2008 Woodie Awards
Vote Absentee
Latin cafe on Central
Owner, locals give their take on food & cafe, between Halsey & Broad
Kristy Barry
Issue date: 12/4/07 Section: News
- Page 1 of 2 next >
A new Cuban restaurant has opened on Central Avenue called Mi Gente or "my peeps" as owner Manny Beovides called it with a laugh.
The restaurant, located at 7 Central Avenue, between Halsey Street and Broad Street in the downtown district brings Spanish flair to an area lacking such cuisines.
Mi Gente serves typical Latin cuisines, including empanadas, pastelon, and yuca maduros as well as chicken and beef stews.
Beovides has not distributed menus on the street but has relied on word of mouth, which have proved to be successful.
"It's a remarkable addition to the downtown culinary pallet," said Victor Davson, director of the Aljeira Gallery, around the corner from Mi Gente. "It's fabulous, great, typical of Manny's taste and attention to detail."
Davson said he loves the beef empanadas, the pernil, and the black beans and rice.
Joseph Aratow, a real estate broker in Newark, sells buildings downtown and said the area needed a good Latin restaurant.
"It's an excellent place," Aratow said. "I'd like to see more places open like this." He recommends the pulled pork with yellow rice and black beans.
Rob Lynch, the owner of KilKenny's, a bar adjacent to Mi Gente, echoed similar sentiments about the area.
"It gives people different choices. Spanish restaurants aren't prevalent downtown," Lynch said. "[Mi Gente] is good for the area and anything that brings more people to the area is good for me."
Beovides, 46, said his restaurant has attracted a lot of college students and business people in the area. The college students are smart, he said, because they come in to order in Spanish.
"They're Americans who know Spanish. They let you know, 'I know what [the food] is.' They do their homework."
He says all food in Mi Gente is completely fresh. "We don't freeze anything and our customers know that."
Beovides, who works alongside his sister Martha, said he's happy with the restaurant's success so far and is positive in thinking the city of Newark will revitalize itself.
The restaurant, located at 7 Central Avenue, between Halsey Street and Broad Street in the downtown district brings Spanish flair to an area lacking such cuisines.
Mi Gente serves typical Latin cuisines, including empanadas, pastelon, and yuca maduros as well as chicken and beef stews.
Beovides has not distributed menus on the street but has relied on word of mouth, which have proved to be successful.
"It's a remarkable addition to the downtown culinary pallet," said Victor Davson, director of the Aljeira Gallery, around the corner from Mi Gente. "It's fabulous, great, typical of Manny's taste and attention to detail."
Davson said he loves the beef empanadas, the pernil, and the black beans and rice.
Joseph Aratow, a real estate broker in Newark, sells buildings downtown and said the area needed a good Latin restaurant.
"It's an excellent place," Aratow said. "I'd like to see more places open like this." He recommends the pulled pork with yellow rice and black beans.
Rob Lynch, the owner of KilKenny's, a bar adjacent to Mi Gente, echoed similar sentiments about the area.
"It gives people different choices. Spanish restaurants aren't prevalent downtown," Lynch said. "[Mi Gente] is good for the area and anything that brings more people to the area is good for me."
Beovides, 46, said his restaurant has attracted a lot of college students and business people in the area. The college students are smart, he said, because they come in to order in Spanish.
"They're Americans who know Spanish. They let you know, 'I know what [the food] is.' They do their homework."
He says all food in Mi Gente is completely fresh. "We don't freeze anything and our customers know that."
Beovides, who works alongside his sister Martha, said he's happy with the restaurant's success so far and is positive in thinking the city of Newark will revitalize itself.
Be the first to comment on this story