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Holy Grail Found: World's Best Cuban

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By STEVE OTTO, The Tampa Tribune

Published: December 21, 2007

Michelle Faedo's cafe is the home of the very best Cuban sandwich in Tampa, and probably the civilized universe.

I know this after eating so many Cubans these past few weeks they've been floating around in my dreams.

The contest came about when a reader pointed out that scoundrels in Miami were claiming the sandwich originated in that urban swamp at the fringe of the Everglades. You, of course, rose to the occasion, not only pointing out Tampa's glorious sandwich heritage, but also suggesting places to find the very best example of this harmonic convergence of salami, pork and ham on crusty Cuban bread.

In recent years there has been some denigration of the classic Cuban by those who figured a Cuban could be made on another kind of bread or that the ingredients could be tampered with. It has reached the point where more than a few readers said you could no longer get a decent Cuban around here.

Good News

The good news is that such a dire observation is not true. I sampled some very good Cubans, and even a few great ones. In fact, the truth is you shipped in so many suggestions that I haven't tried them all. There may very well be a grand champion lurking out there yet to be discovered. But I wanted to give you a champion this year, and in that effort I've sampled Cubans from Sebring to Hernando Beach to Brandon, St. Pete and Clearwater, not to mention neighborhoods from West Tampa to Carrollwood, all in search of the perfect Cuban.

Some of my favorites were outstanding and included La Septima in Brandon, El Nuevo Cafe in South Tampa and the one that got the most suggestions from you, Brocatos on Columbus and Martin Luther King Drive.

But, oh man, I couldn't stay away from the winner, Michelle Faedo's Sandwich Shop.

This very plain cafe sits at the northern edge of Ybor City at 3609 N. 15th St. It is probably better known for its deviled crabs, and if you want to make this a perfect meal, get one of Michelle's Cubans pressed hot along with one of Faedo's crabs, stuffed with blue crab meat.

"My mother ran a small restaurant on Nebraska Avenue called Mama's Place," Michelle says, "and I grew up knowing how to cook. When I married Robert, he was running a small grocery where I made the sandwiches.

"Eventually the sandwiches and crabs became so popular we closed the grocery and opened this cafe. Robert makes the sandwiches, but I make everything else. This is such a wonderfully diverse neighborhood we make Spanish, Puerto Rican and even soul food."

The Sandwich

It is the sandwich, though, that we celebrate today, made with bread from La Segunda Central bakery ("I like it," says Michelle, "because it has a little extra sugar") and then stuffed with all the traditional ingredients: ham, Swiss cheese, pickle, pork marinated in mojo sauce, and some not so traditional garlic butter.

Faedo's is a little tricky to find; you turn right on 15th. Street (which is one-way here) onto Rodney Street, a block south of Lake Avenue. You can call them at (813) 247-3020.

Trust me on this: This is home of the world's best Cuban sandwich, and don't pass up the deviled crab.

Steve Otto's column appears Sundays, Wednesdays and Fridays.

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