Miami and Tampa Battle for the Best Cuban Sandwiches in Florida

Fresh Cuban bread, mojo-marinated and slow-roasted pork, ham sliced thin, tangy dill pickle chips, melty Swiss cheese, and a slather of yellow mustard are the essentials of a Cuban sandwich, according to Bárbara Cruz, co-author of The Cuban Sandwich: A History In Layers.

“A light brushing of butter — no margarine — on the outside before a light pressing on a plancha. And don’t forget to cut sharply on the bias,” she adds.

The Cubano or Cuban sandwich, birthed in Cuba and known as a mixto (meat and cheese), landed in Ybor City, a historic neighborhood in Tampa, as a snack for cigar workers in the 1890s and then found purchase in Miami later, giving a point for primacy to the West Coast of Florida. Salami and bread texture differentiate the Miami and Tampa versions. In Tampa, Cuban bread is tender inside and crispy on the outside. Miami’s Cuban bread is softer and has a thinner crust that gets crispy when pressed.

Tampa even had the “Historic Cuban Sandwich” designated its signature sandwich in official documents in 2012. Miami mayor Tomas Regalado fired back in an interview with NPR, "If my abuela would have seen salami in a Cuban sandwich, she would do the sign of the cross and say that's a sacrilege."

Cruz does not discriminate; she loves both versions.

“If I am feeling old school, in Tampa it would be the Columbia. In Miami it would be La Carreta. Both hold sentimental memories for me” she says. “If I am more in the mood for [something] new, I would recommend the Boozy Pig in Tampa and Sanguich de Miami in Little Havana.”

Almost 30 years ago, I devoured my first Cuban sandwich between classes at Florida State University. Juicy roasted pork, slices of ham, Swiss cheese, and pickles pressed in soft Cuban bread — I watched as they peeled the layers apart, doused it with yellow mustard, and sliced it on the bias. The crunchy exterior and melding of all those tangy and savory flavors sealed my love for a Miami-style version, no salami required. I sample them all up and down the Sunshine State and still come back to that first perfect bite wrapped up in memories.

To settle this debate, I turned to chef Eileen Andrade, owner of Finka in Miami, and Geraldo “Jerry” Bayona, corporate chef of the 1905 Family of Restaurants, in Tampa to find out why their city should be crowned and where they go for the best Cuban sandwich.

Miami Cuban sandwiches

For Andrade, the difference is clear. "The Tampa Cuban adds one more ingredient not typical in Cuban cuisine, salami. Some say the more the merrier, but the Cuban sandwich I have eaten my whole life in Miami needs no altering," she says.

While others spend time arguing, she beelines for these Cuban sandwich spots.

Sanguich de Miami

Cubans immigrated to the Little Havana neighborhood after the revolution of 1959, bringing their delicious food traditions like the sanguich. At Sanguich on Calle Ocho, they make their pickles, brine their ham in-house, and ferment mustard for 20 days — they are working to recover the art of the Cuban sandwiches that moms packed in lunchboxes in Cuba. 

Tinta y Café

Tinta y Café, a Michelin-starred “coffee shop y mas” started by two Cuban siblings in 2005, serves a version that edges on the Tampa style. It’s layered with ham, pork, Swiss cheese, pickles, mustard, and mortadella. Andrade loves the thin, crispy texture they achieve, and the side of plantain chips ups the game. 

Islas Canarias Restaurant

You may have heard of Islas Canarias Restaurant. Anthony Bourdain visited this 1977 restaurant where family recipes and Cuban heritage are on the menu and put their Cuban sandwich on the map. Andrade is a little biased as this is her family’s restaurant, but she also honed her cooking chops here and maintains, “The sandwich is built to perfection. The pork is roasted in-house and the bread is made down the street at our family bakery."

Tampa Cuban sandwiches

If you are looking for traditional Cuban sandwiches in “Cigar City,” the Columbia, the oldest restaurant in Florida, uses a recipe dating back to at least 1915. “We’re still making the Cuban the same way using the same cooking and preparation techniques," Bayona adds. "We even use La Segunda Central Bakery bread from Ybor City, the same as we’ve done for 109 years.”

When Bayona hankers for a Cuban sandwich, he seeks out these three spots.

Columbia Restaurant (Ybor City)

Bayona loves the Columbia’s layering of the glazed Spanish ham, the lechon marinated for more than 24 hours and slowly cooked, the creaminess of Swiss cheese, the two lone pickles balancing the savoriness, and yellow mustard only coating the inside roof of the sandwich. The contentious ingredient, Genoa salami, studded with black peppercorns, adds a spiciness Bayona thinks is essential to the sandwich.

Olé Tampa Cubans (Plant City)

Near Bayona’s home, Olé Tampa Cubans in Plant City sticks to the traditional recipe of pork, ham, pickles, Swiss, mustard, and salami for its Cuban sandwich. You can also try versions with lettuce and tomato, honey, or spicy braised garlic tomato sauce if you’re looking for something a little different. The only non-negotiable? Authentic La Segunda Cuban bread straight from Ybor City.  

La Segunda Bakery (Ybor City)

Established in 1915 in Ybor City, La Segunda Central Bakery bakes Cuban bread that's hard to beat. Bayona swears by this bread and stocks it for the Columbia’s Cuban sandwiches. I have stood in line outside the Ybor City bakery happily waiting for one of the loaves filled and pressed with mojo marinated roast pork, smoked ham, Genoa salami, Swiss cheese, pickles, and special sauce (a blend of mayo and mustard), sliced in half, rather than on the bias. If you stop by, definitely get a Cuban sandwich, but don’t leave without a bag full of guava cheese turnovers — trust me, you won't be sorry.