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Does not!

-ramon

At least back in September the ropa vieja at El Cubanito contained olives. It's not the greatest picture but I think you can make out a slice of green olive clinging to the center of the sandwich. I didn't notice any capers.



Here's yet another picture of the steak sandwich, my favorite too at El Cubanito.

Does anyone know the hours they're open? I was thinking of having 2nd Lunch (after the GNR lunch at Healthy Food) or an early dinner.

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Didn't someone say they close at 4pm?

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The info from back on page 1 of this thread....

So I finally went to El Cubanito and as I walked in shortly before 12, I was preceded by two well-coiffed ladies whose attire suggested what was soon confirmed, that they were residents of the north suburbs. I had to wonder a little if they knew what kind of place they were going to, a hole in the wall Cuban place on Pulaski didn't look like where you'd typically find ladies like themselves but interestingly, before I could say anything to the owners of El Cubanito, they out-LTHed me.

They struck up a conversation with the owners, asking about the food and about the reputed crowds, in the course of it expressing an obvious delight in finding little ethnic spots like El Cubanito. So I had to ask-- where did they hear about it? One of them reached into her pocketbook and pulled out... Dish, from a few weeks ago.

We talked a bit about different places they'd been-- Irazu, Hot Doug's, Wholly Frijoles-- and they introduced themselves, Nancy and Molly; then I asked them if they'd ever heard of LTHForum. No, but they seemed genuinely interested when I told them not only about the board and the get-togethers, but worked in a plug for La Casa de Isaac, which they were excited to hear about being close to their home turf.

A few moments later the food came and we sat down to eat as they continued to ask questions and express their appreciation. A moment later their interest was rewarded in classic LTH style when the owner offered them a freshly-made Pan con Timba-- grilled cheese with guava, which is rich and wonderfully savory-sweet. They each had a bite or two and then Nancy offered me the chance to tear off a piece of it and try it myself.

I soon finished up and said goodbye, but clearly they're born LTHers and I hope to see them again here-- or somewhere else that pops up on LTHForum and from there to Dish, or vice versa.

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I mean t to mention that I finally made it to la Cubanita. A very nice place run by very nice people. Thanks, Steve.

The cafe Cubano and cafe con leche are particularly good, with an impossible amount of sugar worked into the coffee. It will sound odd, but I give the edge to Marianao on the Cuban coffee ("expreso") and to Cubanita on the cafe con leche.

I dug the bread, though it remains some distance from either accepted Cuban form (the shorter Miami style or the Tampa style). It is more like the long D'Amato loaf, which I have always thought is among Chicago's best substitutes. Better for sure than the Gonella bread used at the other Cuban cafeterias in town. Based on the bread, but also the apparent use of real butter as opposed to margarine, I also give the edge to El Cubanito on pan con mantequilla (really, the only competition is Marianao, which is good too; La unica won't make it for some odd reason).

They were out of lechon, and thus out of Cubans by 3 pm on Saturday. So, we tried the ropa vieja and the bistek. I thought both were quite good, and I liked the attention to detail on the steak, including good romaine, real cheese, and nice mojo criollo flavor.

From discussions with the owner, who said he is from Matanzas, observation, and overhearing the patrons' discussions, it does not apper that most or many of the diners were Cuban. Unsurprising since most of the few thousand Chicagoland Cuban-Americans are spread across suburbs. In fact, a good mix of Mexican, Central American and Puerto Rican patrons passed through, and the owner had to explain the menu a bunch. It seems that, similar to Marianao, the local Latino community has caught on to El Cubanito as a place to try something delicious and different, where one can order in Spanish. There were a couple of obviously Cuban old-timers there, to be sure.

Great little place. Really, between Cubanito, Marianao, and La Unica, we are doing pretty well in this area.

PS, given the lack of lechon and other stuff, the owner closed shop more than an hour early. Call ahead.

We made our inaugural visit to El Cubanito today and thought it was very good. It was around 1 pm and the place was fairly empty. Still, it's so small that every time someone walked in, it had an impact on things inside the space. It was a short wait of maybe 5-10 minutes before our order was ready . . .


As has been discussed on this thread, the menu is fairly straightforward.



It was quiet when we walked in but based on what was happening on the griddle, it was the calm before the storm.



The El Cubanito equivalent of the vanilla cone. This is the ham and cheese sandwich, which a couple of the kids ordered.


The Cuban sandwich was tasty but, as others have posted above, a bit dry. In my limited experience, Cuban sandwiches are usually drier than I want them to be. This could have used some additional pickles, methinks.


When I asked if the Ropa Vieja was available today, the response almost seemed to be one of surprise over the question itself. I was glad I got to try it, as it was my favorite of the 3 sandwiches I tasted. I didn't notice any olives, but there was a slightly fishy back note, which could have (possibly?) been attributed to worcestershire sauce.

I'm so glad to know about this place. As the pictures I posted reveal, the sandwiches could have been a bit meltier but they were still very tasty and service was friendly and efficient. Overall, I view El Cubanito as being about on the same level as La Unica and slightly less wonderful than Cafe Marianao but still very much worthy of a stop or even a dedicated trip, depending on one's mood.

=R=

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Made it down here for lunch a few days ago. Had the steak-san, which was
a good solid sandwich IMHO, and the pan-con-timba which was very good
too. And then was unfortunately too stuffed to try anything else (also, had taken
it to go and wasnt at the location anymore .

Iam far from being a Cuban-sandwich expert, so here's my question... Ive tried
the pressed Cubanos before a couple times from Unica etc. They were ok, but
I wasnt a huge fan, I thought they were slightly dryish as some have said, and
the pressed-bread didnt really blow me away. Which is why I went with the steak-san
at Cubanito (and, and I said, I liked it). However... the pan-con-timba *had*
pressed bread (presumbaly) with cheese (and guava), and it was *great*! The
outer-layer-bread-plus-cheese was terrific, much much better than any Ive
had before (and I thought at the time that it would be great with meat too).
Soo... after all that, my question ... is the Cubano at Cubanita pretty much
the same as the pan-con-timba, bread-n-cheese-wise, with only meat replacing
the guava? Or is the pan-con-timba a whole different animal, outer-layer-wise, to
the Cubano here? If *this* is indeed the outer-layer for the Cubano, then I must
hurry back and try the Cubano here pronto, cos it was nothing at all like the
outer-layer of any actual Cubano Ive had before in Chicago, and I think it
would make for a pretty brilliant sandwich even given my tastes

Even otherwise, however, the steak-san was a good sandwich, IMHO - just
not a revelatory one to me (the bar for "revelatory" being set very high, at
the Salamera-level). But if you could put that same steak-n-cheese-n-seasonings
(or maybe even lechon) in the pan-con-timba filling... now *that* might indeed be
revelatory, IMHO. (It would also, of course, probably be completely inauthentic?

c8w

Yes, but of course there's far more meat than the small piece of guava, but the bread is the same and toasted in the same manner.

_________________
Steve Z.
Photographer/Pseudojournalist

"The only time to eat diet food is while you’re waiting for the steak to cook." - Julia Child

I stopped in for breakfast at El Cubanito today and Laritza showed ma a copy of a nice articleabout them and Cuban food that appeared in the Sun-Times on 11/14. LTH Forum even got a small shout out.

_________________
Steve Z.
Photographer/Pseudojournalist

"The only time to eat diet food is while you’re waiting for the steak to cook." - Julia Child

Meanwhile MJN had a piece knocking Cubanito at New City and his site. As I comment at the latter, this is a healthy thing...

http://www.hungrymag.com/2007/11/26/the ... o-clothes/

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While I've never been to this restaurant, what struck me about this review is that, toward the end, the reviewer had good experiences with the sandwiches, so much so that he thought about giving the sub-par sandwiches another try, thinking that they might have been mishaps. At that point, I thought, then why didn't he (go back and try the sandwiches)? Instead of writing about it?

People are criticized on LTH all the time about writing first, and thinking later (as opposed to the "professional" reviewer who goes to a restaurant 2-3 times prior to publication). In fact, I'll venture to guess that on LTH, the majority of the time, the opposite happens. People have bad or so-so experiences and don't write about them.

Yet, I guess this review shows that maybe even in paper publications, the reviewer still opines even though doubts may harbor in his or her mind about the basis for the words that are written.*


*Having said that, I understand that MJN is a contributor here and I don't mean to assault him, in fact, I generally enjoy his writing, but this particular review seemed a little lacking.

The review was quite positive, overall. While I have not had a Cuban at Cubanito yet (they were out the two times I tried), I can certainly see Michael's points and they seem reasonable to me.

I'm on record saying that the ropa vieja sandwich here, and the ropa vieja and picadillo sandwiches generally, are usually better than Cubans at any given Cuban place. So too the pan con lechon, which ususally includes lots of mojo and tarnslucent onions. These fillings come together on dry Cuban bread better than the ingredients of a Cuban sandwich. But, like a beef, they are made and eaten a la minute.

In contrast, the Cuban sandwich was designed for cigar rollers to purchase in the morning and eat at lunch. Recognize also, that Cubans today should be eaten with a big cup of cafe con leche and/or a bowl of garbazos, fabada, or caldo Gallego on the side. Unfortunately, among the Cuban cafeterias of Chicago, only La Unica has the soups (and they are swell). Last, and most importantly, very few Cuban sandwich shops anywhere can pull off a truly great Cuban. Like the Italian beef, when they are good they are great. But they most often are not. And when they are bad, they are really bad.

The photo of MJN's Cuban suports a continuing concern on my part about the consistency of Cubanito's Cubans and continued bewilderment about the decision to insulate the cheese. Melted cheese, butter on the bread, and a squirt of mojo on the pork are all easy and common methods of reducing the chokingly-dry profile of bad Cuban sandwiches.

If nothing else, Cubanito is a charming place, run by a fantastic couple, serving a hell of a ropa vieja sandwich and great cafe. That's a lot.

Try the medianoche at Cuatro (on the brunch menu, not sure about the regular menu), and kiss dry Cubans goodbye. Or something.

Cuatro
2030 S Wabash
Chicago IL 60616
312-842-8856

True in general, as medianoches are made with relatively moist, sweet egg bread (pan amarillo or pan dulce), not Cuban bread.

Aha! But Cuatro's is a lobo vestido en cordero, as it is a medianoche in name only; a cuban sandwich on crusty cuban bread with a generous aioli slather is what you receive.

I appreciate the feedback. Also, you shouldn't be concerned about "assualting" me...that's the great thing about LTH, everyone has a voice. I know it improves my work to hear what people have to say. So keep it coming.

That being said, there was no doubt about what I wrote at all. It would be irresponsible for me to write those words, especially when you consider peoples livelihoods are at stake in such a business. I actually ate there twice before I wrote the review, but I can see how the structure of the sentence would suggest one visit, so that's probably bad on my part. Both times the cuban was disappointing.

That being said, one of my concerns about food journalism is that it's often full of untempered snark and fury. It's as if many journalists have some kind of personal agenda or jealousy and believe all chefs and proprietors are monsters out to steal their money in exchange for poor product.

That last paragraph for me was about recognizing that Laritza and Alberto are working hard and are out to satisfy their customers, and they are turning out some good products along the way. Just not the cuban. While I sometimes see what I do as providing a way for people to parse their hard earned dollars on good product, I figure at $4 bucks a sandwich, you shouldn't take mine as the last word. Make no mistake though, If I thought they were taking advantage of people and had no skill, I'd be clear about that.

_________________
MJN "AKA" Michael Nagrant
www.hungrymag.com - All Things Tasty

After a second visit (and first time having a sandwich immediately from the grill / press), I'm siding with MJN on the Cuban sandwich itself. The bread and pork are excellent, but the rind-on ham, processed Swiss cheese, and plain yellow mustard add unpleasant textures and flavor notes, and the overall sandwich is too dry to really get me excited the way examples I've had in Spain or Miami, or even Cuatro's medianoche / Cuban hybrid do.

Now the steak sandwich - that's a cow of a different color. Ordered without lettuce (sin lechuga), that has to be one of my favorite sandwiches in the city, and the portion is prodigious. The griddled edges and delicious flavorings of the steak combined with the potato strings, sauce, melty cheese, and even a winter tomato meld perfectly. I'll be back many times for this sandwich, I'm sure.

One more data point on the ropa vieja: no olives in my friend's sandwich today, but it was tasty.

Personally I thought the Cubano was fine and it wasn't even particularly dry -- maybe just enough mustard? I thought it was certainly better than the Cubano at the Marianao place that everyone raves about. And I'm with whoever said that their Steak sandwich "con todo" is one of the best sandwiches in the city.

If you've been to El Cubanito and you think the sandwich doesn't have enough pickles, mustard or whatever, order it the way you order a hot dog. Tell 'em what you want. My standard order there is "A Cuban with extra pickles, cooked nice and crispy". I still think El Cubanito has the best Cuban sandwich in town despite the recent openings of several competitors.

_________________
Steve Z.
Photographer/Pseudojournalist

"The only time to eat diet food is while you’re waiting for the steak to cook." - Julia Child

Couldn't agree more.

Even though I am of the stevez school, which finds the cuban sandwich at El Cubanito, "the best in the city," it's the Pan con Bistek that keeps me going back, frequently, to El Cubanito. I'm guessing I'm at a 3:1 ordering ratio of Pan con Bistek to Cuban Sandwich. My favorite is to go with someone that also wants to eat both and we can order both a Cuban and Steak sandwich, and split them half and half. I do order it "with everything," if I'm going to eat it right away in the parking lot, in my car. Otherwise, "no lettuce" is not a bad idea.

I just have my fingers crossed that they will bring back the fritas someday. I never got a chance to try them before they took them off the menu. That's what I get for slacking on my LTH reading.

Frita tip: Cafe Laguardia West (North and Oak Park Ave.):

http://www.cafelaguardia.com/west/

just brought back the frita, and it's very, very good. They do a respectable Cuban sandwich (pork is even better than Cubanito, bread and pickles are worse) as well, but I find myself just going with the roast pork sandwich which has an extra mound of sliced pork, and asking for a side of their very hot homemade salsa.

I tend to agree that the steak sandwich is where this place excels.

On my last visit (my second time there) I found the cubano to not be nearly as good as it was my first visit, and a definite notch below La Unica. While I really like the pork they use, something about the press or the quality of the bread was just off.

That being said, the steak sandwich I got was exceptional and is one of the better sandwiches in the city.

I've just noticed this thread, more specifically the menu and price board pics.....I went to El Cubanito today for lunch and the price of their Steak has skyrocketed to $5.50...i say it like it's a horrible thing, and while everything under the sun seems to have increased due to inflaction, that's a pretty big "percentage"...but, to be fair, it was downright cheap a few months ago, i'd now call it a "fair/reasonable price". El Cubanito's steak sammy was one of the best sandwiches i've ever had the pleasure of eating.

and i agree w. a certain review above, while the cuban is good, it's a little dry for my taste, add some extra pickles and mustard to balance it out as they skimp on those two items.

I love the steak sandwich at this place but in 5 visits I haven't been able to get a Ropa Vieja sandwich. They never have it when I come in. I need to try one of these!

my standard take out veggie burrito con black beans (@ el cid #2) increased a WHOPPING 50% recently, and even more dubious, they still have not yet printed new take out menus. i refuse to order again until i have menus in hand. great times.....

miss ellen

For me they alternate between "Americano' and "Gordito."



I would estimate I've been here about 15 times and not once did they have any ropa. I'm starting to wonder if they actually do make the stuff or what.

LTHForum,

No ropa vieja on hand, but the tiny shop was doing a brisk business in cubanos and steak sandwiches. I had a generously proportioned steak sandwich, crisp bread, decent tomato, crunchy shoestrings and shredded lettuce, a very good sandwich. Though today's was slightly marred by over seasoning, as if someone got distracted as they were shaking on the adobo.

El Cubanito Steak Sandwich (6.5.08)


Enjoy,
Gary

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Low & Slow

I was surprised to see this one fall off for five months given how good my early experiences were there. Back in the neighborhood today (The Brown Sack was unexpectedly closed), I had a characteristically wonderful Cuban Steak sandwich, and then, quite unexpectedly, a Cubano that knocked my socks off. Forget dry - this was way moist, very savory, lots of pickles and mustard, sharp cheese, and more crisp-edged and well-seasoned roast pork than I remembered. The only thing holding it back was the insipid cooked ham (but this plagues a lot of places). Other notes:

- new priceboard with prices up, $4.50-6 per sandwich
- selling frozen ropa vieja for $5 / lb including tax
- frito/frita has not returned (and they don't plan to bring it back; not enough griddle space), but ropa vieja is ever-present now
- taking credit cards

The place was hopping and the owners cool and friendly as ever.

For flavor delivered per square foot of working space, this might be the greatest neighborhood restaurant (lower case) out there.