This afternoon I decided to go have a real taste of Miami. So I went down Calle Ocho (8th Ave) to 36th street in the heart of the Cuban quarter and ate at Versailles. Versailles is the restaurant that is always on TV whenever it looks like Castro may be dying. All the old Cuban activists gather there to watch TV and sip Cuban coffee as they wait for news about Castro.
Today was the first time I had ever gone there without a Cuban to guide me. My issue quickly became that I got too confident up front. I walked in and boldly pronounced "Necessito una mesa for dos por favor(I need a table for two please)". I need to point out that this is Miami and the heart of the Cuban quarter. Since I spoke in Spanish up front they assumed I actually spoke the language. I ended up back in the back with the other Spanish speakers with a waitress who barely spoke English and a menu in Spanish.
Thank God for texting. I sent a call for help to my Cuban friends and I quickly had on my phone "Nessecito Ver un menu in Ingles for my amigo por favor (I need a menu in English for my friend please". I already had written on a Post It note what I normally ate there. Whatever it is it is not actually on the menu. But I read the Post It to the waitress and the next thing I knew there was my meal. We ate some of the best Cuban food in the world and spent an hour there talking about boring work stuff.
On the way out I snapped the picture above. Could not resist being a tourist for just a second!
5 comments:
Oh, I used to LOVE Versailles!
Now I speak Spanish well enough to manage a meal there just fine, but back in the days when I first moved to Miami, I couldn't.
We used to go to some dive-y taco place in Little Havana. It was Costa Rican or something. Great food. The waitress always wrote "Los Americanos" on our check. Used to crack me up.
What is that Cuban chain (I think there are two restaurants)that Gloria Estefan has some ownership in? I'll have to google it. There is one out by the Miami airport. I think Thursdays are vaca frita day there. I love vaca frita. And fried plantains.
Oh, and Chicken Kitchen! Go to Chicken Kitchen.
LARIO's!!!!!
Next time, go to Lario's.
It's even better than Versailles, I think (well, given I have not lived or eaten in Miami since 1999, your mileage may vary . . .)
Funny. I go to Larios all the time. It is a 5 minute drive from my office. Vaca Frita days are huge here, half the office shows up there.
Because it is GOOOOOOOD!
Hey Ian, I told your wife she needs to start reading your blog... I am enjoying it, even if she is not patronizing you... yet! :)
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