Oakwood Café

The green beans are from a can … really? Yes, really. The spinach is frozen. Shabby inside — bare lightbulb missing a fixture. Bathrooms are shabby and seem like they need a better cleaning. Staff did not seem professional. The patrons on a Saturday night at 6p seemed to be all 55 – 75 (age) and dressed not-​so-​well. The Yucca root and fried plantains were good and enjoyed the Blues music.

Well I don’t really know what Argentinean food is, but seems pretty much like American food to me. Food was good we had breakfast; swiss and spinach omelette was delicious with a nice amount of home fries and a biscuit, we also had pancakes and eggs. Only problem was seeing the guy come in from the street rubbing his nose and all and walk right to the kitchen and start cooking and cleaning the kitchen…

I wanted to like this place since it’s so close to my neighborhood, but I went for breakfast and was fairly disappointed. The food was meh at best. The service was similar. Our waitress took a long time to get to us, and the food took longer than it should have.

Delicious! My friend and I split the Milanese sandwich and I’m glad we did — it’s huge! Very tasty. I am also a huge fan of the home fries that are just potatoes and not sullied by onions and peppers :) Watch out though — the salsa is muy caliente!

Came in around 11 on Sunday based on a neighbors recommendation. It was a solid rec. I ordered grits, two eggs, and toast — tasted great! Casual, relaxed, homey feel with polite staff that keep you coffee mug full. Delightful breakfast.
*UPDATE — just got my check and it was only $ 8.50! If I could give 10 stars I would. Great value!

Just finished a delicious lunch Great place to stop if touring the Oakwood Historic district and cemetery The peccadillo is delicious, but so was everything else.

I had such high hopes for this place but instead left with a lime burnt tongue and missing Miami more than ever. I know better than to expect true Latin food in these parts, but this experience was truly disappointing. Lime should never be the main flavor in Cuban food.
My boyfriend and I ordered each ordered a Cuban steak sandwich. I expected pan con bistec (which is typically Cuban bread, steak, cooked onions, lettuce and tomato). While he expected a Cuban sandwich with steak instead of ham (pickles, pork, mayo, and cheese). So first problem is the name– the description was accurate, but calling it a ‘Cuban steak sandwich’ is stupid.
The actual sandwich consisted of a steak that reminded me of the frozen steak’ems soaked in lemon or lime with no other flavor. The bread is not Cuban bread at all, the number one tell tale sign being the grainy cornmeal all over the bottom that is never on Cuban bread. The bread was toasted instead of being ‘planchado’ (ironed, similar to a panini but no lines), all the juice from the steak was never drained so it made the bread a soggy mess. My bread was also burnt black, I can’t imagine any good restaurant sending out a plate like that.
The tostones were also served with ‘mojo’ which was just more lime juice and garlic, which is not proper mojo. No criticism on the tostones themselves since they were probably frozen and just fried. Sizing was too consistent to be fresh.

I cannot express how much I love this restaurant. My boyfriend and I go every couple months and it is consistently our favorite place in Raleigh. The most bang for your buck as well as the tastiest. We got the mussels with spice and cheese plate as appetizers. Both were amazing. The empanadas are always consistent and highly recommended. My favorite thing on the menu is the Tres Leches cake and it is by far the best I have ever had. The cappuccino is the best in Raleigh. Best date spot I’ve ever been too in Raleigh (also the first date spot and where I decided my boyfriend had killer taste). Great for valentines!

Great little café with Cuban and Argentinean eats.
It’s cozy. I didn’t check out the occupancy limit but I would guesstimate they can seat no more than 40 people. It was packed at lunchtime from around noon until 1pm. It is located on a corner and there is parking available on two sides of the building. You may need to park across the street which isn’t a big deal. There is also a deck with outdoor seating that needs a bit of TLC but maybe by springtime the deck will be in good shape.
The restrooms are interesting, Walk behind a curtain in the dining area and voila, there is a sink. That’s what you’ll be using once you leave your respective individual male or female restroom. That means: no sink in the restroom. Do your business, step out, and use the shared sink. I mean it. Please use the shared sink. Anyway, on to the eats…
The plantains were fried slightly crisp and caramelized on the outside. Super ripe, sweet, and delicious.
My grilled chicken avocado salad was tasty. I prefer a slightly riper, and therefore softer, avocado but this avocado was not as ripe as I would have liked and fairly firm. The salad included a chopped tomato, hard-​boiled egg, cheese, and croutons. Not a huge fan of the iceberg lettuce but maybe that’s what I get for ordering a salad at a Cuban/​Argentinean restaurant.
Hubby ordered the Ropa Vieja which is pulled beef marinated in a red wine and tomato sauce. Thumbs up from him on that.
Overall, it is a charming and festive little café with some delicious plantains and they are rocking a 99% sanitation rating to boot.

Whaaaaaaaaat?
Oakwood café you say?
Okay!
Half Cuban half Argentinian we just couldn’t make up our mind. You’ll see reviews suggesting all different things but I just didn’t see one suggesting the couple things I was leaning towards trying. So we started with a chicken empanada to eat and decide.
I guess that makes it official though, everything on the menu is good because I got the Rooa vieja, and man was it great.

Great, great Cuban food in the heart of Raleigh. The restaurant is small, the quality of the food is large!

I love Oakwood any time of day. Breakfast, lunch or dinner; the food is delicious!
Breakfast is fast, filling and cheap.
Lunch is also under the $ 12 range and delcious. I love the grilled grouper, beef empanadas, milanesa, churrsasco and the list goes on… Be sure to try the yucca and/​or sweet plantains.
The service is also great. Always with a smile and a have a good day.
Parking is limited and it can fill up for lunch so plan accordingly!

I lived/​studied abroad in Argentina and I’m so excited to find an authentic Argentine cuisine like this in Raleigh! I went with my husband, parents, and toddler on a Thursday for dinner and it was a quaint, relaxing atmosphere and most of the people were there were young adults out with friends (so at first I was scared of being judged for bringing a toddler, but she did great and everyone was friendly) and a few regulars (you could just tell). We had a bottle of Malbec and I ordered the beef Milanesa and it was absolutely delicious! I’m dying to go back again soon!

My fourth time eating here and I’ve never been disappointed. Empenadas, chorizo, Cuban sandwiches, Cuban and Argentinian steak; it’s all been great. A real gem on the outskirts of downtown Raleigh.

I had a craving for a delicious and cheesy Cuban sandwich, so after browsing Unilocal for the best cubanos, we decided to give Oakwood Café a try. We came late on a Friday night, so it wasn’t busy. But I can imagine that there would be a decent wait at peak times, because it is a pretty small dining room and looks like it would fill up fast. I also suggest parking on the street and walking a bit, because they have very limited parking that doesn’t look super organized to me. Looks like an accident waiting to happen. Anyways, even though it is a pretty small restaurant, I love how cozy the atmosphere was. The servers were friendly and you can tell that they care about their customers and that they had some regular customers stopping in.
As for the food, everything was delicious. Even the free bread they served was amazing. I’m not sure what it is that they sprinkle on the bread, but I couldn’t stop myself from eating it until it was all gone. We wanted to try a variety of items, so we started with the Empanada sampler with tostones. We were served 4 empanadas (1 chicken, 2 beef and 1 spinach/​cheese). The spinach and cheese was my favorite, followed by the chicken, then the beef. If you like some heat, make sure you try it with the hot sauce! The tostones were also really good and had a nice crunch. Before we could even finish our sampler, our entrees came out. At this point, I was already getting full, but the Cuban sandwich really satisfied my craving. And I can never pass up on plantains, so I ordered them as my side. Yum! The item that surprised me the most though, was my fiancé’s yuca. It reminds me a little bit of a French fry, but with a lemon taste to it. So good!
There are some other items that I want to try on the menu so I will definitely be back!

I recently watched the movie Chef and decided I was in the mood for Cuban food. We went here on a Friday night, and for our appetizer we ordered the empanada sampler for $ 11. You get four giant empanadas (2 beef, 1 chicken, 1 spinach and cheese), and four tostones. The tostones were crispy, soft on the interior, and seasoned nicely with a touch of lemon. The empanadas were fried and the dough is thick, yet soft on the inside. They are different than Calavera’s empanadas (and cheaper). The ground beef picadillo was good with nice and juicy beef with olives and peppers inside. The chicken had the most flavor and a mild spice. The spinach and cheese was really cheese and just tasted really fresh with the spinach. They do no skimp with filling here and I love the house made hot sauce they have on the tables. It add’s an incredible amount of flavor to the empanadas.
For my entrée, I went with the baby churrasco ($ 15) with a side of plantains and yuca fritas. The churrasco was at least 8 oz and I believe the cut was a skirt steak, but it was cooked to a nice medium rare with a great char on the outside. The steak was decently tender, just a little hard cut because of the nature of the cut of meat it is. Nevertheless, it was beautifully marinaded, dripping and oozing with delicious meat juice. The chimichurri really set it over the top, and it was definitely a very flavorful piece of meat. The plantains came out perfect and yuca fritas were also surprisingly very good. I’ve never had yuca before, and when its lightly fried, it has a similar consistency to fried potatoes, just not as starchy and a lot healthier tasting.
Overall, my meal was very good at Oakwood and also very reasonably priced. I don’t know how authentic the food is here for traditional Cuban and Argentine food, but it tastes pretty good which is all I care about. I would highly recommend Oakwood and will be back to try more of their delicious food.

The empanadas were deep fried. I’ve had some that weren’t cooked like that. I had a chicken empanada that was OK. The spinach and cheese had no taste to it, I had to drown it in hot sauce. The black beans were OK.
I live in NW Raleigh. I don’t think I would come down here just for this restaurant. I came with some coworkers for lunch.
Despite the cuisine, the waitresses do not appear to speak Spanish. So much for using my limited tourist Spanish. LOL.

If it wasnt for Unilocal,i wouldnt have known about this place!
Got the Pork Cuban Sandwich with plaintains.
It was excellent!
Will be back to try something different

It’s a cute little place tucked in downtown with its own small parking lot, which is nice if you can grab a spot.
Service was decent for a lunch crowd during the week and it did get packed inside. I was a little disappointed with the Argentinean food. I’m basing my comparison to the only experience I’ve had with Argentinean food, cooked by an Argentinean friend. We ordered the provoleta which tasted ok (my friend makes it with chimichurri sauce on top which is so yummy). It was only served with four small slices of toasted bread along side, hardly enough for the cheese. I ordered the empanada platter with tostones. This was the first time I have ever tried tostones and they had little flavor, almost like unseasoned fries. The pastry of the empanada was really good, fried perfectly. My favorite filling was the spinach and cheese, the chicken had little flavor. My son ordered the Cuban Steak sandwich and it was full of juicy, thinly sliced steak. Overall kind of unimpressive. If I go back, I think I’ll sample the Cuban fare.

The spinach & cheese empanadas were wonderful. The chicken empanadas had a seasoning that was delicious! The beef empanadas, not so much. Provoleta was ok; ask a native Argentinian to make you one.

Meh. I was excited to have some tasty Cuban food, but what I ended up with was average. I ordered the picadillo and I’ve had better. The seasoning was just lacking for a normally very flavorful dish.
The side of black beans and rice were pretty standard. With that being said, the plantains were delicious!!! The staff was extremely pleasant and helpful, which was great!

Went here for lunch after a morning over at the museum of natural science, and was a little skeptical of a argentine/​Cuban place. But the place doesn’t disappoint.
Had the inkling for some empanadas, went to Argentina years ago and took an empanada making class, these were as good. But they were still very tasty… A bit on the pricy side for empanadas.
The Cubans looked very good, as several members got the steak Cuban.
The fries are definitely lacking, but I shouldn’t have expected much.
Will be back to try the authentic Cuban.

I was out an about Sunday morning. My wife and I were headed over to the Old International House of Pancakes on Hillsborough street. I remember eating there back in 1980 and it wasn’t new then. We saw Oakwook Café and decided to give it a a try. I had absolutely no preconcieved notion of what to expect. We just assumed they would have pancakes. I was pleasently surprized with what I found. The atmosphere was plesently divey, the service was freindly, the food was really good, and the prices weren’t bad at all.
I would like to add that I feel the name qualified as false advertising. Oakwood Café is no name for a above par Cuban restaurant.
Atmosphere 4 — This is obviously and older place and they emphasized the age in a very hip way. It feel like a hole in the wall that has been around a long time.
Service 4 — Our server was prompt and freindly. She took the time to tell us a little about the place and the food they serverd. I did see one thing I saw that did impress me. A table across from me was an elderly couple. The husband clearly had mobility issues. One of the gentlemen from the kitchen came out to help the husband out of the booth and stayed with him until he was properly situated with his walker. Part of what impressed me was that the gentleman from the kitchen clearly did not view helping this man as in interuption to his day. He seemed genuinely concerned and more than happy to lend a hand.
Cost/​Value 5 — The food quality for the price I paid was a really good value.
Food 5 — The Cuban pork sandwich was good and the milanesas sandwich was also well above par. The bread was fresh and crispy on the outside and still chewy on the indie. The plaintains were good as well. The home made hot sauce is definitely worth a try. Very flavorful without being blast your head off hot.

I was out an about Sunday morning. My wife and I were headed over to the Old International House of Pancakes on Hillsborough street. We saw Oakwook Café and decided to give it a a try. I had absolutely no preconcieved notion of what to expect. We just assumed they would have pancakes. I was pleasently surprized with what I found. The atmosphere was divey in a hip sort of way, the service was freindly, the food was really good, and the prices weren’t bad at all.
I would like to add that I feel the name qualified as false advertising. Oakwood Café is no name for a above par Cuban restaurant.
Atmosphere 4 — This is obviously and older place and they emphasized the age in a very hip way. It feels like a hole in the wall family owned place that has been around a long time.
Service 4 — Our server was prompt and freindly. She took the time to tell us a little about the place and the food they serverd. I did see one thing I saw that did impress me. A table across from me was an elderly couple. The husband clearly had mobility issues. One of the gentlemen from the kitchen came out to help the husband out of the booth and stayed with him until he was properly situated with his walker. Part of what impressed me was that the gentleman from the kitchen clearly did not view helping this man as in interuption to his day. He seemed genuinely concerned and more than happy to lend a hand.
Cost/​Value 5 — The food quality for the price I paid was a really good value.
Food 5 — The Cuban pork sandwich was good and the milanesas sandwich was also well above par. The bread was fresh and crispy on the outside and still chewy on the indie. The plaintains were good as well. The home made hot sauce is definitely worth a try. Very flavorful without being blast your head off hot.

If you find yourself inside this restaurant, order a Cuban coffee, pay, and leave. That’s the only way you’ll walk out totally satisfied.
We were really pumped about this place — and with an Argentine in tow, we’re always seeking out excellent empanadas and milanesas. With shining eyes, we ordered both — and were sorely disappointed.
The empanadas are fried and served with what appears to be Tostitos mild salsa — apparently to mask the flavor.
The ‘beef milanesa’ was what appeared to be three (large) slices of roast beef (??? You’re as confused as we were!) under a small mountain of breadcrumbs. That fall off. The chicken milanesa was — well, a breaded cutlet. Not a tasty one.
We ordered the side salad. Don’t. You’ll get a better one at any pizza buffet. It was made with the iceberg lettuce ends and some sprinkle cheese. And a croûton.
We trudged on — and ordered the flan, with HIGH hopes for redemption. It was overcooked. They slathered on some dulce de leche to mask it. We left it sitting, paid our fifty bucks, and wiped away bitter tears on the way out.
Their homemade hot sauce was pretty alright. If you decide to order anything here, go ahead and drench it.

It hurts a little to give this gentleman 2 stars because he seems like a nice guy. But here goes;
I had grilled salmon, with a side of plantains and a salad. Salad was iceberg lettuce which is kind of a bummer (cheap?) and the salmon was way over-​cooked and, well… like leather. Plantains left a little something to be desired — I couldn’t decide if they weren’t ripe enough or if they were too ripe (though I think, with plantains, the latter is better). Reasonably priced, and I still ate my salmon like a good girl but I wasn’t thrilled about it.
Also, although waitress was welcoming when I came in, she never smiled once and almost had an annoyed disposition.
I think the concept of this place is great but my guess is that the owner needs to keep a more careful (close) watch on his cooks and his waitstaff. Bummer.

This was an amazing place for a small intimate yet savory meal! My friend and I wanted to go somewhere new and I quickly found this on Unilocal with much approval from various friends. It’s small and the name like «Oakwood Café» doesn’t lend it self to sound like a Cuban/​Argentinean restaurant but it’s absolutely amazing! The restaurant isn’t large by any means but they have both inside and patio seating. The menu is cut up into Cuban/​Argentinean options although most of them roll over.
To start off we had the Provoletta which is fried provolone cheese in a circle shape with cuban bread to go with it. This was the.most.amazing. appetizer I’ve ever eaten in my life. It tasted like a pizza — the most flavor and it went in a few seconds! That is an absolute must have! For my meal, I ordered the Beef Milanesa which is seasoned and fried breaded thin cut steak and had black beans/​rice mix with fried yucca. I’m Cuban so to have a good meal came with high expectations but without a shadow of a doubt, I would say that they met that for me! I had plenty to take home as well. We both ordered wonderful glasses of wine to pair with our meal too! It’s authentic and rich in flavor — don’t wait around to try this place out — go now!

I decided to give Oakwood Café a try, given its popularity in the Raleigh food scene. I didn’t expect it to suck. I was unsure about reviewing this place, given that I don’t want Lauryn C. to insist that I return my official foodie card to her. Eh, she’ll have to forgive me.
I dined here with a few friends for lunch on a weekday. I decided to go with the highly recommended Baby Churrasco steak served with a Chimi Churri sauce for $ 11.50. The waitress asked how i wanted my steak, and I replied «medium.» You don’t want to eat your steaks too rare unless you know the meat is high-​quality. Most entrees come with two sides, and I decided to go with tostones (fried crispy palntains), and rice with spinach.
The food came within a reasonable time frame, and the Chimi Churri sauce was a tad heavy on the acid, but still really good. I wish I had more nice things to write, but that ends the good that I experienced at Oakwood Café. What a shame.
The Churrasco would not have been edible without the Chimi Churri. While I requested medium, the steak came borderline burnt to a crisp. It had absolutely no juices left, and it was completely devoid of flavor. A steak should not have to depend completely on its sauce.
And speaking of tastelessness, the sides were both rather poorly made. Tostones were fried perfectly, but I’m sure they are not meant to be astonishingly bland. The rice with spinach had absolutely no redeeming quality.
2 stars — Lauryn C. have mercy on my foodie career. I’ve certainly had worse experiences; however, Oakwood lived far below its lofty reputation. One word that never should be associated with Argentinian food is «blandness.» With the exception of the Chimi Churri, «blandness» perfectly describes everything about Oakwood.

After numerous recommendations finally I made it a priority to come to Oakwood Café. Being that I consider myself from Raleigh how is it that I never walked into this place before?
The Argentinean/​Cuban restaurant is a tiny little place off the beaten path but close by DTR. My sis and I dropped in late afternoon on a Sat. which worked out perfectly considering I’ve heard how packed this place can get. Listening to the owner talk to another patron in the restaurant it sounds like to me they get a lot of lunch business during the week from the state offices and it might be tough to get a seat then. Our waitress greeted us and I told her it was our first time and asked for some recommendations. She was so friendly I really enjoyed speaking with her and she pointed out a few popular menu items.
We started with a beef and a spinach empanada. The dough and fillings were perfect, very tasty and different then other empanada’s I’ve had around town. I don’t want to leave out the super tasty homemade hot sauce they serve with the food here. As a hot sauce fanatic I’m definitely coming back to purchase some soon. It’s not the heat in the sauce but the flavor is so good.
I figure steak is a good choice at an Argentinean restaurant so I went with the Baby Churrasco; Argentinean style cut steak served with two sides of your choice. When the plate came out it was a huge portion, I ordered the fried yucca, and spinach with rice. The steak came with a side of chimi churri sauce that was also very tasty. My sis and I shared bites and I was able to taste the beef milanesa as well it was delicious.
We ate every last bite on our plates and were incredibly full but how can you pass on dessert, especially when it’s tres leches cake. Yup we did it we had dessert too.
The owner came to the table and chatted with us for a bit and he was very nice. It was a great meal with wonderful service. Next time I come back I’m going to dig into the Cuban side of the menu, Cuban sandwich anyone?