Carlos' Cuban Grill Tallahassee

Working lunch that was absolutely worth the delay getting home. I was traveling back home after a work trip, starving, and needed to find a place I could work for a while. A great Cuban place in Melbourne set off my craving for good Cuban food, so I stopped here based on the reviews. I'll be stopping by every time I drive through in the future. The service is the best I've ever had. Even if the food hadn't been incredible, I'd go back for the service. I was greeted by the owner, the only person working on a late Monday afternoon. He was very helpful with recommendations, filled a water bowl for my dog and greeted me like an old friend. When he brought my food out, he even brought my dog a plate of treats. I ordered a Cuban coffee, roasted pork dinner and key lime pie. The mojo he makes fresh every day made me realize I've never had fresh mojo and I'm now spoiled for bottled. I wish I had that recipe. The coffee was very good, but paled in comparison to the meal. The pork came with black beans and white rice, maduros (sweet plantains), yucca and sliced, toasted bread. The toast had mojo drizzled on it, so I tried it first before it got cold or soggy. I couldn't stop to taste anything else because it was so good. The pork was very tender, with good flavor. Being drizzled with mojo made it even tastier. The black beans were as good as mine and I will order them every time I'm here. The key lime pie is also made by the owner and I took a chance because he said it was a bit tart and it was the right color, a pale yellow. I'm so glad I took the chance and I would love to have that recipe. It was very smooth, not too tart or too sweet, exactly as good key lime pie should be. I'll be thinking about this food for a while and may have to find an excuse to drive the 2 1/2 hours to eat here again soon.

The food was excellent and the staff was authentically friendly. All of us had the Cuban sandwich, and we all got different sides. When they say half a Cuban, be prepared for more than enough food. The black beans and rice were spot on, and the yuka con mojo (boiled yuka then drenched in oil) was amazing! The fries were just fries, but how can you even compare them against the other two sides!? We will be back!