"I took my wife for her birthday, we live local but haven’t eaten in this building since many years ago. the truth is we had a certain stigma about it owing to the previous restaurant, one we both disliked even before we met. Anyway, today was her birthday, we made reservations at Daphne’s in West Hampton but bailed because of the small menu and far drive. In trying to come up with a back up plan I remembered seeing the parking lot of La Buena Vida often packed, so I looked it up and saw almost 300 reviews averaging 4.5 stars. So I looked at the menu, I saw Paella, Tapas, I was sold. When I sent her the menu she was sold.We arrived and it was a beautiful early fall/late summer night so we decided to dine out on the deck, it was a great decision. Our server couldn’t have been more accommodating she offered to re seat us if the flies from the pond were to much, they weren‘t and we enjoyed the ambiance.After looking at the drink menu, we were again very impressed with service. My wife really wanted a la. buena vida margarita, but wanted it made blue. She graciously had the bar tender added the blue liquor to change the color. When time came to order we stared with the avocado crab bruschetta, it was a great decision and service was very quick. Next was the entree order, so we both ordered paella marinera. Again our server made a suggestion and informed us its a big serving, we could easily share it an order another tapa (which means she was also a mind reader). So after seeing how torn we were, she suggested an off menu item stuffed sweet plantain and upon hearing I didn’t wast meat graciously swapped out beef for shrimp.Our food was hand delivered and served onto our plates by the chef. This service was phenomenal, but even the amazing service did not compare to the perfection of our meal. The shrimp was perfectly cooked and season, the sweetness of the plantain pair beautifully with the savory of the shrimp. The paella was also perfectly cooked, the saffron rice was amazing, with the generous amount of shrimp, scallops, clams, and mussels. The meal was very satisfying.For dessert the fried cheesecake was highly recommended and “Wow” is all either of us had to say. It was easily the apex of the meal, sweet savory, with a crunch, and a hot/cold temperatures balancing to perfection. Dessert even came with a song and ”Happy Birthday” in caramel.We strongly recommend this neighborhood gem. There is nothing like it around, the chef is talented, the staff is amazing. if you haven’t tried it yet, what are you waiting for!?Dietary restrictions: I’m pescatarian, they were very accommodating."
