Samantha Impaglia 
A popular Jersey City eatery for Cuban fare has expanded its presence in Chilltown. The team behind Rumba’s Cafe — who also run Rumba Cubana and Chango Kitchen — recently opened up another restaurant in Jersey City’s Journal Square neighborhood at 564 Newark Avenue. This new venture is a breakfast, lunch, and dinner spot serving up a variety of Cuban fare, similar to the other restaurants. Read on for what we know about Café con Rumba in Jersey City, New Jersey.
The New Restaurant
Rumors were swirling back at the beginning of March about Rumba’s Cafe opening up a new location in Jersey City’s Journal Square. When we first reported on it, users in the Jersey City Reddit had recently noticed signage for a new restaurant at the former McDonald’s space at 564 Newark Avenue — and speculated that it could be from the same team behind Rumba’s Cafe and Rumba Cubana.
Read More: West Bistro: Jersey City’s Newest Cuban Restaurant
On March 27th, Jersey Digs reported that the new restaurant is in fact from the same team as the two Cuban restaurants.
It was unconfirmed when we first reported on the news in early April if the new venture would be another location of Rumba’s Cafe or Rumba Cubana, or an entirely different concept — but according to signage, we knew that locals could expect breakfast, lunch, and dinner, as well as Cuban coffee and other Cuban fare.
The Rumba’s Cafe, Rumba Cubana, and Chango Kitchen team shared with The Hoboken Girl that the new restaurant is called Café con Rumba, which is now open at 564 Newark Avenue seven days a week from 7AM-9PM. Café con Rumba is serving up breakfast, lunch, and dinner in a “vibrant and welcoming atmosphere,” with items like sandwiches, salads, tacos, omelets, protein shakes, and more on the menu. There are also daily specials at the restaurant, including a breakfast special featuring a latte and toast, and other specials that include a protein with rice, beans, or salad.
About Rumba’s Cafe, Rumba Cubana, + Chango Kitchen
Rumba’s Cafe has been a staple for authentic Cuban fare in Jersey City Heights since it first opened at 513 Central Avenue back in 2004. The local favorite is open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner from 6AM-9PM seven days a week, serving up menu items like Cuban breakfast platters, Cuban sandwiches, Spanish sausage sandwiches, empanadas, croquettes, skirt steak, and much more.
In 2018, the Rumba’s Cafe team expanded its presence and opened up a Rumba Cubana location in Jersey City’s Hamilton Park neighborhood at 235 Pavonia Avenue. Here, locals can also indulge in authentic Cuban fare. The other Rumba Cubana restaurants are in Guttenberg, North Bergen, Rochelle Park, and Clifton.
The team then expanded to the Mile Square and took over the former Zafra Kitchen to open Chango Kitchen at 301 Willow Avenue in 2019 — which is another spot serving up savory Latin American food.
See More: All About Cubita Café in Nutley
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