Versailles (restaurant) facts for kids

Versailles restaurant (foreground) and bakery (background); the complex stretches the entire block on Calle Ocho (8th St.) between 35th and 36th Avenues.

Versailles cafeteria, restaurant, and bakery is a landmark eating establishment located on Calle Ocho (8th St) in Little Havana, Miami. The large restaurant seats 370 people and has ornate etched glass and statuettes and features a bakery, a takeout area, a counter window and the ability to host banquets and parties. Founded by Felipe A. Valls Sr. (from Santiago de Cuba) in 1971, Versailles is a popular restaurant among local Cuban exiles and tourists for its Cuban cuisine and connection to anti-Castro politics.

Gastronomical significance

Versailles is a popular place for Cuban food and social gathering in Miami, serving "cafecito", "cortadito", Cuban pastries (beef or guava), and "croquetas" at a walk-up window.

In its main dining room, the restaurant also serves dishes including Moros, palomilla steaks (Cuban minute steak), maduros, tasajo, croquetas de yuca, tamal en cazuela, and milanesa. There is an adjacent bakery, a take-out counter, and ample meeting space.

In 2001, the restaurant won a James Beard Foundation Award as an American Classic.

See also

In Spanish: Versailles (restaurante) para niños