Cafe Caribe, Cicero

They specialize in Cuban and Puerto Rican foods, primarily sandwiches, but also have daily specials.

I went here for the first time on Saturday and grabbed a cafe con leche and a cuban sandwich. The sandwich was among one of the better ones that I've had, better than anything I had recently in Southwest Florida, and to the best of my recollection, ranks very favorably with what I've had at La Teresita in Tampa. The con leche was excellent as well. They were also handing out chunks of deep-fried pork to customers, which were seasoned, slightly spicy, and delicious.

Stopped by today for lunch and had my first jibarito. Since it was my first, I have nothing to compare it to, but the meat inside was fork tender and apparently they marinate it according to an old family recipe and tenderize it. There was no fat on it, and it was outstanding, and the plaintains held the sandwich together quite well.

Had black beans and rice which were quite tasty, but unfortunately couldn't finish them since I was experimenting with several different Puerto Rican hot sauces and eventually crossed the line of heat that I could take.

The owners, Mel and his wife, are super-friendly and it's a very welcoming place, with the cooking based upon family recipes. Mel showed me how they roast the pork and make the Puerto Rican rice, and happily answered my relentless questions about Puerto Rican food.

Apparently on Fridays, one of the specials is bacalao in a salsa roja. They obviously take a lot of pride on their food and it's one of those places that you want to see succeed. I've always enjoyed the food that I've had on business trips to Puerto Rico, and I'm excited to have something like this close to my office.

On the down side, I'm trying to drop some weight, and it's going to be more of a battle having this place around the corner from me.

Sorry, no pics, but I may be inspired enough to to try posting some for the first time.

This is the first little "gem" that I've found in some time. This whole Cicero area is filled with great eating. Our Saturday consisted of stopping at Vesecky's bakery for some great cupcakes and donuts, a stop at Cafe Caribe, and then a jaunt over to Freddy's. Later that day had to up North, I stopped at Tenuta's and then finished off with a brat at the Brat Stop in Kenosha while watching the Colts-Jets game. Weight loss is not going well.

Cafe Caribe
6138 W. 26th Street (just a couple of blocks west of Austin)
708-548-8025
M-F 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Sat 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Closed on Sundays

Well, my resolution is not specifically to lose weight, but to get to the gym 3 days per week, and so far, so good. This also means that I won't feel guilty about trying some lechon and a jibarito from Mel and his wife extremely soon. The last jibarito joint near these parts closed much too quickly. Selfishly, it was probably better for my cardiac well being, since I asked them to make me a jibarito de lechon, and it was a big pile of greasy, garlicky, porky heaven, that nobody should probably eat more than a few times per year, tho it was dreamier to me than Desi Arnaz Jr. was to Marsha Brady.

I was able to swing by for a lunch to go today. I wanted to go on Tuesday, but snow got in the way. Didn't want a quick lunch pickup to turn into a two hour ordeal. So anyway, this is a neat little joint. It's a TALL long counter type place with another shorter long counter that both run the length of the place. No tables, just counterspace, but inviting nonetheless. The folks behind the counter were great. I asked about lechon. He said they have it every day. Didn't see it on the menu.
Mofongo - maybe after a while they will add it to the menu. Same with empanadas.


There is a sign that says "good food takes time to make" or something like that. I was advised that my jibarito would take 20 minutes or so. While I waited, I enjoyed the banter of the friendly counter people with some friendly customers seated at the counter. One of the customers was simply giving away new Cubs/Sox caps. I took two, but offered him five bux just cuz. The music was lively, the vibe was all kinds of friendly here at noon today.






After scanning the menu posted on the interior, I opted for a Jibarito with rice, and an order of tostones.





I was not instantly enamored with the food I got. I'm in no way saying that it was bad, it was decent eats, and I'm definitely going back for a jibarito de lechon. The jibarito had that garlicky mayo / sauce thing going on, I was really happy that it wasn't some plain jane version, but the steak was kinda boring for me. Not chewy or fatty at all, just kinda boring and grayish. The plaintain was fried crisp, and held up nice. Decent. The rice/beans was decent as well. Dryish, but decent nonetheless. The tostones were freshly fried, I wish I could have gotten some of the house sauce for the tostones. I should have asked for some to go. They were actually pretty good, but needed a kick of something flavorful. The steak was not my thing, but I have a feeling a jibarito de lechon would be over the top delicious here.
Hope these guys stick around for a while, and build up the menu offerings.
I'm definitely gonna hit this place up in a few weeks again.