During my Miami adventures last week, we happened to stop in Little Havana right on Calle Ocho for some authentic homemade Cuban ice cream. Azucar, the scene of this delicious crime is a lovely little shop, which feels as if it's been a part of the community for many years, but in truth is actually quite new, opening its doors in 2011. Dan, my mother-in-law Vicki and I popped in after our Wynwood adventures last week for a sweet adieu.
Atmosphere:
Located in the heart of Little Havana, Azucar is hard to miss, boasting a fun, colorful exterior with heaping scoops of ice cream. It almost looks like some kind of Gaudi structure, being that it's larger than life and a little cheeky.
The interior vibe continues the whimsy theme, as its adorned with colorful artwork and photographs that embody rich Cuban culture as well as the simple and joyful act of eating delicious ice cream. I especially loved the collage of messy ice cream photographs you see above. While the shop is small, there's enough seating to hang around and enjoy your ice cream, which is what we did when we made ourselves comfortable on the rounded bench at the front of the shop.
Ice Cream:
With over 40 different flavors to choose from, ordering an ice cream is no easy feat but it sure is fun! I first did a once over at the display counter and asked to try a few intriguing flavors. After a few bites of deliciousness, I chose their signature Abuela Maria ice cream as well as the Mantecado. I wasn't disappointed in the least.
Abuela Maria - Azucar's signature flavor that pays homage to the owner's dear abuela was my absolute favorite. Incorporating sweet chunks of guava, tangy cream cheese ice cream and crumbly bits of Cuban biscuits (galletas), it was like a fun celebration in your mouth. I loved the sweet guava sauce that was drizzled on top that gave it Latin panache.
Mantecado - Despite its exotic name, the Mantecado ice cream was pretty basic and clean, but that's exactly what I loved about it. Made of simple vanilla ice cream with a dash of nutmeg, it defied the meaning of "ordinary vanilla."
Apple Pie - Although I usually love fruit based ice cream, I wasn't impressed with this one and found it to be too sweet. I'd suggest going with their Cuban flavors instead, as they're a lot more interesting and refined.
Service and Cost:
We enjoyed great service and appreciated the patient staff who was happy to explain all the different flavors to us and even offered us a few free samples. I was reassured when I found out that I chose some of the house favorites, and trusted the expertise of our server.
Costs are moderate at about $4.50 per scoop but are worth every penny, given its uniqueness and high quality.
3 Drippy Mmmms
Azucar - 1503 8th Street, Miami, FL 33135
305.381.0369
azucaricecream.com
As we were vacationing in South Florida this past week, I always take the opportunity to try something new as far as restaurants are concerned. And even though Havana Hideout was on my list of places to try for quite a while, we never actually got there till now, since it’s a little bit of a trip from where we were staying. Well now after going, I’m happy to say that we’ll definitely be back to this fabulous and somehow yet still subdued hideaway.
Atmosphere:
Before I get into Havana’s relaxing atmosphere, I must caveat this review with the fact that this place has been featured on Guy Fieri’s popular, Diners, Drive-ins and Dives program on the Food Network, which Dan and I are big fans of. So we kind of knew that we were in for something good.
Walking up to its building (or more accurately described as a shack), Dan was a bit skeptical, but I had high hopes. We walked in, confronted by a really laid back vibe with some current alternative rock jams, a waitress at the bar and some casual stools to sit on. We ordered from the menu, and of course noticed that it had a special section citing the choices Guy tried when he came to visit.
After placing our orders, we headed outside to the picnic area that made you feel almost as if you were at the beach. There were picnic tables, casual metal chairs, beach umbrellas and even a sandy texture to the ground. The tunes we heard inside carried through and we immediately felt relaxed and happy to be there.
Food:
Since our eyes gravitated to Guy’s choices right away, I went with the spicy fish tacos and Dan chose the Triple D, which sounded fabulous, and I knew I’d have some of it to sample.
Grilled Achiote Rubbed Fish Tacos – I adore fish tacos and was hopeful for something yummy. It was great to see that Havana delivered, and then some, with their large fish tacos, dressed with a sweet fresh pineapple and red pepper salsa. Never seeing something like this on a fish taco, I welcomed their creativity and think it worked really well to balance out the spice used in the fish. I also liked the crunchy cole slaw at the bottom of the taco, which gave it yet another element of uniqueness - overall, a home run and something I’d highly recommend.
Triple D – Dan’s Triple D plate was gargantuan, and besides including one of the fish tacos identical to mine, it also had a half of a Cuban sandwich and a generous piece of pionono (a Puerto Rican layer dish with ground beef, sweet plantains, raisins and olives sealed in a hearty sauce). I had a few generous pieces of the latter two dishes and my favorite by far was the Cuban, which was beautifully toasted on the outside and had the most flavorful contents of tender roast pork, smokey ham, beautifully melted cheese, and a crunchy pickle. They also used a really creamy, spicy mayo, which we adored—serving as the binder for all the ingredients.
The pionono was really amazing as well, the sweet plantains being really soft and almost dessert like. I loved taking a huge forkful of the meat and the plantains together, enjoying this expertly sweet and savory marriage.
Service and Cost:
Although Havana Hideout has only one waitress and another person who cooks the food, they do an absolutely bang-up job. Our waitress couldn’t be friendlier and made sure we were taken care of to the T. She was warm and welcoming but not imposing, as some of our waitstaff at other restaurants that week.
Costs are really wallet friendly and for the above mentioned food we ordered (at huge portions), as well as two 8 oz. craft beers, we paid about $34 total. You did well Guy – thanks for the awesome find!
3 Mmmms
Havana Hideout – 509 Lake Avenue, Lake Worth, FL 33460
561.585.8444
www.havanahideout.com
