With more than three decades of restaurant experience, the Sera family clearly has a handle on Cuban cuisine. William Sera and wife (and chef), Niurca, opened the original El Criollo a couple of blocks away. Three years ago, the couple and son Alberto upgraded to the current, and spiffier, location, where an exposed ceiling gives way to a skylight that bathes brick walls, and colorful Cuban travel posters take you, well, away from Van Nuys. At night, the sun goes down as the up-tempo music kicks in. So do the daiquiris and mojitos that emanate from the full bar. To start the meal, a Cuban tamal arrives wrapper-free in a bright yellow slab, slathered with minced garlic and olive oil and littered with peas. Hearty entrées include rabo Encendido, oxtail stewed in a rich, well-spiced wine sauce that coats every morsel of short rib-like beef, now falling from the bone. No matter the plate, expect white rice, black beans, caramelized plantains or fibrous steamed yucca root. Of course no Cuban meal would be complete without espresso, and El Criollo has Cubanos and cortaditos to spare.

Tamal cubano
Rabo encendido
Pollo asado (roast chicken)
Flan
view full menu here

Sit against the south wall, with sun streaming down from the skylight, views of diners and the flat screen TVs. Or grab a table on the patio, which is shielded from busy Van Nuys Boulevard.

William Sera hails from Marcané, on the the eastern end of Cuba. Niurca is from the nearby town of Las Tunas.

Tue–Wed 11:30 AM–8 PM; Thu–Fri. 11:30 AM–9 PM;
Sat 12 noon–9 PM; Sun 12 noon–8 PM

$7.95 (meida noche pressed sandwich) to $17.95 (rabo encendido)