Havana Delights Cafe

I really liked this place. The food was good but the whole ambiance was really great. You really have to understand Bartow FL to appreciate Havana Delights. Bartow is small town Florida at it’s best.
I may have been the only non-​resident in the whole place. This was family Friday night out. Bartow children may be the best behaved children in Florida. It’s a wonderful place for raising a family.
That’s why I love a family restaurant like this. I live in the land of franchise/​corporate restaurants and this was a wonderful place. Here in Naples I love the Rumba Cuban Café and the food at Havana Delights was not as good. That really didn’t matter though.
Havana Delights is a great place.

Stopped in at dinner time on a Wednesday after finding them with a google search. Owner Christine came out and introduced herself, welcomed us, and took our order. We were the only customers dining in, but saw a couple take out orders picked up. Ordered the pork with yellow rice and beans and a side of plantains. Food came out promptly and it was AMAZING! Loved the décor, homey atmosphere, and personal service. Can’t wait to go back!

very flavorful food! the owners, Alfredo and Christine were very nice and personally apologized for the slow service during lunch rush hour. we forgot all about the wait after tasting their food. so worth the wait. we’ll definitely come back.

Food is amazing. Pork chunks are unbelievable! The place is a dive so don’t expect much. Very busy lunch crowd. Service is a little slow… mom and pop style so sit back and relax. Cuban coffee was outstanding too.

Oye. This restaurant brings you right to authentic city. The owner is super friendly. Service does take a bit of time but it’s worth the wait. The whole menu is so delicious it was hard to decide. You will not be disappointed. They also cater. Just saying

On a whim, I pulled up restaurants in the area and found this hidden, local gem. Most of the other reviews are spot on. The arroz con pollo, croquetas, tostones, and masitas de puerco are delicious. The owners are super sweet and friendly. The prices were beyond reasonable. I wish I had this place at home.

Wonderful! I found myself on Bartow for jury duty and was looking for different places to eat lunch. I ended up eating here on 2 different days. I had the Miami on day and the another sausage sandwich (don’t remember the name). I thought the food was excellent. The owners were very hands on and friendly. I enjoyed both of my visits. I will be back!

Everything made in house– fresh! Great flavors! Warm service and cool surroundings– as a chef myself, I much prefer the fresh made than the restaurant two doors down that serves food delivered by Sysco — I highly recommend Havana Delights if you want real Cuban treats packed full of flavor!

All I can say is WOW! It’s about the workers and owner. They are friendly and culturally service. Food is so good!

I have visited Havana Delights Café on a few occasions and have always had quality authentic Cuban food. My most recent visit was by far my best visit. I tried the Vaca Frita and Maduros. The Vaca Frita was tender, juicy and topped with fresh grilled onions and flavorful minced garlic. The side of black beans and rice was the perfect compliment. Maduros are fried sweet plantains and they were soft, sweet and delicious. Overall, Havana Delights Café is one of the better Cuban restaurants I have visited and one of the best places to eat in Bartow.

How would I know if the food is good or not? It took no less than 10 minutes for them to take my order. I actually had to call them on their telephone to get them to come to my table. Then I waited 25 minutes and they never even brought my water.
NO THANKS. They won’t get another chance for me.
By the way, in case you’re wondering these times are no exaggeration whatsoever. I have between 35 and 45 minutes wasted and I walked away hungry.

Second time I’ve been here and they have not disappointed. Will continue to make my way here from Tampa.
Chicken & yellow rice — delicious
Pork chunks — OMG like no other
Vaca Friday — Yummy!

The Ropa Vieja was outstanding. The yellow rice and black beans yummy. The flan was great. The service fast and friendly

What a amazing dining experience. The pork chunks are definitely something that needs to be tried. The flavor was incredible and it left you wanting more. I also tried the tamale and it was just as good. This is a place that will become a normal stop for me and my family. Great atmosphere with very friendly service.

Fabulous pork chunks, Cuban sandwiches, black beans, Cuban coffee. Great family owned restaurant. A real find on a trip from Orlando to Fort Myers.

Fabulous pork chunks with black beans. The empanadas and fried plantains were also amazing. Give it a try if you are anywhere close to Bartow.

My second time at this spot; I live in Tampa but when I come to Bartow for a visit, I will be coming here!

First, the food. It was scrumptious. I would highly recommend the croquettes. Very tasty and cheap. The stuffed potato was also very good. Never having Cuban cuisine before, I wasn’t sure what to expect (or what to order) and the menu is very well laid out, and explains things very well, which was helpful to me. I didn’t care for the crab, but my mom really liked it. It was a bit sweet, which threw me off. For my main course, I ordered the Piccadilly (ground beef with olives and raisins). It was very good, but when I go back, I think I will just order a few croquettes, the stuffed potato and a side salad and call it a meal (along with that delicious Cuban bread). I also wanted to try the fried plantains – they had both kinds (green & sweet), but I was much too full after all those samplings.
The place is run by Christine & Alfredo who own it. They recently moved the restaurant from Lakeland to Bartow. They are also your waiters, so they are very knowledgeable. However, the service does suffer a bit because they are wearing a lot of hats. Small price to pay for such good food and compatible atmosphere.
Prices are very reasonable.

Found it on Unilocal.I find Cuban food as much as I can when I travel and this place just went to the top off list. Small place holding only about 30. Nice Latin music in the background. We had Pork Chunks with their own sauce. a five star meal. Cuban and Bean soup was superior. Owner gave us a read out on how they make the sauce for the pork. That explained why I had never had anything like it. Constant stream of customers at 2 in the afternoon. Staff seemed to know everyone by name which tells me a lot about how they approach the business. It is not fancy and the edges are worn. But… they payoff to stopping here overweights any of that.

If I die and go to heaven I want 5 plates of the picadillo to meet me there.
I had surgery 5 weeks ago and since I have been struggling with finding anything flavorful that I enjoy eating. Well I KNOW I just found it. The picadillo was soooo full of flavor. The raising, onion, olives– EVERYTHING! It’s the first thing I’ve kept down in a long time or didn’t chew the flavor out of. After only a few bites I was full but I look forward for tomorrow’s lunch.
Now as for the service it was amazing too! The owner greeted me. Made me feel like family and the service was really quick. I will definitely be returning with family and friends. I’ve grown up on Cuban food and visited a lot of different Cuban places in Polk county. This is one of the best.