Cafe Laguardia West

On a windy Friday night my brother

calls me up just to see what I am doing. Now, I know when he calls late Friday
night it usually means it is time for one of our late night food excursions. So,
true to form, he says... "Hey I'm hungry. Let's go and eat some
Mexican".

Now, I was downtown and I was thinking to myself "why not?" But then Puerto Rican food came to mind instead. So I pitch the idea to my brother and he was fine with it. I begin to search the Internet for recommendations on good Puerto Rican restaurants. During my search, Cuban cuisine came up and a place that received consistently great reviews was Cafe LaGuardia. I tell my brother, he agrees, and we tried it out. Ladies and Gents... this place did not disappoint.

Located on North Ave. and Oak Park Ave. this place serves up great authentic Cuban food. According to out lovely waitress Carmen.... All sauces and dishes are made from scratch. The menu is huge. Which for some people can be a turn off? For me, however, I love the fact that I can get different options each time I go there. When my brother and I went, we both had different dishes. I had a monster of a sandwich called the Falda Humada. This sandwich contained brisket that was spiced and smoked for 16 hours. It was served on crusty Cuban bread and served with arroz con gondules or rice and pigeon peas. The taste of the meat had such great flavor one would be tempted to ask for the meat and a side of the rice. Which I found out later... I could have done.

My brother got the Fricassee de pollo or Chicken Fricassee. Chicken simmered in red Cuban wine and Cuban spices for a long period of time. This was served with rice and pigeon peas. Was it good? Well there was quite a bit of silence coming from my brother and my small sample garnered a long “Wowwwwww” from me. This is a very good and savory dish. It is also filling and with a price of $11.99 it along with other dishes on the menu are a steal.

But how can I forget about a staple dish of Afro Caribbean dishes.... The Empanada. Cafe LaGuardia makes their own on site and at 2 bucks a pop they are beyond good. They one empanada that caught our eye was the Ricky Ricardo. A seafood empanada filled with lobster, shrimp and crab filled in a flaky crust and then fried. Served with a light, but oh so good m ango sauce this was probably one of the surprises of the night. Well that and the Cuban potato skins that came with a few (but not enough) fried sweet plantains. With me being a proud Nigerian... the plantain really hit a soft spot since it reminded me of the ones my late mother would cook with her "never to be matched" stew and rice.





Cafe LaGuardia West was a pleasant surprise for my brother and me. So much so, we decided to come back with bigger appetites. This place is indeed a gem for those of you looking for something out of the norm and worth the time.

Cafe LaGuardia West is located on 6818 West North Avenue in Chicago. Phone: 773-385-8930

http://www.cafelaguardiawest.com/

By the way, when you go there, ask for Carmen to be your waitress. She is very knowledgeable about the menu and has an interesting story about how she started working there.