit anyway.
We got there towards the beginning of brunch expecting a huge wait and surprisingly were one of the first ones there. We were seated quickly and our server immediately started us out with our first pitcher of Jack Punch (thumbs up!). We ultimately got through 2 pitchers of it, and while it was super sweet and sugary, there was certainly some potent alcohol mixed up in there. I ordered the Dominican breakfast and it was so good! I could eat the fried cheese all day if I knew I wouldn't cry about it later. I also picked off my friend's plates and whatever they had was pretty great too.
Our waiter was attentive and quick; the food arrived hot and delicious, and our water cups were always full. The place started to fill up with more families and groups as it got later, but he still managed to make his way around. Apparently this place turns into a club at night, which I find a little odd given the layout...and the fact that it quite obviously looks like a restaurant...But I would certainly return for brunch and to try out dinner, just making sure I was on the way out before any colored lights turned on = )
My fiance and I came here for date night and everything was great. We split apps (guac w/ tostones & empanada sampler) which were both awesome and I had the churrasco with yucca fries. The only downside I can think of was that my wine glass was clearly dirty (AKA lipstick still on it - not even rinsed) and the waiter made a face when I asked for a new one. Service was a little slow but not terrible considering how busy it was.
Review Source:If I could give this place zero stars I would. It's over-priced, over-rated, lame staff and a waste of time. Do not go here.! The ones in Dykeman and Upper West Side are much better (still over priced) but at least you get better service and a better environment. The pitcher for mojito is almost freaking $50!! What BS. Churassco came back burnt. Ugh I'm so pissed I wasted $$ here.
Review Source:Very bland Spanish food, beans have no flavor, the skirt steak is very bland. The yuca fries are good. It's a little pricy and falls short in comparison to Don Coqui, Sofritos and Sazon, this feels like a regular corner spot. The valet service told me don't worry I drive better cars than yours. While I drive a Z06 Corvette and told him to be careful.
Review Source:I never had any experience as bad as the one i had at this place, Mamajuana Cafe. My Girlfriend and i entered the place at around 11:00pm, starting that they told us we could sit anywhere we wanted, was the first sign for me to run. we ordered food and they waiter told us that the kitchen was already closed, when the schedule says it closes at 12:00am. My girlfriend and i ordered a couple of margaritas, not the best i've had, got them after 15mins. By 12:00am we wanted to order another round of margaritas, but the person who was taking care of us, unexpectedly wasn't taking care of us anymore. Then they Brought Niurka, the person who was now gonna take care of us. We ordered another round,then we ordered a Hooka, which was pretty good to kill time, after one hour of waiting for the round of margaritas, Niurka comes to us with an attitude. it was already 1:00am and we decided that we didnt want the margaritas anymore, we just wanted to pay and leave. To our SURPRISE, she brings the ticket, throws it on the table and then she tells us that she is doing us a favor, that she doesnt seve drinks, that she only serves bottles. We responded back to her, telling her we didnt come to ask for favors, that we came to eat drink, and have fun. She walked away being disrespectful and saying things i cant write here. so we called for the manager and he was nowhere to be found. finally when we found him. started to explain to him what happened. WHAT HE RESPONDED: " I'm sorry sir but i don't know who Niurka is" he found out who she was and this is what he said "she she doesn't work for us, she work for the promoter and he is the one you should talk to, there is really nothing i can do" got me really angry, i asked him, if that's the place where anybody walks in there to work without them knowing who it is. all he kept saying was that he was sorry but there is nothing he could do. i was looking forward to have the best experience ever here, being that it was my first time ever at a Mamajuana Cafe and was also looking for a place to celebrate my sister's B-day. i live 3 blocks away from this Place, and i can swear at God that i am never coming back to this place, i dont recommend it to anybody, and i hope that one day, they hire better personnel. and treat people better, with respect and knowledge on how to really run a restaurant like this.
Review Source:Huge disappointment. Â We came here not knowing that Cacerolla had closed, but thought the new place was probably similar. Â It wasn't. Â The food, although beautifully presented, was awful. Â The bathroom was filthy. Â We spent $100 and did not enjoy it at all. Â I hope this new owner gets his act together.
Review Source:Shrimp with plantains/lobster sauce made me so sick, went home with a bad stomach ache, nauseated, had to call 911. Spent over 350.00 and was told to leave so that other customers can sit down to purchase bottles. My dining experience was horrid, they had a sweet 16 going on while I was dining. Their was a bunch of children running around screaming and yelling. "Do not " take a girlfriend their to eat, it will be  embarrassing.
Review Source:Mamajuana Cafe in Queens- I was pretty impressed. Â I went with my husband, another couple, and their children. Â We went for lunch at around 3pm in the afternoon. Â The place was empty, but shortly after more patrons started coming in. Â The menu was pretty good- great selection. Â I don't know if it's because I'm married to a Colombian that I really didn't notice the menu lean more towards Colombian food than Dominican food. Â To me, there's not a huge difference when it comes to Latin food. Â We ordered between the four adults 2 orders of Parrillada Mixta- which is a mix of grilled meats and fish served on a cast iron skillet. Â The mix consisted of Skirt steak, about a quarter chicken, chorizo (Spanish sausage), salmon, shrimp, and fried pork. Â The portions on the skillet of each selection were more than enough for two people. Â It come with 2 sides and we chose yuca frita and sweet plantains. Â Our friends chose tostones and yuca mash. Â Each side was enough for the four of us to share (except the yuca mash). Â Every selection was mouth watering, deliciousness!! Â We were so full, but we all kinda kept eating just because it was all so good. Â That skillet was $20 per person, min 2 people- a steal for what they include on it!! Â The teenager with us ordered a skirt steak w rice and beans- the skirt steak wrapped around his plate twice for only about $23!! Â The portions are very generous for the price. Â I only gave it 4 stars because we ordered a jack punch, and we all felt it couldve used more alcohol. Â Other than that, we will definitely be going back a few more times!! Â Definitely gotta check out the after hours lounge too.
Review Source:Mamajuana Cafe (Queens) was not what we expected. Going by the reviews on the Mamajuana Cafe listed in the Manhattan location we were hoping for the same here. Unfortunaetly, the menu is not as Dominican as the name of the restaurant sounds. The menu was composed of many traditional Colombian plates and some Dominican (wannabe) plates here and there.
Service & Ambiance:
The service here is decent. Decent because although we were seated as soon as we walked in, our waiter took about 20 minutes to come to our table. We were served in about 35 minutes. This place seemed to be busy but under control on a Saturday night.
Food:
I ordered the chicken stuffed with Dominican sausage (longaniza). This was delicious! The chicken was super tender and tasty and so were the mashed potatoes that accompanied it. My boyfriend ordered the steak with yuca fries. His steak was on point; tender and juicy; his yuca fries were awesome. Their regular mojito was also yummy. It was not too strong nor too light. My boyfriend had the coconut mojito and that was also good. Total: $76.
Tip: If you're looking for the real Dominican Mamajuana Cafe I suggest you visit the one in Manhattan ;)
What can I say about mamajuana cafe.
The decor is nice very old Spanish look. The food in the other hand. Much to be desire, we order the puerquito. $35 meal for 2, well the puerquito was re,re, re, re, re, heated to the point that was no flavor left in the meat. The rice was incredible, tasty well done unfortunately the highlight of the plate was enough for a 5 year old, not for 2 adults, oh yes the plantains were ok+ but again we got less than a quarter of a planta. in, again a plate that is supposed to be for 2 adults. Â Since I couldn't eat the 4 pound of dry pork shoulder and the rice after the second spoon was out. I was hungry so we decided to try the maracuya tres ledges dessert. I must say it was ok. Couldn't really taste the maracuya. However service was immaculate. Servers were more than helpful and attentive not intrusive at all.
I may comeback someday, but maybe i will just stick to the bar.
I went to this club for a little dancing and a more Latino feel. What a night. The women here are on FIRE! If you're looking for some hotties, fellas...this is the spot. The bar is a bit crowded, but that's the only complaint you can commit to. Other than that, this place is fantastic. Saturday night is the night I went. Definitely worth going to again.
Review Source:I love this place. I'm so happy they decided to open one up closer to home. I was tired of having to travel uptown. I came here for the opening night of their first Saturday night party. I had a blast, even though the bartenders were very disorganized. But hey, it was their opening night so it wasn't a big deal.
I was here this past Saturday for a friends Birthday dinner. The food was really good and not too expensive. Afterwards we stayed for the party. This time the bartenders were more organized and was able to get a drink much quicker. It didn't really help that the bartender was as friend of mine. But it was still quick. Make sure you tip your bartender!!! The hookah staff was pretty attentive. The DJ was really good, as they usually are. Sanjo (the promoter) chose a perfect spot for a Saturday night party. I may just have to make this my new weekend hangout.
the salmon platter was not bad but drowned in sauce. service was 3/5. waiter kept kicking my chair when he walked by put my plate down on top of my silverware  we ordered the mojito pitcher for 4 of us thinking it would be more economical than buying them separately. what a  stupid idea that was. the pitcher was $48. thats 12 bucks a cup (we could only get 4 cups worth out of 1 pitcher) and not nearly worth that. 3 dinners  2 pitchers and $240 later and im never going back
Review Source:I signed up to Yelp just to review this place. I had been to mamajuanas on Dyckman and it was excellent no complains, excellent food. The queens one is a total disappointment.
I went for dinner on a saturday night to celebrate a birthday. They sat us outside in the patio the table and chairs are some cheap aluminum chairs that are small and fold away. The waiter was nice he came to take our beverage and appetizer order he suggested mojitos and appetizer platter with a mixed variety of appetizers.
The Mojitos were okay - they forgot to put seltzer in it and when I asked for it they said mojitos don't get seltzer. The appetizers were pretty good probably the best thing there.
For dinner I had the Rib eye steak complete disappointment THEY PUT BBQ SAUCE on a RIB EYE Steak. Everyone knows a you dont put BBQ on a good steak. We were a large group so everyone ordered something different. But nothing really stood out aside from the fact that the food was cold.
The dessert was the second most decent thing, we had them bring out a platter with mixed dessert, which was tasty.
I was embarrassed after raving what a great place this was from my experience at their other location- this location fell far short of their Dyckman location.
After we ate we went to dance inside which was nice, good music, mixed crowd. the only thing is the dance floor is made of ceramic tiles, its really hard on your feet and  ladies watch those stilettos in the floor grout, cause its a killer.
This place is a joke. Had to explain to bartender how to make a Cosmo, waiter was horrible, food was served cold, and had no taste. If your going to charge guests expensive prices for peasant food, at least make it appealing and hire staff that know what there doing. Music was also blasted throughout the dining room. Your better off going to Don Coqui, much better food, service, and ambience.
Review Source:I was here for a bday party last weekend. The place was like a SAUNA. The place was extremely packed, they had no fans. You couldnt feel the AC. I was outside most of the time from heat. Dj has to learn to transition, seriously. Drinks were 12$ a pop beer 8$ . Damn. I.paid, just saying SMH Bartender, put a lot liquor but cmoon, were NOT in.the CITYY Its Queens.
Review Source:I was eager to try out this place after a disaster in their uptown location. We had the mixed grill platter for two which was a very generous portion. There is no doubt about the quality of the ingredients used, its excellent, but the execution could be better, the salmon and shrimp were overcooked, the steak should have been marinated longer. We also ordered a passion fruit tres leches which was nothing like a tres leches but it was Ok. The staff was very nice, our waiter was excellent but the young lady at the door should have been more professional.  Noise level was high, partially from background music. I suspect they have a lot of potential to improve, the place is spacious and nicely decorated  and looks like it just opened. Not sure if will go back unless it gets better.
Review Source:I was here this past wknd on 8/11 for a birthday party & I'd have to admit the place really surprised me!!
No hassle or problems to get in this was great & a big plus unlike some places we know ..Uhmm Don Coqui.
The place is pretty big w plenty of tables to sit inside & out. The club seems to b divided into two parts , the left seems to b a separate club from the right.
We had tables set up on the right side by the DJ area.
Can't comment on the price of drinks since it was a party & we had bottle service.
Once the drinking begun it was all set & done , drinking & dancing till the wee hours ...not sure if it is was the crowd or they have issues w the AC but man it was super hot in there!!
Fun place , nice atmosphere good variety of music , which is important since Spanish places sometimes tend to forget to play a mixture of songs.
As in the case w many places now a days the DJ needs to shut the F@@% up , lord all mighty why must they do that ?? They  really should play songs longer than the first 5 minutes by the time u get into it it's Ahh sorry switch time !! Oh well after a few drinks we all tend to disregard this regular nuisance & just enjoy.  I had a great time here & certainly wouldn't mind returning.
Just a quick update to my review since I finally made it here to try some of the food a few days ago in Septemeber.
For drinks we tried the PItcher of Sangria , white not bad could use more alcohol tho.
Appetizers , Empanada trio was really good , Beef, Chicken & Cheese is the way to go since this way u can give them all a try, this came w some good dipping sauce , the white sauce was pretty good.
Chicaron de pollo was not bad , did not like the dipping sauce they gave u with it it was like bbq type? pretty odd we actually asked the waiter to bring us back the sauces that came w the empanadas those sauces were better.
The last thing we tried was the Chimis , I gotta say I expected these to be better? simply because u figure a dominican place would get them correct ...they were ok for me nothing special.
Price wise & service it was decent , I did enjoy my meal this time around am sure it will not be my last visit.
I have been going to the other Mama Juana locations for years and love it so when someone told me they had opened Mama Juana at Extravaganza's old location i said "let's go! right now!" and we did. Even though we were not exactly hungry we walked over to the restaurant at about 5pm on sunday to check it out. There were quite a few people there but it was not packed by any means. We sat down right away deciding to stay inside since it was a really hot and sunny day out.
Ambiance -
Since it was a Sunday afternoon it was mostly families finishing up brunch/lunch or having early dinners. Outside on the patio it looked like it was young couples and groups having drinks and smoking hookah. I can imagine from the layout and the decor that it will be a new hotspot in the area at night.
Decor-
Not too shabby. Nice trendy accents with rustic spanish flair.
Drinks-
We asked the waiter for a drink menu and he said they did not have one but that they have a full bar. He actually seemed kind of irritated that i asked that. At that point i already saw where this was going and i decided i wouldn't get upset and give them the benefit of the doubt since the restaurant did just open.
We ordered our drinks and they took forever and a day to come.
Passion Fruit Margarita - $12 - was delicious. Sweet and strong.just how i like it.
Mimosa- $8 was warm
Food-
There was no bread or anything for the table.
We ordered:
Avocado Salad - $8 - It was whatever. Mixed spring salad with a few slices of avocado on top and 2 or 3 cherry tomatos sliced in halves. Not very well dressed. The menu described it as Avocado salad with watercress & citrus vinaigrette. There was no watercress and that was the main reason why i ordered it so i was kind of annoyed about the fact that it was described differntly on the menu.(I know its strange but im kind of a watercress junkie)
We both ordered Grilled Shrimp with aspargus and lentil rice- $22 - Interesting dish, i liked the rice but everything was cold! Both of our dishes were cold and not one single component in the dish felt like it had been heated. i don't think this dish was supposed to be cold and i was really disappointed.
Service
Was a little rushed at first and except for when i asked for a drink menu the waiter was ok.
I really really want to love this location too so I think i will be giving it another chance and coming back again for dinner on a different night and hopefully it will redeem itself.
I've heard countless times about the wonderful food that is served up in Mamajuana Cafe, in particular the Dyckman Street location in Washington Heights. I've always wanted to go there to taste the stuff for myself, but never took the drive or the train to get uptown. So one day, as I'm cruising up Broadway headed towards Roosevelt Avenue, I noticed the awning had changed from the establishment formerly known as Extravaganza to Mamajuana Cafe! It was exciting to see another well known Latin Cuisine powerhouse move into the neighborhood! Watch out people, but Queens is starting to make a furious comeback! With Don Coqui and Mamajuana Cafe now just a short drive from one another, the future of Queens dining is looking extremely bright!
So off to what we had! Folks, let me tell you, the food here is off the charts! The dude next to our table got old school and drank the remaining drippings of his seafood dish! We all got a good laugh out of that one including the guy! A testament to how good it must have been!
Review time:
Empanada Trio: Initially, we ordered 2 beef and 1 chicken. The chicken one stood out immediately in terms of flavor, so we did a double take and ordered another trio with just chicken empanadas alone. The empanadas were not big, but the flavor more than made up for the lack of size. The crust was nice and flaky and the chicken filling was amazing!
Maduro relleno de bacalao: I was initially apprehensive to try this dish, but I opened up my mind and gave it a try. It was a baked or grilled whole yellow banana stuffed with a codfish filling. The sweetness of the banana combined with the saltiness of the cod was surprisingly the ultimate match! If you are feeling daring, go for it...
My party members had the Mamajuana Omelet and the Desayuno Dominicano from the brunch menu. They were satisfied with their meals.
I had the Mamajuana Bandeja Paisa which was a pleasing assorted dish comprised of fried eggs, rice and beans, pork chicharron, sweet plantain, slices of avocado, Colombian sausage, corn cakes and a grilled skirt steak. It was so much food that I think I'm missing mentioning something. This combination was tasty but it was kind of greasy and I thought I was going to get a heart attack after consuming it. Warning: This kind of meal should only be devoured occasionally!
Drinks: We had the Jack Punch and I had a couple of some uniquely flavored Mamajuana Mojitos. The Mojitos were good but the Jack Punch lacked the zip I was seeking. A huge bonus: the Jack Punch was unlimited until 3pm during Brunch hours so get there early and get twisted! You'll likely need a few to get that feeling though...
We closed things out with the lava cake with ice cream and it was good.
I'm glad to be the first to review this place and pop that cherry! Sorry for the long essay!
This place just opened a few weeks ago, so the service is not yet up to par. The waiter moved at a snail's pace, but I'll give them a pass until they get up to speed. Mamajuana Cafe is going to be another hot venue in the borough! Go check it out!
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