Rubamba

The orange pulled pork arepa is amazing! The food is beautiful and delicious.

omg just go and get anything you want it was fantastic

This is a tiny hole-​in-​the-​wall on High Street, not far from High/​Crown. The food is OUTRAGEOUSLY good, and inexpensive. We went yesterday with our 6-​year old daughter. The chips and salsa tasted home made, and were a big step up from the out-​of-​the-​bag variety served at most restaurants. Our daughter had a cheese quesadilla and we split the pulled pork spring rolls and the orange pulled pork arepa. I had told my fiancé that the food truck was incredibly good, but he told me repeatedly that he was surprised at just HOW wonderful the food tasted.

My husband teases me that I have too many «favorites» but this is really my favorite restaurant in all of New Haven. More than any of the fancy joints, even more than Bar. The carne arepa is one of the only restaurant dishes I occasionally find myself craving — it’s that good. For sides, the Mexican corn is awesome, and the salsa they serve with the free chips is good too. None of the apps have really stood out for me, not even the ceviche, so would pass on those.
Downside is that they raised their prices last year as they expanded the restaurant so now it’s a little pricey. The portions are so big though that we could easily share an arepa between the two of us, rather than taking home leftovers every time. Guess we just feel bad taking up a table and ordering one entrée. I’m told you can get the same delicious arepa at lunchtime at the carts by the Yale hockey rink for just $ 6 though for those who work in the area!

Excellent yet again. The apps and dinner was outstanding! Service and attention to detail was spot on again. The restaurant is always clean and everyone is very friendly. Definitely enjoy coming here.

The food here is awesome! My husband I were fortunate to stumble upon this great spot for dinner as we were walking one evening. The customer service was also excellent. We will definitely be returning soon.

These arepas are amazing. Whenever friends come to town, I take them to the exact same places: The Pantry for breakfast, a tour around Yale, Da Legna for lunch, East Rock park, and top it all off with Rubamba for dinner. I like to think that they keep coming back to New Haven for me, but let’s be real; they come for the arepas.
First, this place’s salsa and chips are the real deal (except when the chips were stale, which doesn’t happen too frequently). Eat your fill of chips, but leave some room because you need to fully enjoy the glory that is the arepa. I personally like the steak arepa most, but the other meats are tasty as well. Each arepa contains rice, guac, pico, corn, your meat of choice, the arepa itself (best part), hot sauce, sour cream, and some plantains on the side. It is the perfect bundle of goodness.
Tips:
The restaurant frequently posts Groupon and Livingsocial deals, so be on the lookout for those when you go.
Honestly, I don’t think the $ 16 price tag is justified. The food truck Ay Arepa (which I believe is owned by Rubamba) sells arepas for $ 6, so just head over there if you don’t have a Groupon. It pretty much tastes the same.

Local gem. This place is super known for its arepas, but everything else they offer is great as well! I am a huge fan of everything tilapia on the menu. The fish is just so tender and well seasoned that is just melts in your mouth. They also have a truck floating around New Haven which is very popular during lunch time, especially on the weekends. Although there is limited space in the restaurant itself, the perks of dining in include their excellent chips and salsa as well as generally a much larger selection.
You can rent the truck out for an event (which is cool) or reserve the larger back room if you have a bigger party. Service is friendly but can definitely be pretty slow when it gets busy. Portions are very big and it’s super cheap!

Nice presentation, but that was the best of it. Good was extremely salty. Everything was covered to the point that was all you could taste. Would not go back.

Not a huge fan of this place. The service was great but sadly I can’t say the same about the food. Everything we ordered was very greasy and somewhat bland.

This place is great. Well priced food with large portions that are definitely satisfying. The only thing I’ve gotten from here are the arepas, and they are perfection. I love the cornmeal party, and every meat I’ve tried works great a huge fan of plantains, so it’s great to see it on every plate.
The ambience is quite intimate, not the fanciest place but certainly good enough for a dinner with friends and family. The wait staff is also super friendly.
I’d definitely give this place a shot. It’s not your usual burger, pizza, or fast food burrito. It’s different, which is the best part about it.

Had to wait 45 minutes for my food because they forgot about me. Food came out cold and in a to go box. The servers told me 5 times «1 more minute».
The actual food was ok but my experience was sullied because of the terrible service

I lived right above this place for two years while I was a grad student and I miss it every day.
I ate here about once a week and have tried pretty much everything on the menu. The corn, the arepas, the quesadillas and the tortas are the stand outs. Especially the torta. I’ve tried to order tortas at other establishments and they pale in comparison to the tortas at Rubamba. Highly recommend.
The family that owns this restaurant is so warm, lovely, and wonderful. You definitely feel that love and family vibe in the service and in the food. If you are in New Haven DO NOT SKIP THIS PLACE.

To be honest, this is one of the best places to eat in New Haven. Many of their classics are great, and everything is always perfectly seasoned: fish tacos and pork arepas particularly come to mind as particularly well seasoned and flavorful. Many places would be happy to give you pork that tastes more like something done in the slow cooker with no seasoning and some salt added after: well, not here. Basically, everything is a classic Latin American dish, but done very well and attentively. The service is usually also great and attentive.

Affordable and tasty food. There are not many tables so I suggest you to avoid the busy hours.
The service was great and the food was pretty good. And huge portion so keep that in mind!

Even though some Unilocalers hate the term «hidden gem», it is really what I would describe Rubamba as to newcomers to New Haven. It is tucked away on High Street, just past the drunken ruckus of Crown Street and is a small/​cozy and informal restaurant. When you walk in there’s a small counter and the kitchen is right in front of you. There are two separate dining rooms and I prefer the one to the left which is a bit more warm and decorated with a wall of hot sauces.
I suggested this place to my date because I had a Living Social deal that was about to expire. I kept telling him how good their food was, but he seemed hesitant, as he never had, nor even heard of an arepa. He later was blown away and wouldn’t stop talking about how amazing the arepas were. The waitresses working that night were super friendly and gave us two free Jamaica drinks (hibiscus infused cold teas which have a cranberry-​like taste minus the tartness). I planned on ordering a horchata (my fave) but was completely pleased with the jamaica, which I probably would have not have considered ordering on my own. They initially gave us guacamole with our tortilla chips upon arrival and said they ran out of salsa. I was fine with just the guac, but my date preferred to have salsa and was disappointed there was none available. A short while later, the kitchen mixed up some fresh salsa, so we were able enjoy it after all.
Even though their Ay! Arepa food cart (which I also frequent) offers an almost identical meal for a third of the price, the presentation and portion size at Rubamba makes up for it. I plan to come here on a regular basis.

Rubamba… Rubamba… I’ve fallen in love!
Their Colombian Arepas have swooned me with their flavor, I can’t even pick a favorite. Each traditional arepa comes with the tastiest protein (I’ve tried the pollo — adobo marinated grilled chicken, carne — chimichurri marinated beef, and chancho — orange Cuban style pulled pork), mozzarella and sweet corn cake, rice, plantains, fresh pico de gallo, guacamole, and sour cream. The meal is looks like a tower of goodness on the plate, with a tropical umbrella toothpick signaling large portion sizes. The restaurant is cozy and a great place to head with a friend, significant other, or as a group (they have more than enough space to accommodate large parties).
The service is exceptional. I’ve always had great servers who are attentive but not overbearing, and the cooks are charismatic and aim to please.
If you don’t have time to stay for a meal, they do offer their food to go, which you can order in advance, and pick up at your convenience.
Rubamba has easily become one of my favorite restaurants in New Haven, and I encourage everyone to try it! Let me know if you need a Rumamba buddy, because I’m always down for another great Latin gourmet meal!

I love their food. The Arepas are incredible and so different than what you can get elsewhere. I preferred the Chancho over the Carne. Both were good but the Chancho had more flavor and I found the Carne to be a bit tough. The chips and guac were very good. The only downside to this place is the space which is bit cramped and casual, and the fact that they don’t serve alcohol. That also leads to many of the complaints about the prices. I think the amount and quality of food is well worth the price BUT the fact that you’re not drinking a mojito and sitting in a more trendy environment makes you feel like you should be paying less. I think it’s time for them to kick it up a notch and make the environment more akin to Geronimo or Pacifico and get a liquor license. The food itself is far superior to the competitors. Regardless, I’ll be back.

Rubamba is one of my favorite places to eat in New Haven.
The traditional arepas are all so delicious. The veggie portabella includes such succulent, meaty mushrooms, and the lamb barbacoa (a special) is divine. The presentation is beautiful.
It amazes me that this place isn’t more crowded!
I tend to stay away from the seafood dishes since they are a little more expensive — and also because everything else has been so good.
Very nice people working here. This is also a great place for a quick bite or if you want to hang out and stay a while.
BYOB!

I’m so glad my family stopped by this area on our road trip. We got so hungry and of course I started Unilocaling for some good lunch options. We chose Rubamba and thank god we did because the food was like heaven. Big portions. Great service. Perfect amount of spice and/​or sauce. The complimentary chips and salsa was amazing as well. We asked for chips and salsa «re-​fills».
The fish taco I ordered was truly the best fish taco I ever had in my life. Perfectly grilled soft fish with fresh veggies. Authentic menu got us excited. The spiced rice was the best Latin American rice I ever had too. You have to try this place! Please go!