When I was a mini Yelper in the late 80s and my old man was a truck driver on summer break, we'd have lunch at truck stop cafeterias where you could count on a solid meal served by a very cute waitress. Now that I'm older and work in the industrial hinterlands myself, I've had a chance to rediscover them.
El Cubanito first passes the sweet and flirty waitress test (yes, I'm a guy, those things are important!) Besides her plesant manner, my food has been ready at the time promised when I call for pickup.
The actual cafe has a few tables inside, and is located next to a tire shop. There's a "jukebox" (actually the digital music channel) playing the latest spanish pop tracks. It's also actually pretty clean inside.
As far as food, $10 gets you a "completa" Basically a generous helping of rice - moros in my case, a big grilled chicken steak (make sure to ask for the caramelized onions), and a helping of sweet plantains (maduros). My rice had just the right amount of grease, and the chicken steak was juicy and had a nice bit of mojo marinade. read more