El Pub Restaurant, an authentic Cuban restaurant that has been featured on the Travel channel, is the first stop on the Little Havana Food Tour. Outside the establishment, the tour guide explains the street food culture found in Little Havana through little windows (ventanitas) that are traditional of Cuban culture.
Inside, the tour observes the cook making the Media Noche (midnight) sandwiches that will be served for the tasting.
The first thing I notice are the crunchy, shredded potato chips inside the sandwich. The crunch, along with the pork, ham, swiss, pickles, and mustard create a harmonious explosion of flavors and textures. The bread is extra soft and yellow due to the egg yolks with which it is made. This bread is buttery and flaky, but it is not the typical Cuban bread used for Cuban sandwiches. Instead, Cubans use this higher calorie bread for the Media Noche, or Midnight, sandwich. It was traditionally served to hard labor workers who would come home at midnight from a long day of work.
Next, I get to try a shot of Cuban coffee, which is very similar to an espresso. Ideally, it is served very sweet. The cane sugar blends well with the strong, nutty flavors of the Cuban coffee bean.
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