It's hard to get more "Tampa" than a mouth watering delicious cuban sandwich. There are likely only three places in the country that feature authentic cuban sandwiches...Tampa, Miami and Key West. In other places you can buy something called a cuban sandwich but it's not authentic. You can walk into a Publix and get a cuban sandwich...but it's not really a cuban sandwich...Why you might ask...
They are not made with cuban bread. Very few places actually bake authentic cuban bread. Tampa is one of the few cities where you can buy cuban bread. Cuban bread was first baked in Tampa in the late 1800's. Traditional cuban bread is about three feet long. The moist palm frond is baked into the crust and produces a shallow opening in the bread.
La Segunda Bakery on 15th street in Ybor City makes some of Tampa's finest cuban bread
You could say cuban sandwiches are a big deal in Tampa
A Tampa cuban sandwich has...yellow mustard and then layers of..roast pork..glazed ham..swiss cheese..dill pickles and unique to Tampa sandwiches...Genoa salami. You will not find salami on cuban sandwiches in Miami. Salami was added to the mix in Tampa back in the early days of Ybor when Italian and Cuban immigrants lived and worked side by side in Ybor City
West Tampa Sandwich Shop...one of the best places in town to get a cuban sandwich
When in Tampa...treat yourself...have a cuban sandwich and I recommend a nice cold beverage to go with it
Hard to beat a Cuban!
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