A Little Cuba at Havana Cafe in Franklin

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While the rest of Milwaukee was out celebrating St. Patrick’s Day with beer and corned beef, I took a little trip to Havana Cafe (7119 S. 76th St.) in Franklin. I was greeted by chef and owner Angelina Maholias with an exchange of names and a handshake. I felt at home and was ready for some good home-cooked Cuban cuisine.

Angelina’s family is half Greek and half Cuban and has been in the Milwaukee area restaurant industry since she can remember. She started her own business in 1992 doing private catering, using what she had learned from both sides of her family. Noticing there wasn’t a Cuban restaurant in town, Angelina opened the first Cuban spot in 1996 and has been continuing to feed the community with different restaurants along the way.

Today, you can find her behind the counter at Havana Cafe or in the Little Havana Express food truck parked around the greater Milwaukee area. Wanting to keep it a family affair, it’s either Angelina or her son running the kitchens. While the Franklin location has a small menu, it’s packed with big flavor.

I ordered an El Cubano sandwich—roasted pork, ham, Swiss, pickles, mustard, and her homemade lime sauce pressed between two pieces of wonderful white bread. On the side, I ordered half yuca fries, half fried plantains. Fun fact: yuca fries repel grease and have natural nutrients, unlike our familiar French fries, so there are some health benefits to eating them. Then she insisted I tried one of the beef potato balls just for fun. All the food was incredible and she made sure of it.

Each customer that called or came into the restaurant was treated warmly and with warm food. If someone showed up late for a takeout order, she offered to heat it up before they walked out. You really feel like you’re in a Cuban home’s kitchen, and the flavors will have you coming back for more. Havana Cafe is one of, if not the, best casual Cuban spots in the greater Milwaukee area.