la macarena pupuseria & latin cafe

in decline. i used to like this place before it got popular and the staff and cook got overwhelmed. my last experience there was one of the worst of any dining experience ever. it took forever to even get water, our poor waiter was so overwhelmed by the lunch crowd, and when we finally got our food, it was cold! the owner is usually pretty nice and he's given us some free tequila shots, but i'd honestly just rather have my money back ($21 for that terrible lunch).

a nice change of pace. the food was very good. i have never had pupusas before, but i like them and may have to come back for more. the staff was friendly. if i don't return for the pupusas, i will for the tres leches cake.

nice people. i ate here with a date and we were treated very well by the staff. the downside is that for a fraction of the cost you can truck it over to the westbank at eat at the puppersia over there for a fraction of the cost and better food.

great service, freshest ingredients. excellent foods.

pura vida !!!. without doubt, the most satisfying spanish/latin meal i've had in new orleans in very long time. this place is jewel- the carne asada reminds me of the one my wife and i had during our honeymoon in costa rica in monteverde. the flan the best i've ever had -anywhere. worth the wait. family run, superb service in a non pretentious setting.

delicious, expensive, slow food... but delicious!. the food took so long to come out that i may have acquired sun damage in the meantime just by sitting by the window. the service is pretty awful and inattentive. however, the food is delicious. i'm not a fan of "pupusas" as they taste like hot pockets squished flat to me in general. however, the tamales here are perfect. the breakfast items are delicious and the breakfast burritos inspired me to learn how to cook in the style. it's overpriced and they only take cash and the food takes an eon to get to the table, but if you have a lot of time to kill (more than an hour, seriously) and an abundance of cash, the food is great. the tres leches cake is unbeatable as a finishing touch.

very nice surprise. on a recommendation from a friend, i did not know what to expect when i went to la macarena. though i had grown up eating latin food of several influences at my friend's homes, i had never eaten pupusas before, and therefore decided to go with an open mind. my friend suggested that i bring my own alcohol, so i prepared accordingly with our staple whites.
the striking décor and vibrant artwork immediately set the tone for the evening. if color truly can influence mood, the decoration heightened our expectations for something eventful. the second thing i noticed was the intimacy we had with the kitchen. though it was on a dais above the small dining room, i could see into the kitchen with ease; which emanated the comfort of being at a friend's home and knew that what took place in the kitchen was for anyone to see. the platform also served as a stage for the gregarious host, manny, who monitored both the kitchen and the dining room like he was performing theatre in the round. food good or bad was worth spending an evening dining with manny again. the food was good, and the server was knowledgeable about all items on the menu and how each was prepared.
my wife, our two guests, and i ordered the traditional latin starters: yucca, plantains, and guacamole; but ventured into the featured niche cuisine for the main course. the sampler platter of pupusas, salvadoran filet, brisket, and the garlic shrimp knocked our socks off. everything was shared among us as we shared conversations with the other diners in the restaurant. overall, the value was excellent because we ate great food at a reasonable price and didn't pay for alcohol that had been marked up from retail cost. we definitely will be back. michael v

i wish it weren't so. i put this place off until my last night in town with great expectations. the reviews on here have been nothing but good. the service was very friendly. the menu looked promising. the presentation was beautiful. the food: not so much.

i grew up on latin food, and i have to say that i was very dissappointed. the fried yucca appetizer was decent. the chicharrones looked like they came out of one of those bags at the gas station marked "pork rinds," but i was willing to let that slide.

we waited a long time for our entrees, but that was entirely our fault. i had ropa vieja. my grandmother cooks it for me for special occasions since it takes so long to make. i have never found any better than abuela's, but it is fun to try. la macarena's was nothing short of awful!

my mother had the sea bass special which sounded incredible when we were told about it. i tried it and it was also awful. it came with two gulf shrimp which were beautifully displayed on top of the fish. both were overcooked and had a really indescribably bad taste.

the rice was cooked to the consistency of mush and very bland. the "fried sweet plantains," or platanos maduros were no where near ripe enough to be called such. they would have made great tostones.

finally, on a positive note, one of my brothers had the papusas. he loved them and even ordered another plate to go. but, he's a starving college student and will eat anything. i didn't try them.

great food!!!

consistency would make this place better. the first time i went to la macarena, the food was pretty outstanding. the sweet corn tamale was definitely my favorite. it was so moist and so sweet. the service was really good and the only downside was my watery juice drink. the second time i went things were quite different. even though we were one of two tables in this tiny restaurant, the waiter seemed to take his time in getting everything. we ordered the sweet corn tamale as an appetizer and when we got it it was noticeably smaller than the last time we ordered it. it was dry and crumbly and tasted more like wet cornmeal than a tamale. i ordered the vegetarian tortas as my entree. being a vegan i requested them to not put any cheese or dairy products on it. when i got it it was covered in a creamy looking sauce (actually kind of unappetizing). i asked the waiter what it was and he nearly rolled his eyes at me and told me "its just dressing". seriously? so i just scraped it off as best i could seeing as i wouldn't be able to get a straight answer out of him wether or not there was cream in the "dressing." overall it was okay but i would definitely hesitate before going back.

comida autentica latina. this comment is directly to "jorge". i am from ecuador... you probably don't know where that is... well is a small country between peru and colombia. so i have been eating real latin food for about 23 years(my age). i looked at your comment and i had to write something back, since i think what you said is something an ignorant person would say. i have experience with latin food so if somebody is able to critique this food it is me not you. you are probably used to eat what people in the u.s think is "latin"food but that kind of food has actually been adjusted for american people to like it. if you know about ropa vieja... well it's a native american plate ... so different countries would seasoned and cook it in different ways.. it's just like the ceviche.. there is peruvian, ecuadorian, guatemalan... and so on. your "abuela" is definitely not from salvador that is why you probably didn't like macarena's ropa vieja... because you were expecting something different. i hope you have learned something new jorge.. you will definitely wont be able to travel to different hispanic countries because for what i see you are just too closed minded... and if you do get to travel ..bring your abuela so she can cook "ropa vieja" for you. well i think that's enough for you jorge... i hope i educated you enough so you could back up your ideas next time.. there is a lot of tex-mex food places for you in town... macarena is too gourmet for you. well everyone that reads this comment, i encourage you to try the carne asada... it's just amaizing! i dunno where "manuel"(the owner) gets this meat... i guess every person has it's secrets... it's filet mignon meat.!!!!!!.. it will melt in your mouth.. also the guacamole tostadas with shrimp as an appetizer... you would go crazy! its just amazing!! i missed real latin food so much.. and i found a real latin cuisine place just in the corner of my house. and you cant leave this place without trying the "tres leches" or "flan" desserts. and if you have eaten too much i encourage you to take these desserts to go... you just cant leave macarena without getting them!!! by the way... last words....macarena's chef was announced the best latin chef in town... just go and try macarena's food... it will become one of those places with exotic food that you have to visit at least one time a month... read jpaz33 and brad tidwell comments... these people have visited central american countries... they know about real latin food... not like jorge... saludos desde sudamerica!

great food, horrible service. be prepared to wait forever, and make sure you repeat your order several times!

to bchimera. i think what you are doing is wrong. i believe its you the owner of this joint. why? because all these fictious 1 reviewers are you. you mean to tell me all these people have time to log onto urbanspoon and review only your place. come on!! everyone who reads these reviews want to know if its worth checking out. i fell for it and regret it. don't trash a real person's review like jorge. he is from out of town. he is a guest to this town. im not only disgusted by your trashing of his review but now of who you really are. like jorge i was excited to try your authentic fare. but all your 1 reviews are not authentic just like the food you offer there. i bet you buy your authentic pupusas from el rey distributor like all this hispanic places in town. please quit advertising your fantastic dishes in the reviews. be humble manuel, bchimera, yellowflower, rusky, weaseldew, or whatever name you decide to review with next time.


-----01 apr, 2009-----

authentic??. after reading the marvelous reviews i decided to check this place out. i thought the food was going to be authentic but i was unimpressed. service and presentation good. food lacked strong flavor especially chicken in salad. serving cabbage slaw and romaine salad on same plate not good choice. yellow rice too concentrated and black beans bold and tasted like some beans got burned on bottom of pot. i don't find fruit drinks to be authentic but watered down. i think its been rated high because like stated in other reviews there is no other place in area with hispanic fare.

amazing! went to honduras over spring break, eating here was like being back. absolutely fantastic food and friendly server. wonderful meal!

don't pay any attention to any negative reviews because this place is one of those new orleans gems totally family owned and perfectly established. the papusa platters are amazing! it's definitely latin american cuisne, not too spicy but very flavorful. the papusa platter comes with 3 pockets of deliciousness, black beans, a small salad (thing), fried plantains, and some sour cream, etc. i recommend this place!