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**Exploring the Authentic Flavors of 90 Miles Cuban Cafe in Chicago**

When it comes to Cuban food, there’s no doubt about its rich tradition and bold flavors. However, finding a restaurant that truly captures the essence of Cuba can be challenging. That’s why we decided to check out **90 Miles Cuban Cafe**, located in the Rosco Village area of Chicago, just 15 minutes north of downtown. This spot has been making waves with its authentic Cuban cuisine, and we’re here to dive into the details.

### A Journey Back to Cuba: The Story Behind 90 Miles Cuban Cafe

The story begins with Alberto Gonzalez, who left Cuba in 1980 during the Mariel Boatlift. After leaving his home and everything he knew behind, Alberto carried with him the love for the food he grew up with. It wasn’t until 2008 that he decided to turn his passion for Cuban cuisine into a business venture, leaving the mortgage industry behind to pursue his true calling.

Alberto’s journey is a testament to the power of tradition and love for one’s roots. His restaurant, **90 Miles Cuban Cafe**, is named after the distance between Cuba and Florida, symbolizing the connection to the island that never fades.

### The Art of Cooking: A Gourmet Experience

At 90 Miles, the cooking process is a blend of tradition and passion. Let’s take a look at how they prepare their signature dishes:

#### The Chicken Preparation

The chicken dish starts with a simple rub made from seasoned salt, pepper, oregano, and **aiono** (paprika). The chicken is then seared in olive oil to create a delicious crust. However, it’s not cooked all the way through at this stage—instead, water is added, and the mixture is left to boil.

The next step involves creating a sofrito, a staple in Cuban cuisine. Onions, green and red peppers, and garlic are sautéed with olive oil until they sweat but don’t caramelize. Tomato paste, oregano, and chicken stock are then added to the mix, which is poured over the chicken. The dish simmers for 45 minutes before potatoes and olives are added, extending the cooking time by another 30 minutes.

#### The Finishing Touches

Once the chicken is perfectly cooked, it’s paired with yellow rice, sweet plantains, and **roasted pork** (known as **roso**). The roasted pork is prepared using a rub made from sugar cane and prunes, giving it a rich, sweet flavor. A touch of sour orange juice balances the sweetness, ensuring the dish isn’t overly overwhelming.

The final plating includes white rice, beans (prepared with Alberto’s grandmother’s recipe), and plantains. This combination of flavors is what makes Cuban food so special—it’s not just about the individual components but how they come together to create a harmonious taste experience.

### The Taste of Forbidden Flavor

One of the highlights of dining at 90 Miles is the opportunity to savor flavors that might be hard to find outside of Cuba. This uniqueness is what makes Cuban cuisine so intriguing and special. From the **roasted pork** rubbed with sugar cane and prunes to the **malta** (a sweet, non-alcoholic drink reminiscent of Guinness), every bite tells a story.

The restaurant’s commitment to authenticity extends to every detail, from the ingredients used to the way dishes are prepared. It’s clear that Alberto and his team take pride in preserving Cuban culinary traditions while making them accessible to diners in Chicago.

### Conclusion: A Taste of Cuba in Chicago

If you’re looking for a taste of Cuba without leaving Chicago, **90 Miles Cuban Cafe** is the place to go. The restaurant not only serves up delicious food but also offers a glimpse into the rich cultural heritage of Cuba. Whether it’s the smoky flavors of the roasted pork or the comforting warmth of yellow rice and beans, every dish at 90 Miles is a celebration of tradition and passion.

So, if you haven’t already, take a trip to **90 Miles Cuban Cafe** in Chicago—it might just become your new favorite spot for authentic Cuban cuisine. And don’t forget to try their signature dance moves while you’re there!

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enyou know I love Cuban food I mean we're talking the tradition we're talking the flavor the only problem is you can't find it everywhere so here I am in the Rosco Village area Chicago about 15 minutes north of the downtown area now I hear they got a Cuban joint that's rocking it out they're rocking it out I'm checking it out this is 90 Mi Cuban Cafe a great great food fre so the PO you just feel like you're in Cuba you feel the authenticness and you don't get any more authentic than Alberto gonzale I left you by 1980 in the Mario Boat Lift left your house left everything exactly everything except the love of the food he grew up with 28 years later he decided to do something about it I was in a mortgage business my wife and I we were looking for our next venture in 2008 they went out on a limp way out never been the restaurant Vision ever in your life never in my life with the recipes come from my grandmother really what is a Cuban food how would you explain it to somebody full flavor I think it's not spicy not spicy rich in full flavor just simple ingredients just tastes delicious it's winter winner chicken dinner cubin style we're making our rub for our chicken seasoned salt all of that all of that my friend we have pepper oregano then we got aino this is the basic rub so now we start rubbing our chicken P it all over that's it that's it and how we going to cook this chicken we're going to sear it olive oil there sear it put a little crust on it but we're not going to cook it all the way off now we at Water we wait for it to boil so now we're going to start with our Sao we're going to add oil just wait for the oil to get a little warmer here we add the onions we add green pepper red pepper we add a little bit of olive oil here with garlic it's beautiful stir this now the cumino just going to sweat these down not caramelize them and then dump that in on top of the chicken exactly now we're adding tomato paste oregano anado chicken stock and we'll wait for it to cook for 45 minutes then we'll come back to it we add a cooking wi add some potatoes and olives stir it all together and then we'll cook it for 30 more minutes now it's ready for serving you look at the smell look at the smell look at the smell look at the smell Tony Montana hour I told you to tell them you in a sanitarium look how beautiful right here we add our yellow rice how beautiful it looks sweet plantains we are ready oh you get the Brine and the acid of the olive then you get the chicken the pan drippings that sauce that it Cooks in oh outrageous now if you grab a piece of sweet plantain and mix it all together Blends it up real nice SE it seals yeah the all of this Takes the Cake Man oliv are the key though that's what SEALs the deal that is money seriously but we're just getting up to speed at 90 miles I you have one word they delicious oh I believe it oh my God you're going to love it at 90 M cubic Cafe in Chicago Illinois they're going authentic with the S the moves and definitely the flavors of Havana you just feel like you're going back in time and you're going to Cuba and I feel like my grandparents and how they grew up and how they ate these the the words Taste of forbidden because I think you're not from Cuba you can't go there you can't experience their food or their flavors their spices you ready to taste of forbidden you're going to look the taste of forbidden are you ready to taste you're going to look you're going to look the taste of forbidden we're going to make our PCO Roso roasted pork roasted pork humans we're very sweet so we use everything sugar cane and we give it a real nice sweet taste we add the prunes first had a prune in a long time oh my God you're going to love it the bacon ham up the bone the sugar sugar cane two of those colorful guaa this is one of the things that we had in the backyard of my house which is a a guava tree this is the best part this is I love the fizzle of the malta the malta is a Mal it's sort of like a like a Guinness uh beer but with no alcohol it does it tastes like flat Guinness strong pruny root beer that's a great advertising ooh hey you look thirsty and tired how about a strong pruny root beer this is going to be a rub for our pork so we going to puree this uh no basically it's going to go right in there we're just going to rub that on the pork those big nuggets are going to go on the pork now you're talking to me baby and that I like where's the pork but and pork butt let's go say hello to my little friend that's weird okay we're going to go right in here we don't want to go through cuz we want the juices to S right in there cre some Pockets so all these flavors going to get down in there salt so we throw our beautiful rub right here this is about as far from a rub as I've ever seen basically we're Cuban you know we make up our own vocabulary here look how beautiful this we get the sour orange just to balance out all the sweetness sour orange is actually fruit and if you can't sour orange you can mix a little bit of orange juice and lemon juice together then that leaves we cover so we could keep the moisture in there exactly a little foil on top of that so give us a nice little T wantana now we're going to cook it now we're going to cook it the pork is ready it's been cooking for 5 hours at 3:50 we're going to open them up right here look at this that's Perfection my friend we're going to pull it look look at that look at that this is all going to get shredded some of the juices in inated exactly caramelized onions throw on the flat top crisp up rice and beans exactly we're ready for plating look at that seriously we get the white rice we get the plantains we add the beans right there the beans are my grandmother's recipe a very rich dish a little bit more on the sweet side but between the prunes and all the sugar the caramelized onions you need this balance of the rice and the beans they're kind of parlay it all together that's when it really starts working well that's basically the the key to Cuban food you have to mix everything you got to bring it together to fuse all those flavors really nice dish it's juicy I like to eat it with the plantains the pork has so many complex flavors you built flavor upon flavor I you have one word dyes this makes you feel like you're in Cuba and I appreciate that you guys have uh introduced it to this greater Chicago area I feel very proud that we're able to do that so take us away with a little goodbye dance how how does that go there goes take this 90 mies to CU 90 mil baby come try the Forbidden dance\n"