Restaurant Review: Cascal Restaurant-Mountain View, CA

Most people know that the dining scene in the Bay Area is fantastic. We had an opportunity to visit a restaurant in Mountain View, CA called Cascal. This restaurant focuses its energies on providing Latin food, with lots of tapas plates and a few big dishes, including Puerco Cubano and Paella. We started out the evening with the wild mushroom and manchego cheese with truffle oil empanadas. Perhaps not the most "authentic" in terms of its Latin qualities, the tapa was flawless. Served piping hot, the cheese oozed out upon cutting. Puff pastry surrounds the mushroom-cheese mixture and was nicely baked to perfection. The flavor combination was excellent, with some sweetness from the truffle oil and earthy flavors from the wild mushroom. So far, so good.


I ordered the Puerco Cubano en Mojo (Marinated slow-roasted pork shoulder with Cuban black beans, steamed rice and sweet potato-plantain mash). The pork was succulent and fell apart, wonderfully cooked. The overall flavor of the pork was juicy with a slightly salty, lime flavor. Combine this with the sweet potato-plantain mash, which by far stole the show at our table, made for an excellent combination. Then, the Cuban black beans and rice....ah, I love Cuban food and these black beans did not disappoint. With small chunks of bacon or ham, these beans were wonderfully spiced and complemented my meal perfectly.


My wife ordered the paella cascal (Saffron rice, chicken, pork, chorizo sausage, shrimp, mussels, clams, smoked paprika sofritto, peas, piquillo peppers). She indicated that the flavors were wonderfully segregated, meaning each seafood could be tasted independently of the other. This is a great sign to me, meaning the seafood must have been fresh to prevent overwhelming the dish. She loved the flavor and had ample left over for lunch the next day.


My mother-in-law ordered the Crab & Shrimp Tostaditos (Crisped corn tortillas topped with fresh crab, shrimp, chipotle aioli, guacamole and shredded romaine). She indicated that there was a spiciness that was perfectly displayed. My observation was that there was an elegantly displayed tapa, with crisp shredded romaine and certainly ample red onion. 


Overall, an excellent visit, but we weren't finished yet. We ordered the fried plantains for dessert, and they didn't disappoint. Plantains are in the banana family and as such, display some similarities to banana. Frying the plantains added a nice, salty crust that, when doused in dulce de leche. 


Excellent meal, excellent company, bon apetite.