If you want to experience some true, down home Cuban culture in Tampa, you can't beat La Ideal Sandwich Shop. This is a place where people come for their daily fix of Cuban coffee and conversation. In the morning, most people buy Cuban café and pastelles, the very traditional Cuban breakfast. You can also get scrambled eggs and toasted and buttered Cuban bread if you are really hungry.
However, the real attraction here is the sandwiches. During the noon hour they keep three large planchas busy turning out nine different Cuban sandwich favorites. And the prices, que barato! They charge just $2.95 for a Cuban sandwich! We were a little surprised to see shaved meats on a Cuban sandwich.
However, we have to admit, the sandwiches are very tasty and the meat is very moist and flavorful. At least here they don't follow one Tampa tradition – there is NO Genoa salami on the Cuban sandwiches here!
At La Ideal you can make it a complete lunch with a sandwich and one of several soups. The caldo gallego here is very hearty and filled with delicate white beans.
They also have an assortment of Cuban bocaditos – papa rellenas, empanadas, tamales and croquetas. An ideal lunch at La Ideal? Any one of the sandwiches, two tamales, and a bowl of their delicious garbanzo bean soup... (more) 
Divine Secrets of the Cuban Bakery Brotherhood
We recently spent some time with a good friend of ours who is a baker and he let us in a few bakery secrets! Unfortunately, bakers work with pounds and gallons and huge bags of everything. They also have some pretty slick electric equipment that you just aren't going to find in the average home!
We did get a lot of answers to our recipe questions and we hope to develop some home kitchen-friendly adaptations of several Cuban bakery favorites.
Jorge shows his technique for filling a capuchino cone.
Cuban exile Tony Mendoza returns to Cuba thirty-six years later. Through his pictures and nicely written text, Mendoza gives you a no-holds barred view of Cuba today. Mendoza found very few Castro supporters in Cuba! Most people carry on their daily struggle for survival, hoping and praying for the day when the failed "socialist" experiment comes to an end... (more)
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