There is a new Cuban restaurant in Key West at the corner of Frances and Grinnell, and it seems to be quite popular.
I wondered if there was room for on e more Cuban eatery in town but Chuck asked me to meet him there for lunch one day. His Cuban Mix sandwich was excellent and I enjoyed my piccadillo (Cuban ground beef) and I thought no more of it. Then I got an e-mail from Sandra in Roanoke Virginia. It seems the guy who owns the place, Juan, used to operate Roanoke's Cuban eatery in a popular shopping venue and when they closed for renovations they hatched a plan to move south to be closer to the homeland. The plan is to open Havana 2 in...Havana one day. I believe that is Juan doing what he likes. His artwork hangs on the walls of the restaurant giving it unique and cheerful decor.
They offer changing fish specials every day but I ordered off the daily menu, a tried and true Cuban dish of roast pork. It was quite excellent, and tasted to me as would pork out of a Cuban barbecue box, a traditional metal lined box covered in coals frequently used at family celebrations in Key West.
A Cuban friend of mine is not fond of El Siboney for some reason calling it the Dominican place, which I find rather odd but there's no arguing with people's taste. I had a good lunch mid afternoon, owing to a messed up schedule and look forward to taking my wife back for her opinion. 
$12 plus tip and all was well with the sunny world outside on Truman. I hope they make a go of it in a location that seems to change hands all too frequently.
I wondered if there was room for on e more Cuban eatery in town but Chuck asked me to meet him there for lunch one day. His Cuban Mix sandwich was excellent and I enjoyed my piccadillo (Cuban ground beef) and I thought no more of it. Then I got an e-mail from Sandra in Roanoke Virginia. It seems the guy who owns the place, Juan, used to operate Roanoke's Cuban eatery in a popular shopping venue and when they closed for renovations they hatched a plan to move south to be closer to the homeland. The plan is to open Havana 2 in...Havana one day. I believe that is Juan doing what he likes. His artwork hangs on the walls of the restaurant giving it unique and cheerful decor.They offer changing fish specials every day but I ordered off the daily menu, a tried and true Cuban dish of roast pork. It was quite excellent, and tasted to me as would pork out of a Cuban barbecue box, a traditional metal lined box covered in coals frequently used at family celebrations in Key West.A Cuban friend of mine is not fond of El Siboney for some reason calling it the Dominican place, which I find rather odd but there's no arguing with people's taste. I had a good lunch mid afternoon, owing to a messed up schedule and look forward to taking my wife back for her opinion. 
$12 plus tip and all was well with the sunny world outside on Truman. I hope they make a go of it in a location that seems to change hands all too frequently.
5 comments:
IT was good - and very reasonable, too. They are busy all the time, but have too few seats to really make money. They will have to relocate to prosper - but this is a good start. I am missing Cuban food...
Chuck on Fleming.
I am happy to hear the food was tasty and affordable.I hope they are still there while I return to Key West in August.
If they survive the summer they will be well positioned to do better in the winter. But I think Chuck is right, they will need to move.
Like your friend, I am also not a fan of El Sibboney. I've eaten at Havana 1 three times now...piccadillo twice and a snapper special once. I cannot love this place more and reviewed it in my own blog. I see they now have booths, something city/county-related with occupancy numbers. Anyway, I wish the best for them as well.
I'm no restaurant reviewer so I shall defer to your expertise but I still like el siboney. A Cuban friend of mine calls them dismissively " the Dominicans " but there we are.
In any event I have added your blog to my list of key west sites so we shall forge ahead and perhaps agree from time to time about places to eat!
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