By Suzanne Schmidt
Pepe’s Cuban Café is reminiscent of a restaurant one might see in Cuba with bright yellow paint on the walls, palm tree decorations and the smell of authentic Cuban food wafting through the air, but it is in Lutz.
Linda Varela and Jose Menendez opened the restaurant, 1943 Foggy Ridge Parkway, Aug. 2 because they said they noticed a need for it. The Lutz couple said they have been amazed by the response they have seen in just their first few days.
“It has been incredible,” Verela said. “There are so many people walking in telling us they are so glad we are here. We have already had repeat customers in one day with people coming in for breakfast, lunch and dinner.”
The restaurant serves meals like palomilla steak, roast pork, shredded beef, Cuban sandwiches and sides like the traditional yellow rice and black beans.
“It is all Cuban fare,” Verela said. “Our theme is to give A Taste of Havana to our customers.”
Menendez is the chef at the restaurant. He grew up in San Christobal, Cuba. He said he likes cooking food like his grandma used to make.
“Everything is made from scratch even my stuffed potatoes, devil crabs and meat pies,” Menendez said. “I also make the flan, bread pudding, rice pudding and the natilla from scratch. You don’t get the texture or the flavors from a can that you can when it is made fresh.”
Over the years he has owned several restaurants including Latin Village in Temple Terrace and The Mediterranean on Dale Mabry. Before that he worked with his father Jose Menendez at La Habanera in Tampa. His father was not the original owner but one of a few people who owned the restaurant at different times.
All of the restaurants he owned were closed years ago. He had actually left the restaurant business for a while until recently when he and his wife decided to open Pepe’s together.
“I have been in the restaurant business for about 30 years,” Menendez said. “I like to make food like what I grew up on. My menu is inspired by the good I used to eat as a child. I want to pass that type of flavor on.”
Steve Mikell of Land O’ Lakes visited the restaurant for the first time after waiting patiently for it open. He said he absolutely loved it and will definitely be back.
“I go all over Tampa and I have had a lot of Spanish food,” Mikell said. “It is nice to have a place so close to home with such good food. Everything I saw on the menu looked so good, it was hard to make up my mind about what to order.”
Robert Blair of Land O’ Lakes said he thought the food was wonderful.
“It is very good and authentic,” Blair said. “I also like the restaurant. It is very vibrant and nice and clean too.”
The restaurant is open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday and 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday. It is closed on Sunday. For more information, call (813) 948-8999.
