Spending my twenties in Tampa, I fell in love with Cuban food, especially Cuban sandwiches served with black beans and saffron rice.  I had been living in Cincinnati for nearly six months when I decided to fly down to Fort Lauderdale to visit my best friend, Melissa.  She had been transferred to South Florida with United Airlines and had already scoped out the best Cuban restaurants, so I was so excited to hop off the plane and have a much-needed lunch.

Don Arturo Restaurant is minutes from the airport, so when I met her at the gate, we immediately set out for lunch.  There was not much of a crowd so we ordered our drinks and food straightaway. Within minutes our meals were brought out to our table.   My Cuban sandwich was perfectly prepared with nearly two inches of shredded pork on a perfectly pressed bun.

The Cuban Sandwich, or Cubano in Spanish is said to have originated in either Tampa or South Florida where Cuban immigrants migrated and set up communities.  The sandwich is made with ham, roasted pork (mojo), Swiss cheese, pickle, and mustard placed on Cuban bread and then pressed on a plancha, similar to a panini press but without the grooved surface.  When or where the sandwich was invented is difficult to confirm as many believe it became a lunch item for cigar makers who worked in communities such as Key West or Ybor City, outside of Tampa.

My black beans and yellow rice were topped with onion, which is exactly how I like them, My meal also came with an order of plantains, which was absolutely perfect.

It was great to catch up with Melissa and learn that she was looking for a home in Fort Lauderdale to set up as an Airbnb.  Currently she has an apartment on South Beach and would like to make some additional income.  I was excited that we would be hanging out on South Beach the next couple of days and I would be able to see her new place and catch up on life.   For now, I am catching up on some amazing food at Don Arturo’s.

Do you have a favorite meal or a restaurant that you love to visit?  I would love to hear about your favorite place and/or food if you would kindly leave a message in the comments section below.

Where to Eat: 

Don Arturo Restaurant
1198 SW 27th Avenue
Fort Lauderdale, FL  33312
Telephone: 954 584 7966