Café Cuba & Cakes

Great atmosphere, cozy. The cafè con leche is great, served in big steaming cups. Nice selection of fresh Cuban pastries. Tables and couches to enjoy your food and drink. Freshly squeezed juices and gorgeous cakes.

This Mexican Loves Café Cuba & Cakes! Thank you for the wonderful food and great customer service.

I got the distinct impression they were TRYING to get the hang of this «customer service» thing, however, new granite countertops alone do not a food-​SERVICE establishment make. Put another way, it won’t be their slick dining area for which they’ll be remembered, but rather their lackluster performance for which they’ll be forgotten…
I’ve been here twice since writing the foregoing — what can I say? Convenience trumps excellence — it’s the American way!
I want SO MUCH to like this place — it’s on a major route of mine, and it’s like driving through a desert in search of the promised land

Great Ropa Da Vieja and delicious pastries. Call in orders are quick and nice customer service. Tables and seating is nice also!

I have been here a couple times now, had a variety of food, and have not been disappointed yet. I especially enjoyed the oxtail and ropa vieja which were both tender and delicious.
This place also has quite an assortment of awesome pastries. Their guava pastries are really tasty! Everything is reasonably priced as well.

Pretty happy with the food from this place. Ordered the oxtails, rice pease and plantains. Comes with a side of bread and some sauces.
Oxtail was pretty tender and well seasoned as was the rice.
Downside was the service and wait time. Smaller shop most likely family run– so expect a wait time.
Upside they have Malta which is a childhood classic that must be tried

Not as good as Portos in my opinion. Much less traffic which is nice if you’re in a hurry.
Got yelled at by the cashier for paying with a twenty in the morning when I told her I didn’t have anything else. The kind lady next to me said she could pay for me but the cashier yelled at both of us!
I’m sorry I didn’t have anything smaller to pay with.
The guava cheese rolls weren’t as good as Portos. They lacked flavor. The texture of the pastry was pretty flakey though!
The cream horn was good. I liked how they had an option with no powder sugar.
Three dollars for a beef pastry — not worth it. One it was bland and two that’s expensive! It was small, about the size of a Portos potato ball — wished they carried potato balls!

The best café con leche! And cuban pastries pan de guava con quezo es una delicia (its so good). It is a small cozy place with the best tasting foods.

The best Ropa Vieja sandwiches in town! And the service is awesome!
The owner Dina is such a sweet lady too.

I’ve been to Café Cuba a total of about 10-​times. The food is pretty good, served w/​pretty good portions. The «arroz con pollo» with black beans is probably my favorite. The «cortadito & cappuccino frio» are very good when done correctly. The pastries however taste very bland and stale not fresh like at other places I’ve been to. Overall I give the food here a 6.5 out-​of 10.
The service was how do I phrase it, less than average. There’s a woman there that just irritates the heck out of me. The issues that I’ve encountered there occur only when she’s there. She will either overcharge me for items purchased or make them wrong, but something always goes wrong when she’s there. I do hope for the sake of the business that the owner tends to these issues before more patrons go else-​where.

Baya todo muy rico! Lo mas autentico q eh probado sin viajar a Miami. Su comida me trae recuerdos a mi juventud, cuando mi abuela nos cocinaba en su casita en Veradero.

Delicious! I loved this dinner with my parents. This place is clean, has beautiful décor, and has great customer service. I had pork ribs and it was so good. It was served with salad, black beans, maduros, and pan. My parents loved their café con leche. Awesome! I will be back. We came here per my family recommendation.

A small quint café with bakery, café, and food well under $ 10. A nice place to chat or catch up with friends. I really love the atmosphere and the music. Really feel like you are on vacation mode. Super nice staff.

I was visiting town for a few days and booked an AirBnb in Hawthorne. I found this spot thanks to Unilocal and wound up returning every morning for my breakfast. I’m from Miami and this place was a taste of home for me. The staff are very sweet and the vibe is warm and welcoming. Highly recommend!

Stopped by this place yesterday on my way to LAX since I can’t get Cuban food in Tucson. I went with the Pan con Lechon sandwich based off of some of the pictures I saw on Unilocal.The pork had a very good flavor but was too tough/​chewy. If they would have let it cook or simmer longer I think it really has potential. The mojo marinade on the pork is outstanding. I also got some pastries/​pastelitos that I was told were pretty tasty (didn’t get to try them, bought them for a friend). The free guava and cream cheese Unilocal check in offer was a cool bonus! Kudos for that. Overall, I would stop by this place again but probably try a different sandwich.

This is my go to bakery for birthday cakes, pastries and papa rellena. They never disappoint. The staff is always helpful and nice. I love their tres leches cake but I recently ordered a cake for my daughters birthday, Silvia offered me cake samples of some of their most ordered cakes. They were all good but I decided to order the «Robert special» flavor. It was delicious all my guest loved the cake and asked for a slice to take home after the party. Not to mention the decoration of the cake. It was beautiful and all I did was show them a picture. I will definitely be ordering that flavor again.

This place is a diamond in the rough. I love my people’s food wherever I can find it. The restaurant is in the corner of the structure you couldn’t find it unless you were looking for it. The potato balls and fried plantains are a must have.

Placed an order for NYE of potato balls croquetas and pastelitos de guyaba and everything tasted authentic! Their potato balls are one of my favorites. The service over the phone was efficient and friendly. I defintely reccomend this place if youre in the area and looking for some quick great cuban food.

It was very busy the day before Christmas but they staff got through the rather quickly.
Apparently you are able to order lechon for your holiday dinner and they give the juices to add once you heat in the oven. Wish I knew in advance because I would have definitely ordered one.
I ended up ordering the pan con lechon which was okay. I am not sure if it was suppose to be that dry and those cuts of meat given other people’s pictures. Anyhow, the meat itself was very flavorful. I will give this place another shot and order some café and pastries next time!

A HIDDEN GEM!
So Iove Porto’s and will drive to Downey (or farther!) for Cuban pastries. LUCKILY and RANDOMLY my friend (review below!) Unilocal’d someplace in our area and brought them to work!
Since it’s so close to my house, my boyfriend and I have been coming on the weekends for Cubanos and pastries.
NOTE: FREE GUAVA PASTRY WITH CHECK-​IN & PURCHASE
I prefer the Guava & Cheese, and he likes the Coconut, but they’re allllll good. They also have just cheese, guava cookies, macarons, and assortment of cakes. Lots of coffee options, and I think regular meals and breakfast. Prices are super reasonable too.
The place is cute with lots of parking. Reminds me of Miami cafes actually haha. There’s also tables and a couple couches, where we usually sit and just hang out.
I really recommend this place :)

Pan con Lechon was good. Bread was buttery, the pork was moist and delicious, and the Maduros were really good.

It was the eve of Fat Friday and I was trying to figure out what goodies to bring to work the next day. I had a mad craving for Porto’s so I wanted to bring that… Except I didn’t want to make the drive. Lo and behold, Unilocal came to the rescue.
Left the apartment earlier than usual to stop by before work. It took me only 5 minutes! It’s located on Hawthorne Blvd and there’s plenty of parking. The café is small and quaint. A couple of tables and a few couches to sit, chill and sip on your coffee.
I ordered a dozen of the guava and cream cheese pastries and it was a hit at work! Will be back for more.

Great sandwiches, pastelitos and papa rellenas. Take it from a Miami Cuban, this place is legit! I recommend the Media Noche (Midnight) sandwich, a Papa Rellena (mashed potato ball with season meat) and Pastelito de Guayaba (Guava pastry). Call aheads for lunch pick up never dissapoint and the prices are reasonable. Even have cuban colas like Materva, and Iron Beer which are a fun addition to any meal. Give this place a shot!

I got the distinct impression they may have been TRYING to get the hang of this «customer service» thing, however, new granite countertops alone do not a food-​SERVICE establishment make. Put another way, it won’t be their slick dining area for which they’ll be remembered, but rather their lackluster performance for which they’ll be forgotten. For example, when I tried to indicate to the proprietress their check-​in offer was a little confusing, she reacted as though the fault was mine alone. Who can say? Maybe they’re not interested in having regular or repeat customers. The fact the place was empty should’ve been my first clue.

I just found out about this spot thanks to a friend, I’m in love! You can never go wrong w Cuban food, definitely recommend it if you’re in the area and are craving Cuban food/​pastries. Ohh and awesome customer service.

Love the ambiance, food and the pastries. I don’t like the location of the restroom… It’s nice of them to let you use the restroom but you have to go around the building to get to it for health dept reasons. Their cakes are great too! I love the taste and look of their cakes!.

It’d been a while since I’ve been here! Forgot how yummy the guava cream cheese pastries were. They are 95 cents each. The breakfast special with chorizo, scrambled eggs, plantains and black beans were bomb too! Service is excellent.

Nice little spot for coffee and pastries. Those treats look dangerous. But that’s not all they have. You just have to get past all those temptations as you move closer to the back counter to order some food. Looking for something less sweet for breakfast or lunch? They can hook you up with an egg plate (and all the fixings) or for noon, maybe you want a chicken sandwich like I just did. The chicken was moist and tender. Just right for a quick lunch bite. The atmosphere inside is comfortable and relaxed. There’s plenty of diagonal parking out front.

Our friend really wanted a Tres Leche Cake and after a bit of scrambling (on a Sunday), we found this place! The lady was really nice (even though she didn’t speak much English) and was able to put a cake on hold for us over the phone. We arrived around noon and decided to grab some quick lunch and got a smoothie and their Cuban sandwich. Our Unilocal Check-​in also gave us a free cream cheese pastelito, yum! The Cuban was good, but the plantain chips were really good. We then took the cake to a party and everybody loved it!

If you want authentic Cuban Food take it from this Caribeña this is by far the best place to get your fix. Right off the bat they got Extra Pts for knowing exactly what I wanted when I asked for Revoltillo — my breakfast sandwich was scrumptious.
I decided then to grab lunch/​dinner for later & ordered Ropa Vieja. When I tell you it is the best in all of So. Cal I Kid you not (& I visited all of them)! Arroz Moro, Beyond Yum. The beef stew was marinated to perfection in green herbs (sofrito), olive oil, & tomatoes.
Of Course I Did Not forget about Desert, the Quesitos w/​Guava Absolutely Amazing.
The staff is ultra friendly, the local is bright & lively, plus there is parking right out front. Hard to go wrong here people.
I already decided I’ll be a regular forever! #VivaCuba

I love this Cuban café I came here in 2013 for my wedding cake they did an incredible job. Being cuban I’ve been to so many cuban restaurants but this place is spot on really captures the authenticity of real cuban food and the pricing is excellent.

Tiramisu estaba agrio y las galletas de pistachio parese que estaban viejas duras y muy mal savor.

Not what I expected, based on reviews.
Ropa Vieja (Shredded Beef) combination looked beautiful but didn’t taste as beautifully. The beef was dry and too salty. I am someone who puts extra salt on everything, so trust me — this one was way too salty. The plate was $ 10.95 — too expensive for the neighborhood, the quality and the time of day. Not offering any lunch specials is probably not the best business strategy, IMHO.
Now, the really disappointing part. I found this place through Unilocal.There was a promotion on the Unilocal app for a free guava cheese roll with purchase. I get one and it is so hard and stale, you could use it as a hammer. A guy eating a sandwich at a table next to me, who just bought a few of the same rolls to go, and before me, mind you, hears me say that mine is stale and checks his and surprise, surprise — his (paid for ones) are all freshly baked. I call a server who immediately takes my «hammer» of a roll away, without even feigning surprise and brings me a fresh one. BUT! the fresh one has no filling — you could shoot through the hole where the guava-​cheese filling should have been, it’s that big of a hole. So again — they’re giving me another bad pastry, something they would have probably discarded and never sold. That’s the «free with purchase» experience at this restaurant.
I just have one thing to say in closing — Porto’s, please open up a restaurant closer to me…

Best cup of joe I’ve had in a long time & especially around this part of town.
Breakfast:
Huevos con chorizo, black beans, & fried bananas… Delicious!

The sandwiches are delicious and made to order. The décor is simple and humble but homey and welcoming. The service is slow but the food is worth the wait. Easy parking out front. 10 minutes from the airport, incase you want a quick snack before your flight. An oasis in Hawthorne.
The desserts that are filled with white cream are not authentic to Cuba, but they do have pastelitos (guava patties) and Flan.
Their sandwiches really are great.

Muy rica comida I love it, the best cuban cakes. Lo mejor, un pastelito de guayaba y el café cubano.
Muy buen costumer service it feels like home. :)
Thank you :)

Pretty good! We’ve already been here twice in the last two weeks for lunch! Café Cuba & Bakery is a cute little restaurant/​café. You can easily spend a little time here drinking coffee and reading books. The restaurant is very inviting. And they also have free WIFI!
The first time I was here I got the Cubano Sandwich. The second time, I got the media noche sandwich which is basically the same as the cubano, but with a sweeter bread.
Between the two, I liked the cubano sandwich more, although both were good sandwiches. Also, the sandwiches come with your choice of macaroni salad or French fries. When I left the first time I also got some flan to go. That was also delicious!
By the way, there are a lot of other sandwiches that they offer here so I’m planning to come back to try more things on the menu.
Also, if you check in on Unilocal,you can get a free pastelito de guayaba.
Parking: Free street parking.