Havana Rumba

I must admit, I have eaten at Havana Rumba before, so I was already a bit biased before sitting down for lunch. I love this place for dinner—the Vaca Frita is fantastic – but I’ve never had any sandwiches or other typical lunch staples, so I decided to give it a try.

Havana Rumba, located at 4115 Oechsli Avenue (If I say, “behind the old Sears building”, will that give away my age?), is one of a tiny handful of authentic Cuban restaurants in Louisville. I walked in for lunch on a weekday around 11:30 a.m., and the place was already pretty busy. I knew it was usually packed for dinner (they don’t take reservations, so be prepared to wait if you go because it is always jamming), but I took it as a good sign that it was this busy so early. I was seated by the hostess and only waited a few moments before a smiling server greeted me and asked for my drink order. Water, of course. Hey, I’m on a budget. I looked over the sandwiches menu because that’s what I came for, but my mouth literally watered as I glanced longingly at the dinner menu. Ok, so focus. There were seven sandwiches to choose from, and one was a vegetarian selection (kudos). I’ve heard from friends that the Cubano (roasted pork, ham, Swiss cheese, pickles, and mustard on hot pressed Cuban bread, served with sweet potato fries) is great, but I felt I should try something else. I chose the Havana Rumba (roasted pork, Spanish chorizo, Serrano ham, provolone cheese, hickory smoked ham, mustard, pickles and aioli, served on hot pressed Cuban bread with sweet potato fries. Gasp!). My server brought me a basket of bread with garlic butter after I placed my order, which I just stared at because I knew what was coming had to be gargantuan.

Then, it arrived. It was colossal, so what I spent on this meal actually fed me twice that week. After the first couple of bites, I really wished I had ordered a beer with it because all that meat just begged to be washed down with something a little more complementary than water, but I was being frugal. It was what I hoped it would be-- spicy, without overdoing it, and just the right amount of salt. The sweet potato fries were a nice side dish, but not the best I’ve had. They were a little overdone and dry. As a whole, I thought it was a good meal. Plus, I had leftovers to take home.

My total bill came to $10.07, and I added a 15% tip. I must say that I would still recommend the dinner experience at Havana Rumba over the lunch just because the atmosphere at night is much more festive. Next up, Café Meridian, so until then…

Cheers,
Fleur de Lunch