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Gunther Mar 14, 2007 10:03 AM

Cuban Sandwich?

Who has a good cuban sandwich in the area. There used to be a place in Naperville (Copa Cubana) that had a great one but they have since closed.

  1. j
    jayh Mar 21, 2007 11:41 AM

    There is a terrific little restaurant on Elston just north of Irving Park called Latin Sandwich Cafe.
    4009 N. Elston Ave.
    773-478-0175
    They have a variety of sandwiches, and I really liked the Cubano there. The Puerto Rican Jiberito sandwich was very good, too. Just make sure you are not in a hurry.

    One more place that may sound odd is the deli at Fox & Obel grocery/food mecca in River North. They do their Cubano on a press and use high-end ingredients.

    1. m
      MikeLM Mar 15, 2007 10:25 PM

      I HAVE been to Cuba, in the pre-Castrio mid-1950's. THE place in Havana for lunch was Sloppy Joe's bar/deli, and the sandwich was not the "Cuban" toasted sandwich but Joe's "Especial" which was many, many layers of ham, cold cuts, cheese, pickles, and onion on slices of the wonderful Cuban bread with mayo and mustard. That with a couple of bottles of Hatuey beer, and you were set for the rest of a wonderful, tropical afternoon.

      Havana was a great liberty port- you could raise a lot more hell, for less money, than anyplace I visited during my hitch in the Navy.

      1. m
        maurice Mar 15, 2007 07:52 PM

        I haven't been to Cuba, but the sandwiches at Cafe Bolero are similar to what you'd get at one of the better Cuban places in Miami.

        1. leek Mar 15, 2007 08:16 AM

          I have enjoyed Cuban sandwiches at Cafe LaGuardia and at Cafe Bolero. I have no idea if they are terribly authentic or not.

          Cafe Laguardia
          2111 W. Armitage Ave.
          773-862-5996

          Cafe Bolero
          2252 N. Western Ave.
          773-227-9000

          1. s
            selliot1958 Mar 14, 2007 03:41 PM

            I am no cuban sandwich expert, but I know what tastes good, and I have enjoyed a sandwich cubano many times at Habana Libre around 1350 W Chicago. Their appetizer sampler is delicious and cheap also, but not very healthy.

            1. h
              Helper Monkey Mar 14, 2007 10:20 AM

              La Unica has the best in the city
              1515 W Devon Ave
              (773) 274-7788

              Cafe Marianano comes in a somewhat distant second
              2246 N Milwaukee Ave
              (773) 278-4533

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