When the husband-and-wife team of Chef Ramses and Ana Garcia took over Las Palmas Café in the Pebble Creek Collection four years ago this month, the restaurant was already a popular little place that not enough people outside of Pebble Creek knew about.
Today, in addition to revamping the interior, Ramses says he “changed literally everything on the menu” to make the Cuban dishes more authentic. And, using his training from places he worked for in his hometown of Miami, he has slowly added many other menu items, some of which are not traditionally Cuban, although everything we’ve sampled on Las Palmas’ extensive (but never expensive) menu has been delicious.
In fact, there are so many great items available at this still-hidden gem that I didn’t have room for a pic of what has always been my favorite dish at Las Palmas — the merluza a la Rusa, or flaky, breaded white fish with a unique topping of hard boiled eggs, pimiento and parsley.
Instead, I did include a pic of Ramses’ equally delicious (and less fattening) grilled fish, with a side of yellow rice, and his grilled chicken with a side of homemade fried plantains.
I’m all about trying new things, so I told Ramses to make some of his favorite dishes for us to sample at the Neighborhood News, and he didn’t disappoint.
First up was a fried yuca appetizer, served with a delicious cilantro lime dipping sauce. I don’t always love the consistency of yuca, but Ramses no doubt knows how to make it crisp, tender and very tasty.
Ramses’ award-winning “historic” Cuban sandwich also didn’t make it onto these two pages, in part because his full-page ad on page 41 has such a gorgeous picture of it, but also because he wanted me to try his equally tasty Cuban club sandwich, which includes ham, turkey, bacon and Swiss cheese, with lettuce, tomato and mayo pressed on perfect Cuban bread.
“Our traditional Cuban incudes our famous roast pork, ham and Swiss, with mustard, mayo and pickles pressed on Cuban bread,” Ramses says. “We entered the Cuban Sandwich Festival for the first time in April (as reported last issue) and we were proud to win, but not surprised. We sold more than 1,000 mini-Cubans in the two days of the festival. By the time they announced that we had won (on Sun.), we were already almost sold out.”
Other traditional Cuban cuisine Ramses made sure we tried were the Havana Trio — ropa vieja (shredded beef), roast pork (lechon) and picadillo (ground beef with olives and veggies in tomato sauce), and Ramses’ must-try braised ox tail.
I told Ramses that I had only ever had ox tail at Jamaican restaurants, and usually, it was in a soup, which I didn’t love. But, his ox tail is in big pieces, on the bone like a veal or pork shank, in a dark, savory sauce.
“We only make ox tail on Thursday,” Ramses said on my recent Thursday visit. “But, we braise it for six hours and have regulars who come in every week for it.”
And, as if on cue, in stepped Bob, a Pebble Creek resident whose first words were, “Where’s the grumpy guy? I’m here for my ox tail.”
Other new and old favorites of mine at Las Palmas include the grilled flank steak with chimichurri sauce, the breaded steak milanese with marinara sauce and Italian cheese, the “masitas” (pork chunks) and tender, grilled pork chops.
One item I couldn’t try that everyone else in our office raved about is the shrimp in garlic sauce, served with a side of homemade tostones (large and not sweet fried green plantains). If you’re not allergic to shrimp, I definitely suggest dipping Ramses’ perfect Cuban bread in the sauce.
Other popular appetizers include ham, chicken or cheese croquettes, empanadas and pork tamales. Soups include black bean, chickpea and chicken tortilla. Try the house and Las Palmas salads (the creamy herbal dressing is addictive), too.
Other favorites on the menu include the chicken and yellow rice, the Cuban-Creole shrimp stew, the “vaca frita” (crispy beef), the Cuban rafters (merluza topped with shrimp), Ramses’ steak sandwich (unbreaded palomillo steak topped with sautéed onions and shoestring potatoes) and the fried fish sandwich.
Daily Lunch Specials & More!
Even though all of the entrées on the menu are only $8.99-$14.99, many of the previously mentioned favorites (including picadillo, ropa vieja, pork chops and more) are available as lunch specials (with white or yellow rice and a side item) for only $7.99-$8.99 for lunch.
There’s also a great kids menu, with all items $4.99 or less, an extensive catering menu and many homemade desserts, including flan, rice pudding, creme brulée, triple chocolate truffle cake and Ramses’ homemade tres leches dessert, which Bob says is, “the best I’ve had anywhere and I’ve had it all over the world. Do yourself a favor and try it for yourself!”
Las Palmas Café is located at 19651 Bruce B. Downs Blvd., in the Pebble Creek Collection. It is open Monday-Thursday, 11 a.m.-8 p.m., and 11 a.m.-9 p.m. on Saturday (closed Sunday). For more information, call (813) 907-1333, or visit LasPalmasCafe.net. And please, tell Ramses and Ana that we sent you!
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