Pambiche In The Press
"Pambiche provides a taste of what Cuban cuisine once was and could be..." [MORE]
"Pambiche provides a taste of what Cuban cuisine once was and could be. John Connell-Maribona, Pambiche's Cuban-American chef and owner, calls the food 'comida criolla,' or creole cuisine. I call it delicious. The most well-known item in the stateside Cuban culinary repertoire is a pork sandwich, ex-pat fast food from Miami to New York. The Pambiche version includes a slice of adobo-marinated roast pork, Black Forest ham, Swiss cheese and dill pickle, all layered into a mustard-spread roll that's toasted in a sandwich press. It comes out compressed, the cheese slightly melted, the hard outer crust of the roll cracked and warm and wonderfully tasty. The roast pork shows up again on the Plato Cubano, alongside black beans, rice and a side of yuca. The same lineup, without the meat and including a little of the cabbage salad, is called Plato Comunista and described as the 'contemporary Cuban plate' without a hint of sarcasm.
Chef Connell-Maribona pays homage to Mama Ivonne with lengua en salsa, slices of tongue simmered fork-tender in a tomato and pimiento sauce flavored with mild chiles and toasted almonds."
"The only restaurant in Portland where the owner also has the title of executive pastry chef..." [MORE]
"The only restaurant in Portland where the owner also has the title of executive pastry chef, understandably, it is a place that takes dessert very seriously, with a glass dessert display counter dominating the small, down-home inside space..."
"The best reason to establish diplomatic relations with Castro..." [MORE]
"The best reason to establish diplomatic relations with Castro..."
"...wonderful dishes that dance with intense flavors to match the décor colors..."
"...the onsite 'knockout bakery' which means you won't want to skip the 'killer desserts'..."
"At Pambiche I found the kind of restaurant that I adore: small, authentic, unassuming, and brimming with vigor..." [MORE]
"At Pambiche I found the kind of restaurant that I adore: small, authentic, unassuming, and brimming with vigor."
"...owner-chef John Connell-Maribona has styled the menu after his family recipes. His grandfather came to Portland as Cuban consul general under Fulgencio Batista and while here, Fidel Castro overthrew the government. Because the family couldn't return home, they stayed. Cuba's misfortune, our gain."
"After working as a chef and pastry chef for 18 years, Connell-Maribona wanted us to taste his natural, not fussy Cuban food; well seasoned, not hot..."
"I wasn't expecting such an elaborate pastry case displaying cream cakes, coconut tortes, caramel custard and guava cheesecake. It stared at us. So we made dessert plans before ordering appetizers. Connell-Maribona makes all 25-30 traditional and Cuban inspired sweets from scratch, rich creations not to be missed."
"A trip to Pambiche can mine the depths of one's sensory fields. Cross the threshold and you are instantly steeped in Latin rhythms, vibrant hues, piqued aromas..." [MORE]
"A trip to Pambiche can mine the depths of one's sensory fields. Cross the threshold and you are instantly steeped in Latin rhythms, vibrant hues, piqued aromas. But it is after you are seated, nestled with familial coziness, that the final sweep occurs, as plates of earthy orchestrations stir one's yearning for 'BIG'. If Paula Wolfert, the high priestess of Mediterranean cooking, coined the phrase 'big taste,' it is this noble Cuban-Creole café that honors it. Discover it for yourself in the form of maiz, a Caribbean corn fritter that is both sweet and savory, hearty and light. Or better yet try the rabo encendido ('Oxtail on Fire'): Slated as the Cuban equivalent to barbecue, these knobby parcels arrive in a long simmering wine sauce that would coax the mildest palate out of hiding. But it is in the finale that 'big' moves to the superlative, as Pambiche's desserts chart a steady course to the divine."
"The postres - or desserts - at Pambiche are an embarrassment of richness..." [MORE]
"The postres - or desserts - at Pambiche are an embarrassment of richness, mingling traditional Latin American dishes such as flan and rice pudding with original Pambiche postres creations. Among these newcomers, the impressive Torta Domino is a near-black rectangle of chocolate cake liberally doused with Kahlua liqueur and espresso, filled with chocolate mousse and served with Chantilly cream - for those who feel that too much is, perhaps, not quite enough."
"The pre-Castro-sized portions are enough to make anyone question the indulgences of a free-market society..." [MORE]
"...The pre-Castro-sized portions are enough to make anyone question the indulgences of a free-market society, but the beyond-reasonable prices for many of the dishes put the shine on capitalism..."
"...Most dinners come on an oversized plate, every inch crammed with different tastes. A good example is the rabo encendido ('oxtails on fire'), a platter of bony cow's tail braised in a red-wine sauce. A molded mound of rice, served to mix with the wine sauce, takes up one corner of the plate. The other is filled with ensalada caribeņa, a zingy, bright salad of red and green cabbage strips tossed with grated carrots, lime juice and parsley. Nestled on the sides are light and crunchy corn fritters that clean the palate between tastes..."
"...Pambiche's tweaked Cuban desserts hew closest to Maribona's vision of culinary apambichao. A seemingly endless, uniformly enticing assortment of dramatic pies, cakes and custards awaits you in the front dessert case. A perennial favorite is la banana borracha - spongy banana rum cake that's layered with custard, topped with a creamy icing and served with fruit salsas on the side..."
"Pambiche, tiene sus muros saturados con color y cultura..." [MORE]
"Pambiche, tiene sus muros saturados con color y cultura. Arte de Cuba y de México generan estimulos para los ojos en la compania de los frutos traidos por los estandares culinarios cubanos tales como empanadas, maduros, y deliciosos y creativos postres"
Diner 2002 Restaurant Guide "Critic's Choice Award"
"Pambiche's cuban coffee is the requisite first ritual of the morning..." [MORE]
"Pambiche's cuban coffee is the requisite first ritual of the morning, as smooth and luscious as the stuff we gulped in Miami: somehow intense yet mellow with chocolate-smoky overtones, the perfect segue into fall"
"A surprisingly authentic, always packed, and deeply wonderful Cuban joint..."
Chef's Choice Award Best Latin American-Cuban 2004
Chef's Choice Award Best Latin American-Cuban 2005
"The cracker box Cuban spot just a puddle-jump from East 28th Avenue's restaurant row..." [MORE]
"The cracker box Cuban spot just a puddle-jump from East 28th Avenue's restaurant row. The place positively swelters with splashes of bristling reds and golds, folk paintings and people packed as tight as deadline around the scrunched together tables. From yuca and fritters to robust stews and giant gulf shrimp in fiery red sauce, the food lives up to the carnival surroundings."
"John Connell-Maribona's loving tribute to his ancestral Cuban homeland honors the full-bodied tastes and personal warmth of his grandfather's Cuba..." [MORE]
"John Connell-Maribona's loving tribute to his ancestral Cuban homeland honors the full-bodied tastes and personal warmth of his grandfather's Cuba. The tasty, deep fried croquetas filled with chicken and chorizo, the succulent Cuban sandwiches, the arroz con pollo (the island staple of chicken and dense, paella style rice), the camarones enchilados, piquant, garlic-heavy prawns served with white rice, fried plantains and a coffe cup of black beans. If, by some miracle you've still got room left for something sweet, prepare to sin on a large scale. The Torta Domino is a chocolate riot. The flan, always an acid test of liberian-based cuisine, is flawless and the tres leches, a layered sponge cake so moist it's almost in a liquid state, is unspeakably good..."
"...this diminutive, appealingly cramped Cuban outpost. From the eye catching walls to the sparking flavors on the plates..." [MORE]
"...this diminutive, appealingly cramped Cuban outpost. From the eye catching walls to the sparking flavors on the plates, it is nearly impossible to resist the high spirits here. The menu is almost mind-bogglingly extensive, ranging from delectable snacks like salt-cod croquettes and garlic-spiked taro fritters, to traditional Cuban sandwiches like adobo marinated pork with salsa, to massively filling dishes like ajiaco, a stew of pork and beef, corn, dumplings, and tropical tubers. Save room, though. The traditional desserts and pastries arrayed in the deli case are special indeed. If you're the drinking kind, do yourself a favor and try the white-wine sangria, a veritable explosion of mint and lime."
"Uno de los mejores restaurants de Portland, El Pambiche."
"Locals know that you can drive by Pambiche any night of the week and find it packed..." [MORE]
"Locals know that you can drive by Pambiche any night of the week and find it packed. With traditional Cuban fare including plantains, roast pork and Cuban espresso, it is no surprise why. If you have some time to wait for a table, you should stop by and make an evening of it at this hopping neighborhood hot spot. Don't miss out on the incredible dessert here; it is the sole reason why some people make the trip."