Mmmm. Maduros - sweet plaintains.
On a snowy Saturday, I met up with Nancy, a fellow BritCom addict (she's clued me in on several occasions on the latest must-see shows from the other side of the pond), for a lunch of pressed Cuban sandwiches and maduros, tostones, and yuca frita at a four-month-old Cuban joint a stone's throw from my old vet ('old' because I fired them after they misdiagnosed my dog's Lyme disease. Uh huh. Holistic cat doctor (??!!) refused to test my dog. And gave her anti-inflammatories, which did nothing but mask Lula's degenerating joints).
90 Miles Cuban Cafe, named for the distance between Cuba and Florida, is
a matchbox sized space with counter service and bar stool seating along
three walls. The mural on the outside wall shows two young boys pulling a car, representing Cuba, into Chicago (you can make out the outlines of Chicago skyscrapers). As Alberto the owner explained to me, "we're bringing real Cuban food to Chicago."
Nancy was a little late to arrive, as a driver on her unplowed side street got stuck in the snow and had to be pushed out. I occupied my time taking photos, sipping an excellent cafe con leche, chatting on the phone with my mom (rude I know), and talking to Alberto about his restaurant, which has been full-stop busy since opening in September.
I arrived just before lunch rush. Alberto was getting things ready and his wife, Christine, was in back. They have kitchen help, deft hands that pump out authentic sandwiches (white bread only) and delicious sides. At night they serve dinners - but only until 8 pm.
The walls are covered in Cuban-themed ephemera - old envelopes mailed from pre-Revolutionary Cuba, old men's magazines, postcards, newspapers - it was easy to pass time by reading.
Nancy arrived, we ordered, and within minutes our small patch of bar space was covered in baskets of Cuban treats.
Nancy had a croqueta sandwich - ham, ham and more ham, with a ham croqueta thrown in for good measure (you can see it squished remnants near the bottom piece of bread):
I ordered an item they were debuting that day - a turkey sandwich made in the style of a 'proper' Cuban sandwich - roast turkey and turkey ham (or was it pastrami? No matter, it was delicious) with cheese, mustard and pickles. Yes, I broke my gluten-free diet for this deal with the sandwich devil. And I have no regrets.
There were the tostones, the 'savory' fried plantains with garlic (vs sweet ripe plaintains in the first picture, above):
And yuca frita - fried yuca with a nice, oily garlicky mojo:
As a bonus, Alberto brought us an empanada. I don't eat beef, but I tried the dough, which was flaky and rich. Nancy ate as much as she had room for.
It was a delicious, reasonably-priced meal. Though I can't comment on authenticity (most Cuban joints don't have the breadth and depth of sandwich options that 90 Miles does - there's chicken and vegetarian options - even a cheese sandwich! - along with the usual variants on ham, pork and beef) I loved everything I ate. I'll definitely go back before I leave Chicago.
90 Miles Cuban Cafe
3101 N Clybourn Ave
Chicago, IL 60618
(773) 248-2822
