Old San Juan Take-Out Plus (Cuban/Puerto Rican American)

Every town needs a local sandwich joint, and I'm not talking about the deli in the local supermarket or where you go to eat fresh.  I mean a little place just off the train tracks where you walk up to counter straight off the street; a place where you know you won't be the only person waiting in the sweltering heat for some grub. If you don't know where your sandwhich shop is, don't worry, I've found it for you....and in good old south Florida style, it's Cuban/Puerto Rican.

Old San Juan Take-Out Plus.  Literally, less than a block from the train tracks and right off the street. I had seen it when my colleagues and I were headed for lunch and had to be re-routed an extra block due to a traffic accident.  I've never driven down the little road we used as our detour, but seeing a hefty crowd standing around this joint was not easy to overlook!  I made a mental note to return, and return I did!

Walking up to the order window, you can't help but notice all the flavors of shakes offered. Combine that with listening in on what the patrons are ordering and you have a sudden desire for a mango shake.  I asked one of the patrons if it was really that tasty, and she said it was the best she had.  No need to hear more, I ordered one, and yes, it was tasty!  I can't say it's the best mango shake ever because I can't say I've ever had mango milk shakes, but it is defnitely a do-again experience.

I asked the same lady what she liked off the menu; she said the Cuban sandwich and their shrimp and crab empanadas.  What?!?!  I've never heard of such, but apparently all of Pompano has, as they were completely sold out by noon. So, when I come back for my mango shake (at 10:30am!), I will order me some shrimp and crab empanadas.

Since I saw "Cuban Sandwiches" on the window the first time I drove by, I associated Old San Juan with a Cuban sandwhich experience.  So that, along with the lady's suggestion, sealed my lunch decision.

Apparently, other eateries had been holding out on me because I haven't had a sandwich quite like this in my years of south Florida living....I had never had them with roasted pork!  For those of you unfamiliar with Cubans (the sandwich, not the cigars), they are made with ham, ROASTED PORK, (sometimes salami), Swiss cheese, pickles, and mustard on Cuban bread (a white, baguettle-like bread) that is then toasted in a heated press (called "la plancha"). A little tidbit of information: Cuban sandwiches were made popular here in Florida in the early 1900s (though they'd been enjoyed in the motherland since the 1500s) by cafes catering to Cuban workers and in the Cuban immigrant communities of Tampa (it was only much later that they were brought to Miami--for some reason, I thought it would be the other way around!). 

ANYWAYS, enough history :)  Old San Juan Take-Out Plus, remarkably clean and very tasty.

Check it out:
103 N.E. 3rd Street
Pompano Beach, FL  33060
Tel. (954) 941-0410