Cafe Habana has been a long time Soho, New York staple for as long as I can remember. Its location makes it a hot spot for models and other trendy New Yorkers and as such the lines have always been crazy long. But I hadn't been there in a while and Aarti and I were planning on doing some shopping in Soho, so we thought we'd take a gamble and see if we could grab a brunch time seat on a Saturday.
I strolled in at 12pm on the dot and it was surprisingly NOT crowded. I was shocked - maybe it's finally dying down? I grabbed two seats at the bar which wasn't the most comfortable but the place is small, so it's not like there are a lot of places to sit anyways. The left side of the menu had their more brunch-y foods like huevos rancheros and the left side had more lunch-y foods like their cuban sandwich. It's like Sophie's choice!! I was having a really hard time because they had huevos divorciados, which I haven't had since Santa Fe. But they claimed that their cuban sandwich ($10.95) was voted best in NYC, so I figured I just had to get it. Aarti and I also split the grilled corn ($5.95) to start because how can you come to a cuban place and not get freakin grilled corn? This one is served in typical fashion with mayo, cotija cheese, chili powder and lime. Delicious. There's just something about that cheese sprinkled all over the corn that is a perfect combination. It's definitely a messy messy dish, so I wouldn't recommend getting it unless you're with good friends or just don't give a shit that your face will be covered in mayo and cheese for at least 10 minutes.
I was excited for the cuban sandwich because it's been a really long time since I've had a great one. This had your classic ingredients: roast pork, ham, swiss cheese, chipotle mayo, and a pickle on a toasted panini type bread. While it was a nice solid sandwich, I'm not sure I can say it's the best in NYC. It was heavy on the pork and I would have liked it to be a bit more balanced with the ham. While I usually don't love pickles, I do adore them in a cuban and I actually could have used more of them in this one. The sandwich came with a handful of fries that were a ting too soggy from the mayo dripping on to my plate. Aarti got the huevos rancheros and it looked good but also swimming in their salsa ranchera that you couldn't even see anything else on the plate.
It was nice to re-visit this place after a long time away and I can see why it's still a downtown staple. The food is still solid and the atmosphere still fun and funky. But I still adore Sohpie's as my go-to true authentic Cuban place (yes, yes, I know it's a chain but still...) but if you want to hipster it up, Cafe Habana is a fine substitute. Plus the prices of the neighborhood are really quite reasonable. Total bill: $18/pp with tax, tip and coffee
Photo Credit: Yelp
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