Habanos Cuban Café and Pizza

Miami Beach, United States

3.7

22 reviews

Accepts Credit Cards

Contacts

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Telephone:
+1 305-672-9200
Website:
habanoscafe.net
Address:
1200 Washington Ave, Miami Beach, FL, 33139
Nearby public transportation stops & stations:
270 ftWASHINGTON AV@12 ST
350 ftWASHINGTON AV@11 ST
470 ftWASHINGTON AV@13 ST
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Bussiness info

Takes Reservations
No
Delivery
Yes
Take-out
Yes
Accepts Credit Cards
Yes
Good For
Lunch
Parking
Street
Bike Parking
Yes
Good for Kids
Yes
Good for Groups
Yes
Attire
Casual
Ambience
Casual
Noise Level
Average
Alcohol
Beer & Wine Only
Outdoor Seating
No
Wi-Fi
No
Has TV
Yes
Waiter Service
Yes

Today

Today –
Local time (Miami Beach) 10:43 Wednesday, 25 June 2025

Business hours

Monday –
Tuesday –
Wednesday –
Thursday –
Friday –
Saturday –
Sunday –

Description

Specialties

Bringing you the bold and fresh flavors of Cuban cuisine in an unbeatable South Beach setting, Habanos Cuban Café offers a Miami dining experience bursting with authentic island sazón. From Pizza Cubana to sandwiches that can satisfy any craving to decadent desserts, we went back to our roots to make sure all of our dishes are hechos como en casa.

History

Established in 1992.

From the day our doors first opened, we’ve worked to not only impress our customers with delicious, authentic Cuban flavors, but also satisfy the standards of our pickiest audience — ourselves. As born and bred Cubans, we know and love the island flavors and culture. For that reason, we work to make sure each of our always homemade dishes has un sabor auténtico and can match up to abuela’s famous cooking.

A part of the Polo Norte family of restaurants, Habanos Cuban Café offers the flavors you’d expect from Polo Norte with a South Beach twist. We’ve evolved from an ice cream parlor to a Miami staple, and will continue to build our legacy as the perfect spot to enjoy truly authentic Cuban food in an atmosphere that will have you coming back time and time again.

Meet the Business Owner

Raul and Vivian B.

Business Owner

Resilient and dedicated to always delivering full island flavor, Raul and Vivian Busquet founded Polo Norte back in 1992 and have, since then, been giving Miami a taste of true Cuban cuisine.

After leaving Cuba in the early 80s, the family opened the original Polo Norte, an ice cream parlor devastated by Hurricane Andrew only three days after it opened. Determined to make their dreams a reality, Raul and Vivian picked up the pieces of the space that started it all and came back stronger than ever. With a menu overhaul that included Pizza Cubana and many other savory Cuban treats to go with the desserts, Polo Norte quickly grew to be one of Miami’s residents’ favorite places to eat.

Today, the Busquet family’s hard work and commitment to great food have rewarded them with a chain of successful restaurants, still family owned and operated and run by the same principles — work ethic and genuine «Cuban» hospitality. ¡Buen Provecho!

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22 reviews of Habanos Cuban Café and Pizza

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Place rating: 5
Utica, NY
Best roast pork I’ve had since Junior’s in Bushwick. Hands down.
Place rating: 5
Austin, TX
This place is so much fun! I love the old time Cuban feel and we shared a Cuban sampler between the two of us. It was delicious, especially the pork! Definitely get a mojito to go with it! We plan to go back if we have a chance.
Place rating: 4
San Jose, CA
While talking to our bartender at our hotel she suggest to come here in order to avoid paying outlandish prices for sub-​par food.
Overall, it was pretty good, but it was somewhat dead here and I kinda wish I did eat on the strip as we were technically tourists, so why not go for the tourist experience? The food was good, but my gf who is Hispanic was surprised that the waitress didn’t seem to know much about the food when she said a few words with a Spanish flavor. The waitress seemed a little bit lost.
Again, the food is good, but this isn’t the hot spot in Miami. I kinda wanted the hot spot, but oh well.
Place rating: 5
Miami, Estados Unidos
Le doy 5 la comida muy buena y la atención también gracias por tener este restaurante en miami beach
Place rating: 4
Cleveland, OH
A real find, extremely satisfying food. Had an authentic mouth watering Cuban Sandwich, sweet plantains and a mango smoothie. Great meal at a fair price. Highly recommend.
Place rating: 4
Atlanta, GA
yes, not «real,» Cuban but i really don’t care as long as i get beaucoup meat and fried plantains. i was past starving when i got take-​out from here one night. all i cared about was the amount of cholesterol and fat that would end up in my belly. I’ve visited this restaurant once before — last year — on vacation when this place was known as polo norte so i obviously knew that i would not be disappointed.
i got the fatty special of vaca frita with tostones and maduros PLUS flan de coco. omg, i ate like a queen on the cheap and will obviously eat here again next year when it will, no doubt, be renamed something else.
Place rating: 3
Miami, FL
This review is based on 3 different experiences I’ve had here. First time I came to have breakfast as well, I don’t know if it was that I was hungover or maybe they had a different cook, or maybe a little bit of both but the food tasted different, the first time was better than this one, first the sausage was different and this one my waitress even though she was nice she messed up my eggs, I said over easy and they came out sunny side up, but I have to admit they looked so perfect that I went for it. The toast was a little too toasty for my taste, they didn’t have «natural» OJ the one you find at any Cuban place, no idea why, she didn’t tell me why.
Overall the food is good, the service is good too and the price!!! Oh my!!! You can’t find that here on South Beach!!! All that for less than $ 10 :-O
So, in the end, I would give them the benefit of the doubt, I will be back, for sure!!!
PS: Their regular food items are yummy too.
They have daily lunch specials :).
Place rating: 3
Miami, FL
Despite my fitness goals, if I cheat on my meals I want said cheat to be perfect. Habanos Cuban is (almost) there, with their huge portions of chicken milanese (Cuban style chicken parm). The portion is huge enough that you will have enough to take home for lunch of dinner the next day. Their moros were tasty and the fried plantains (maduros) were just greasy and perfectly sweet. I also liked my cortadito; it was just enough caffeine to wrap up the night and drive home.
Service at the bar –complete with the old style round cafeteria spinning chairs — was pleasant and there’s a TV by the bar. Where they do fall short is on the sauce. Sauces like BBQ and marinara are my cheat, and this milanesa was a touch on the dry side. Maybe I’m spoiled by another Cuban restaurant, but a good chicken milanesa should be generous on the sauce. My chicken entrée this last Wednesday disappointed in that sense. Here’s hoping they fix that soon!
Place rating: 5
New York, NY
Delicious food at a reasonable price for the area. Service is quick and friendly. Food looks as delicious as it tastes. Really great to check out if you want to get away from the crowds and prices of Ocean Drive.
Place rating: 4
New York, NY
They don’t have desserts.
I had a coffee. The café con leche. It was awesome. The queso cup is also good. Spacious. Decent service.
Place rating: 3
Tamarac, FL
So a fellow Unilocaler recommended this place for the guava ice cream. So of course since I was in the area I had to try the ice cream. I mean anything guava is good in my book. This place was within walking distance to Lincoln Road. We got there and there were only a handful of customers eating (they also offer Cuban food) as well as ice cream. We sat down and all ordered the guava ice cream. A single scoop is a pretty standard size scoop (which was plenty of ice cream) along with an almond flavored cookie. As much as I love guava, and I did like this ice cream, I felt that it needed a more pronounced guava flavor. The texture of the ice cream was a tad grainy but not enough that I didn’t enjoy eating it. I wouldn’t make a special trip to get the ice cream, however if I was in the area again I would consider getting a scoop.
Place rating: 4
Miami Beach, FL
Incredibly good food with incredibly bad service… who cares, the food is incredible!
True, not super authentic Cuban but very delicious.
THE FOOD:
$ 5 happy hour menu is wonderful, so 4−7pm is the time to go.
Tostones Rellenos — Ropa Viega: these were just okay, maybe the only item we didn’t fight over?
Sliders — Croqueta Preperada: delicious, I’d never had a coqueta slider before
Sliders — Vaca Frita (Pork): absolutely amazing, you want to order these every time
Flat Breads — Guava BBQ Pork: this was my favorite item on the table, I will never not order this! Perfect tangy/​sweet combination with excellent quality pork
Flat Breads — Bacon, Chorizo & Onions: this was the also a table favorite, the chorizo was lovely
OTHER:
Service — Stunningly bad! Highlights include: one waiter put a few things down on our table but didn’t say what was what and when we asked she shrugged and walked away. When we asked to split the check (evenly among 3 people) we got a dirty look?!
Water — we never got a refill, even after asking for one
Website — I couldn’t access the menus on IE but didn’t check Chrome or Firefox
Tapas — the happy hour menu is perfect for sharing
Value — very low prices for really great food, this is definitely an excellent value meal
Venue — it’s a cuban café, as you’d expect it’s a step up from fast food ambience but not elegant
Place rating: 4
Pomona, CA
Fair prices and the dish I had recommended was solid. If I were local I would make this a regular stop.
Place rating: 4
London, United Kingdom
Wow, I enjoyed this place. I know a bit about Cuban food, and even spent 4 weeks travelling in Cuba itself. I ordered a hamburger and chips (not the potato type of chips) and paid $ 10.00, plus tax. The hamburger was very large and in all fairness, I never did see that sort of hamburger in Cuba itself. I suspect that if whatever is generally available in Cuba were to end up in Miami restaurants, then that restaurant might not stay open for that long. It’s a bit like trying the average Mexican taco in the USA.
I wonder how many of us would actually like to visit the average Cuban restaurant in Cuba itself. So, I think that Cuban restaurants in the USA have to «Americanise» their menus a bit to suit their clientele. I’m sure that there are exceptions though.
If I was closer to Calle Ocho, I’d probably go to Café Versailles. However, if you’re in Miami Beach and don’t want to cross over into Miami, then I’d recommend trying out Habanos. It’s not a posh restaurant, but it’s certainly good enough for informal situations.
My girlfriend ordered a half chicken, black beans, cassava, brown rice and plantains for $ 11.00 plus tax. There was a lot of food and she couldn’t finish it. It tasted very yummy and I finished it off for breakfast the following day.
I wasn’t that keen on their café con leche though. I suspect that they don’t use the dark roast beans (or maybe they’re blended with something else), or maybe the barista was having an off day.
The Key Lime pie was OK, but not worth $ 5.00.
Stick to the main dishes if you visit here.
The location is very good though, as it’s really close to Ocean Drive.
Place rating: 3
Charlotte, NC
We arrived a little after 11:00, after hearing they served a good cup of Cuban Coffee. We were seated immediately and brought water, but after that I am not sure what happened. Not one server was to be found and when they appeared they served the «locals» and left us sitting at our corner table. After 10 minutes I said if we are not approached in the next 5 minutes I was leaving. My boyfriend was not happy with my comment and said let’s wait. He finally caught someone’s attention. We ordered two Cuban Coffees and the Egg White Omelet with veggies, potatoes, toast and fruit. The coffee was delivered, yum!!! Then the fresh fruit was served, a good variety and fresh. Finally the omelet dish arrived and it was one of the best. The omelet was cooked to perfection, the hash was fresh, hot and delicious! The food gets a five but the service and overall feeling, of not feeling welcome, dropped my rating down. I wish I could have rated Habanos higher. Welcome out of towners, please!
Place rating: 1
Miami Beach, FL
Soooooo Idk where to start I paid 11 bucks worth of food and well let’s see my «avocado salad» was horrible I’ve tasted plenty of avocado salads before and this by far the was the worst I’ve ever indulged pieces of avocados were even finely cut they looked extra huge like baby blocks and a little bunch of lettuce and a huge piece of tomato for all who knows avocado salad consists of Fresh avocados tossed with sweet onion, green pepper, tomato, cilantro and lime juice and not to mention all chopped nicely but that’s number one I disliked then the palomilla I had was extremely dry and flavorless it was a quick stop for lunch and expected so much better so I’m never stopping by this place ever again
Place rating: 3
St Petersburg, FL
I am sorry but one cannot find authentic Cuban food in South beach and this is proof. Stopped in here because this place got good reviews on Unilocal but when in Miami, my bf and I want authentic Cuban. Best stick to Little Havana people.
The service was decent but I did order a sangria that never came. The food tasted ok but seemed to try to meet the needs of tourists that do not know about Cuban food and make it fancy. I got the lobster bisque which is good and the tostones appetizer. The drizzle on top had too much orange flavor and it was shaved plantain. I was not a fan and my bf was not a fan of the pulled pork sandwich.
If you prefer more tame or more upscale type flavors then this would be a good spot but not for authentic Cuban. Three stars because the food was decent but I would not return.
Place rating: 3
Miami, FL
Maybe not the worst but definitely not the best experience for Cuban food. Its got a nice little location right on the corner and seemed like it’d fit the bill for four hungry chicks but we weren’t all that impressed with the offerings.
The piña colada looked great but the taste was off. They added too many coconut shavings and sprinkled cinnamon which completely altered the taste. Sadly, I was not able to finish the drink… if you wanna add garnish, add a pineapple, throw a cherry in, but cinnamon?! No thanks! Not on a pineapple and coconut based cocktail. I ordered the fried plantain pizza and it tasted like a fried plantain pizza. Exactly what I expected… nothing more nothing less… happy they didn’t add chocolate shavings or anything ridiculous to it.
Service wasn’t bad but nothing was as memorable as the bad piña colada I couldn’t finish which sadly left me depressed. Habanos… You owe me a piña colada without all the added fluff and I’m coming back for it so be ready!
Place rating: 3
Baltimore, MD
All good things must come to an end, even our weekend of Miami heaven in the midst of Northeastern winter hell. For our last meal we definitely wanted Cuban, even though we’d had quite a bit of it already; Polo Norte had the advantage of being a block from our bus stop, so we could look out for the airport shuttle while enjoying our dinner. (For the record, we made it in plenty of time, but it’s such a lengthy process that I’d probably take a cab if I had to do it all over again.)
This place was so slick inside that I guessed it was a chain, and sure enough it is – five branches locally. The polar bear logo on the wall changes color slowly through the neon spectrum, and provided some visual stimulation.
As usual, we wanted to order the whole menu, but settled on two dishes. She had the pork chunks with fried onions and black beans. They were wonderful, though not quite as good as what we’d had elsewhere. I tried the baby churrasco, and while I appreciated the option of a smaller steak, it was just too chewy for me. I’m pretty picky about beef, so maybe it was a bad choice. I was also disappointed that there was no chimichurri on the side; when I asked, they brought me a plastic cup of, basically, vinaigrette — not the vibrant, spicy green paste I was hoping for.
Our server was really sweet and the food came quickly after we told them we were catching a bus in half an hour. I can’t say I’d go back, but it was a pleasant evening.
Place rating: 4
Philadelphia, PA
Ho there, traveler! You’re sweating your nutz off walking around South Beach, but now you’re staring at a place called Polo Norte — yup, North Pole. The former ice cream joint turned Cubano fooderia has money pork preparations and plenty of other Latino choices to keep you filled up full.
As for cooling off, at least they have A/​C.
Place rating: 3
Miami Beach, FL
Ironic, to call a restaurant the «North Pole» when it is located in hot, subtropical Miami! My friend and I decided to come by when we got out of a late showing and could not think of a place open that late on a Sunday, so this was his suggestion. I wasn’t in the mood for Cuban food, but I saw the high reviews and said «sure, why not».
We were quickly seated at a booth, and scanned the menu. We each decided to get a sandwich and split it. He ordered the Sandwich Cubano and I got the Pan Con Bistec. My fries were pretty good and my friend helped himself to some, as he got the plantain chips, of which he wasn’t too fond. We split the sandwiches so we could each get a taste of the two varieties. His bread was a bit too greasy (as in, greasier than the French fries!), although mine wasn’t. I am not Cuban nor do I know much about Cuban food, so perhaps the recipe calls for butter on Sandwich Cubano but not on Pan Con Bistec, I don’t know. I’d also have to say that the pork in his sandwich and the steak in mine were somewhat dry, not juicy, so that plays into my deduction of stars.
The food was okay, not spectacular. I’d say it’s along the quality (and even the look and feel) of a Latin Café chain restaurant. I ate once at Casavana in Miami Lakes, and I’d have to say that place was much better than Polo Norte. Same with Rio Cristal, though I haven’t been in about 8 years, so don’t quote me on that. I have not tried Puerto Sagua or David’s, although those come recommended, so I will have to try them for comparison. I do want to mention that the service was very friendly and attentive, and I enjoyed the Tres Leches dessert a lot. That being said, you can find other Cuban restaurants off the beach where the food is as good or even better, and a much better value.
Place rating: 4
Manhattan, NY
Oh Emm Gee! I just can’t get enough of this place! It has come to the point where I’d make a trip from New York to Miami, just to eat here. Sorry, Chalan on the Beach, I plead guilty of two-​timing here, but what’s a poor man to do? The temptation is strong and the flesh is weak.
The first time I ate here, I was surprised that they did not have Ropa Vieja and Fricasee on their menu, but I wanted to try this place for what it had to offer; not for what I had enjoyed at other Cuban restaurants. So I had the Vaca Frita and loved it. Tonight, lo and behold, they had Ropa Vieja on their «Saturday Specials» menu (see how this place has a connection with my heart?)! They also have Ropa Vieja sliders and Vaca Frita (both carne and pollo) sliders! And if that wasn’t enough for me to fall head over heels, they have guava ice cream and mamey ice cream!
There is something inexplicably attractive about a good-​looking server who can’t speak much English and primarily uses sign language and smiles to check on you. Scho Schweet!!! It makes it perfectly OK for them to slightly mess up my order; I’m a reasonable man, and I understand that errors do occur where there is a language barrier! See, cute people bring out the best in me! Plus, everything here is delicious, so even if they get me something slightly different from what I had asked for, it is still very tasty.
The only negative (and hence the 4 stars rather than 5) is that every time I’ve had the café con leche here, it’s always been somewhat cold. I love cuban coffee, and I like my coffee scalding hot, so that was a slight disappointment. I suspect they add cold milk to their freshly brewed coffee.