Resto review: Cayo Coco

Fun money well spent for a taste of Cuba

Restaurant Cayo Coco

7671 rue Saint-Hubert

Montreal, QC

514-418-0104

  

Mojitos - the frugal way to escape Montreal's winter.
photo source

 

Last night I went out for dinner to celebrate the 30 & Flirty birthday of a dear friend and we were joined by our respective Eye Candies. Since she is a beach-loving girl who lives for sunshine and sand (and there is not much of that around Montreal this days), I wanted to bring her to a Cuban restaurant. There is not a lot of choice in Montreal for Caribbean food, but UrbanSpoon did not lead my astray when it recommended Restaurant Cayo Coco in VillerRay. 

This is restaurant is low key and as it turned out, my 8 p.m. reservations were not necessary as other than a few bar hoppers, we were the only diners in the place. What a shame! Montreal does not know what it's missing yet. 

The vibe at Cayo Coco is fun, laid back and mojitos are mandatory. Even my Eye Candy who had vowed not to have a single drink until he runs the Montreal Hypothermic Half-Marathon next month was persuaded. The restaurant owner/manager/bartender practically salsa'ed mojitos into our hands! It turns out that my friend & I knew him as Hector used to be the be the barista in our coffee bar at work. It makes me happy to see someone pursuing their own business - especially in the difficult restaurant industry. 

For a $15 table d'hote, we each had 2 mojitos, shared tapas for the table, and a main dish. The tapas were basic - grilled shrimps, toast with garlic, and fried yuca, but they set the beach-mood and went well with our mojitos. For the main, we had the choice of grilled chicken, pork or the fresh fish catch of the day and our table opted for the chicken and pork. Our mains were delicious, flavourful, and served hot right from the kitchen. Each meat was accompanied by a bed of brown rice, plantain, yuca, and a side salad.

For $82 total with tax plus tip, dinner out for 4 of us was one-week of Fun Money well spent! I would recommend Restaurant Cayo Coco to any friends looking for a fun restaurant off the beaten path. The best part? At Cayo Coco you don't have to fight the usual Saturday night crowds so you can dine and get some R&R  - you can't much closer to a beach holiday than that!

*Rosie*