Name: Mambo's Cafe
Address: Glendale, Burbank, CA, US
Price range: $$
Rating: 4.5

Mambo's Cafe in Glendale is the Cuban restaurant that commits to the full experience: 769 reviews at 4.5 stars for a retro dining room with live music and Cuban food that earns the setting.

A retro Cuban restaurant with live music is a concept that requires the food to match the atmosphere. A beautiful room with mediocre ropa vieja is a disappointment. Mambo's has avoided that trap: at 4.5 stars across 769 reviews, the kitchen is earning its rating consistently enough to sustain a Cuban dining room that draws on the era when Cuban restaurants were the most celebrated in Los Angeles.

The live music component transforms the meal from dinner into an event. Cuban music -- son, bolero, mambo -- played live changes the pace of eating and the sense of occasion. It is the kind of restaurant experience that requires a particular mood to appreciate fully, and when the mood is right, there is nothing better.

For the Glendale and Burbank area, Mambo's Cafe is the Cuban restaurant where the food and the atmosphere are equally worth the trip.

Must-Order Dishes

Ropa Vieja

$22

Shredded braised flank steak in sofrito sauce -- the Cuban national dish that Mambo's executes in the context of a retro dining room where the atmosphere is as much a part of the meal as the food.

Cubano Sandwich

$16

Pressed Cuban sandwich with mojo roasted pork, ham, Swiss cheese, pickles, and mustard. The sandwich that benefits from being eaten in a room with Cuban music playing.

Croquetas de Jamon

$12

Cuban ham croquettes -- bechamel thickened, ham-filled, breaded and fried until golden. The snack that is mandatory at any serious Cuban table.

Tres Leches

Sponge cake soaked in three milks -- evaporated, condensed, and heavy cream -- refrigerated until fully saturated and topped with whipped cream. The Cuban dessert that defines the category.