Cafe Reyes

Beautiful, colorful ambiance in a clean, residential-​feeling dining room. Service by incredibly helpful and friendly staff. The most delicious cuban coffee drinks, and creative takes on the well-​known classic Cubano fare. Café Reyes is on the top of my list for Breakfast and lunch, especially for folks that are visiting!

This place is a hot mess. Bad for large groups. The person who takes your order runs away and then the guy who gives you your order has no clue which table for a large group ordered what. I mean wow. Unbelievable.

The décor is so bright and fun — it makes you happy just looking around. Went with a friend and we both ordered the Cubano sandwich as many people had recommended it. Despite some communication challenges with our waiter, our food came in a reasonable amount of time. Refills on my iced tea were offered and I’m glad they recommended trying the raspberry iced tea which is unsweetened and delicious! Overall I’m very impressed with the food and love the mission — I’ll be back when I’m in town!

Cool concept. Slow service but that is expected. Come here if you aren’t in a rush and want good coffee or lattes!

Best Cuban restaurant in Worcester! Ok, its the only Cuban restaurant in Worcester, but they certainly aren’t slacking due to the lack of competition. The coffee options are numerous and very reasonably priced, a full French press is only $ 4 and I think this is the only place in Worcester that does French press coffee.
The food menu has all the Cuban breakfast and lunch standbys. I went with the breakfast Cuban which is basically the classic Cuban sandwich with egg on it. It was good, although I’ve had better bread. It comes with a couple fried plantains, which are always delightful.
Café Reyes is a simple experience, but very satisfying. The exterior just looks like a slightly shabby old house, but the inside is bright and airy and they have a copper top bar (no alcohol though). It should be in any Worcester residents breakfast or lunch rotation.

The hours are a little prohibitive so I only just yesterday managed to go despite wanting to for several weeks. It feels like you are eating at your Grandmothers house. There is a pleasant comfy area where one can enjoy the many drinks and I imagine would be positively delightful to sit and read. If you venture further in there are several tables in a cozy dining area. The staff members were two very genuinely nice men who really made the experience for me (well them and the phenomenal food that I’ll tell you about momentarily).
I ordered a Cuban sandwich (el cubano) with plantain chips and my lunch companion ordered Pan con lechón. First off you get an awful lot of food for $ 7.95, I’m a fairly big eater and I only barely finished mine, I would say you may want to split a sandwich with a friend. The sandwich was perfectly constructed (which is an area I’m often pet peeved in when a sandwich is poorly constructed) and as delicious as it was beautiful. The plantain chips (which were new to me) were also very good, they also ask if you want to modify the sandwich in anyway which is a nice touch, I opted to have it as is so as to get as authentic an experience as possible.
I have already recommended this restaurant to several people and my friend and I raved about the experience for the entirety of our return trip.

The place is unusual, colorful, the guy that was serving was kind of not so sure what he is doing, but it doesn’t matter, the food was good, I enjoyed!

What a hidden gem in Worcester! I came here for the second time with three other people, including a visitor from New York City who is accustomed to that city’s vibrant eating scene.
The five-​star experience starts with an inspiring story. This restaurant represents a cause that is even more important than a place to eat. Dr. Matilde Castiel, the executive director of the Hector Reyes House (a residential treatment center for men struggling with substance abuse), hails from Cuba and works at the nearby UMASS Medical Center. At Café Reyes, she employs former addicts, most of whom have been to prison and many of whom have been homeless. Therefore, Café Reyes is a safe environment where you’ll not only be enjoying great food and service, but you’ll also be supporting the reintegration of recovering addicts, who are simply developing and honing important societal and workplace skills. That said, this is still a restaurant, and this reviewer must review it accordingly.
What’ll strike you about Café Reyes is the friendly and informed service. On the day, our server was Carlos. He imparted useful advice when ordering the Pastel de Guayaba y Queso– it’s best eaten warm! The service at this restaurant was so enjoyable that our party was even served complimentary meringues, which were sweet and light.
What about the actual food? Well, it’s very good and affordable. The menu has just enough perfected options without being overbearing and excessive. Our group shared La Empanada Cubana and Empanada de Queso y Chorizo– both solid appetizers. The Cubano and Pan con Lechón are both tasty entrees. The garlic sauce especially makes the Pan con Lechón an enjoyable dish. The Cubano was delicious and authentic, consisting of ham, roasted pork, Swiss cheese, pickles, and mustard in a pressed Cuban roll. For dessert, we shared the Pastel de Guayaba y Queso and the Flan. The Pastel de Guayaba y Queso was nice and flaky and also generously filled with a balanced blend of guava and cheese.
Good food? Check. Affordable? Check. Great service? Check. Serving an honorable cause in the community? Check. Should you give Café Reyes a try? Definitely!

Cute place from the outside and the inside is also nicely decorated and inviting. Offered Cuban coffee upon entering :) the Cuban sandwich was really good, panini style so it was warm and melty. Menu looks fun, can’t wait to go back! Prices are reasonable for the shrewsbury street area, it fits right in :) such a great story behind the place.

I’ve had takeout from Café Reyes multiple times, but finally got to eat on location. The Cubano sandwich is a great, well executed classic with nicely grilled bread. For lunch I got the black bean soup which had a substantial pile of sauteed vegetables on top that was delicious. The soup was simple and well seasoned, but the vegetables on top really set it apart. I love chorizo in all forms, so I was destined to enjoy the empanada. I will definitely be back to try the salads and breakfast.

The place is cute and the staff is friendly but I wasn’t bowled over by the food. I’ve had amazing Cuban food, this paled in comparison. The menu offers limited choices. The food was hot & fresh but wasn’t special. It just wasn’t flavorful enough for me.
I would return but probably not frequently.

Friendly staff. Café con leche is delicious coffee. Great atmosphere, undiscovered wonderful place in Worcester! Delicious food! Also has breakfast and good prices!

Tasty breakfast menu!
A bit steep prices, for the portion you get.
But the food is tasty.
The breakfast sandwich called, The Louie was a bit bland. I expect more flavor from a Cuban dish.
Atmosphere was bright and cheery, Spanish music playing.
Friendly staff.

If I were just rating the food, it would give it 4 stars. However, service is half the experience at a restaurant and we had terrible service. I would not recommend coming here if you are hungry and aren’t willing to wait 40 – 60 minutes for your food.
SERVICE: We waited 30 minutes for them to even take our order and we had to ask the waitress 3 times before they took our order. Then once the order was placed, it took another 40 minutes for our food to be served. I had a feeling that they would mess up our order and they did. Not a big deal but it certainly added to the frustration we had with the wait. The table next to us was also clearly frustrated with the wait as they approached the waitress 4 times before finally getting their food. The problem wasn’t even that they were low on staff — the problem was that there didn’t seem to be a sense of urgency to attend to customers. We sat at the bar opposite the kitchen and could see the waitress chatting with the cook. She would also walk back and forth doing nothing when there were clearly things to attend to (including taking our order and clearing the tables).
FOOD: Great and decently priced. We ordered the Plato de Lechon Asado (Slow roasted mojo pork, black beans, rice and fried plantain) and it was delicious. The pork was tender and well-​seasoned.
Overall, it’s a shame that this was our first experience. It seems like such a wonderful cause and the food is delicious but the service needs TREMENDOUS work. If you’re looking for delicious, quick and cheap spanish/​hispanic food without the wait (and the cause of course), I’d recommend Maria’s Kitchen on main street instead.

Café Reyes: Good on authentic recipes and vibe, short on menu selections and flexibility.
We stopped into Café Reyes because a real Cuban told me that there are only a few places to eat Cuban food in Massachusetts. There are two in Boston (JP to be exact), one of which is a knockout known quantity, El Oriental de Cuba.
Café Reyes was the Worcester location, and since I live in town, we came in for lunch.
Pros
–The FOOD! Cubano was perfect, plantains sweet and juicy. GET THE MOJO (Mo-​ho to all you gringos) for the side! Café con leche was as expected, nice and tasty. My date and I finished our plates, clean plate club style!
–The vibe in there is excellent. Inviting, with bright colors, lots of Cubanismo, a cool bar, and a great little dining parlor. Great to meet with friends or coworkers, though not that romantic.
–The restaurant is in an easy to find location on Shrewsbury Street
–Café Reyes is a non-​profit that helps people re-​assimilate by providing jobs. This scores some karma points!
Cons
–No parking lot, there is one next door but DONT PARK THERE YOU WILL GET YELLED AT. I did. Whelp.
–Its only open for lunch, which I think could change, I think people would love a pork plate or cubano sandwich for takeout at night.
–Service is a work in progress, they seemed inexperienced and overcompensating in this department.\
–They’re working on the menu and I get that its small as they build their business. Wouldn’t mind more options as the place thrives.

This place was so delicious! The inside is cute, bright and colorful. I guess they help employe those who are recovering from addictions and are trying to get back on their feet. That’s what my friend told me. It’s a great cause and one I am gladly willing to support.
All the food that we got was delicious and so fresh. My friend ordered a mango smoothie and you could tell that fresh fruit was used.
The parking is a little odd. If you can find street parking, great! There is a driveway that you need to park in. The lot next door is used for someone else and you will get towed if you park there. The driveway only holds about 3 cars and it makes it a bit awkward to back out of. Backing out wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be. It’s just not ideal.
Definitely check this place out!

Location:
The restaurant is right off of Shrewsbury street. I was able to park right outside but I don’t know if there’s any parking specifically for the place. They do have outdoor seating but it’s pretty small; just two low tables with chairs in front of the business. The indoors is very well decorated and seems like a very friendly place to eat.
Service:
The staff were very nice and polite. We spoke about what they were doing here and why the place has such short hours. They told me they were in culinary school when they were not working here but in another month they will have longer hours. They staff were very attentive and they even loved hanging out with my dog. :)
Food:
I ordered the el Cubano (Cuban sandwich) with plantain chips, ice tea, and tres leches cake. The sandwich was amazing. It has a great balance of meat with pickle and mustard. The bread was well toasted and everything came together to make an amazing sandwich. The plantain chips are to die for. I would go back just for that alone. The tres leches cake was moist and sweet; just what I would expect a tres leches cake.
Overall:
I love the mission of the restaurant but even if I didn’t know it, I would come back over and over again. The staff are super friendly and I can’t wait to go back.

We recently found this gem of a breakfast spot when we googled «outside breakfast» … and technically it does have tables outside but you really must go inside to get the real flavor of the restaurant. It’s decorated beautifully, is immaculately clean and has a welcoming island vibe as soon as you enter. The service was wonderful, the food was delicious and we can’t wait to go back to try the cubano after reading all the great comments about that.
I hope this place continues to be successful. The concept of helping those in recovery to learn skills while offering the community a quality establishment is one I would like to see repeated.

Not just good, very good! The Cuban sandwich is to die for, very similar to the style you will find in the famous places in Miami. The menu is small but the quality is top notch and super fresh, lots of fried food that are made to order, not just sitting there and reheated. Everything we sampled today was delicious. We will definitely be back for more and be back often, as some of you know (if your a fan) it’s hard to find good, or any for that matter Cuban food and a great Cubano sandwich.
Something worth noting is Reyes Café is non profit, and works with people that are homeless and have had addiction problems in the past, I think it’s great that they are helping these people out and I am happy to support them. 6 STARS!!!

LEGIT! TOO LEGIT TO QUIT! I was very happy with their plump empanadas — we sampled BOTH. Their cubano is made with shredded/​pulled cuban pork — their take on the slices of porky deliciousness… Gave the sandwich a different «mouth feel» — but didn’t change a thing from tradition — and now I crave it! The place is IMMACULATE! Service is wonderful! They are keeping the menu small and tight — and it delivers. Have a cafecito… come for a cubano. Stay for the friendliness. And a good cause — helping the staff to get back on their feet, serving one dish at a time, priming the Café with the TLC of a parent tending to their toddler.
WARNING! Street parking — DO NOT PARK IN THE LOT NEXT TO IT — YOU WILL BE TOWED!!!
Now go in and enjoy a cubano. Or two.