In a city where you can find Cuban sandwiches at every other corner, Luis Galindo Latin America serves the best I’ve ever tried. Look, everyone is going to have their favorites, but what separates Luis Galindo from the countless other options in the city is their attention to detail.
This location has been open for many years, making it sort of an institution. Although it may not have the same recognition as restaurants such as Versailles, personally I rather come here. You get a true idea of where Miami locals go, and the food is as authentic as Cuban food in Miami gets. It’s a no-frills type of place, where you can tell that most patrons are regulars, making for a very family-style atmosphere.
When it comes to what I believe is the best Cuban sandwich in Miami, the roasted pork is thickly cut and flavorful, the ham is thinly sliced and sweet, and the bread is perfectly buttered and grilled to a crisp, making the plentifully applied swiss cheese just warm enough where it holds its shape but not so much where it slides off the sandwich. This may sound like every other Cuban sandwich in the city, but I guess you could say the same about different burgers. Although they all contain the same ingredients and elements, the attention to each is what makes one burger better than the next. The same is the case with the Cuban sandwiches here. In which other restaurant can you find a whole section of the bar dedicated just to sandwiches? The answer is none, which helps explain why the sandwiches here are so delectable.
Speaking of a section dedicated to making sandwiches, this is the main visual draw when it comes to Luis Galindo Latin America. Hanging legs of pork, making for an appealing atmosphere that just screams freshness, surrounds the sandwich counter. In this same counter is where the starting breadbasket is made. Although some restaurants simply send out warm rolls of Cuban bread, the breadbasket at Luis Galindo is something worth fighting your dining partners over. The bread is sliced to when you sit down, then slathered in generous amounts of salted butter, and grilled to perfection. There have been times where I come here and literally eat a whole breadbasket by myself, probably consisting of over half a loaf of Cuban bread.
Luis Galindo Latin America is as simple as it needs to be. It doesn’t pretend to be fancy or upscale, but that’s what makes it a destination worth visiting. Food like sandwiches or other Cuban staples where never meant to be anything but comfort-food, and the fact that Luis Galindo Latin America understands that is what makes it as good as it is.
Luis Galindo Latin America
898 SW 57th Ave Miami, FL 33144
(305) 267-9995
By food blogger, Santiago Cardona
