"Un sanwiché Cubano, por favor."

It's lunchtime and you're in a Cuban restaurant.  (I wish. *sigh*)

You think to yourself, "Self, I don't want anything too big. Maybe I'll just have a sandwich."

So you peruse the menu of said Cuban restaurant and find a few noteworthy sandwiches that you can choose from:

There's the classic Pan con Lechón or Cuban Pork Sandwich.  You really can't go wrong there.
There's the not-so-subtly named Cuban Sandwich.
Or of course, the Elena Ruz - a delicious turkey, cream cheese and jam concoction (which I flagrantly re-invented, but that's not important right now).

But then your hungry eyes fall on this item on the menu: Pan con Bistec.

And you ask yourself, "What's a bistec?"  (Bee-STEKH)

This, my hungry friend, is where you suddenly find that you've entered the Cuban Translation Fun-House.

Bistec is a (fabulous!) Cubanism for "beef steak." 

Huh.

So then, you reason, Pan con Bistec is really "Bread with Steak" or.....

A Cuban Steak Sandwich! 

Why didn't they just say so in the first place?!

And okay, you could certainly order that Pan con Bistec from our Imaginary Cuban Restaurant or you could make one using my recipe.

I am not even going to feign modesty here.  I will go on record and unequivocally state that I make The Best Cuban Steak Sandwich EVER.



You can find my Pan con Bistec recipe posted around lunchtime today over at Babalú blog. (I like to post around lunchtime for maximum effect. =D)

Do you have a favorite Cuban sandwich?

(It's one of mine, isn't it?)  ;-)