Last Monday night, my husband was complaining that he has been craving FULL FLAVOR foods and most of his meals have not been cutting it. Just 24 hours after I flew back home from Atlanta, and right before I headed to bed that night, I casually mentioned that I’d be spending the day in DC at the opening of a Cuban restaurant and sampling a bunch of their foods (disclaimer – the food was free, but I’d pay for it a million times over if I could eat like this more often).
“Can I come with you?! Tell them I’ve been to Havana. I’ll be a good critic of the food,” he pleaded.
Amazingly, I was able to connect with the organizer of the event, who graciously invited my hungry-for-spicy-food husband to join me at the opening of Sophie’s Cuban Cuisine DC.
I could end this post here by saying that we have found our new favorite restaurant and have already planned to bring our kids to eat at Sophie’s Cuban Cuisine.
We started our afternoon off with the most delicious empanadas (both chicken and beef) with Sophie’s addictive green sauce and my new-favorite-sauce-ever, her white mojito sauce. Although I could have opted for a Diet Coke or an ice water, I decided to be adventurous and try one of the Cuban sodas. By the end of lunch, we had tried the pineapple soda, watermelon soda, and the very unique and delicious Yerba Mate soda…as well as two of their incredible Batidos (fruity shakes). Oh my word!
Empanadas and drinks were followed by an entire feast of Cuban dishes – pavo al horno (roast turkey), ropa vieja (a shredded beef stew with a very fun name), salmon (my favorite!), pork chops in red sauce, yellow rice and moro rice (rice with black beans), maduros y tostones (fried sweet plantains and friend green plantains), a cold onion salad (a surprising delight!) and Sophie’s special Cuban sandwiches.
If this sounds like too much food for two people to eat for lunch…it was! We were able to take our left overs home and feed our entire family of 7 with it. The kids were huge fans as well.
One thing I noticed about everything we tasted at Sophie’s was that it was all FULL of flavor. Even my husband commented that Sophie’s food satisfied his spicy food craving 110%. But it wasn’t spicy-hot – it was definitely all kid-friendly and VERY authentic (they even talked about how difficult it is to find just the right bread in the US to make an authentic Cuban sandwich…apparently, their searching has paid off!).
About Sophie’s Cuban Cuisine:
The Operating Philosophy: Sophie’s Cuban Cuisine offers guests the invigorating experience of a bustling, fast-paced Cuban neighborhood restaurant with authentic tasty food made fresh all day from the highest quality ingredients.
Sophie is from Peru, but her step father is from Cuba, which is where her passion for Cuban cuisine began (that’s Sophie with me in the shot shot above). But I love that Sophie’s is more than about the food. The staff at Sophie’s has created a welcoming and fun environment. My husband might have enjoyed talking with the employees as much as he enjoyed eating all the food.
The building on 19th street, circa late 1800s, that is now home to Sophie’s newest restaurant is in a perfect location, within easy walking distance of Farragut North and Dupont Circle metro stations and surrounded by busy DC office buildings. During the lunch hour, Sophie’s caters to the DC workers who don’t have a lot of time to dedicate to lunch with two options: patrons can either go through the cafeteria-style line on the main floor where a plate is dished up hot in minutes or they can walk up the stairs for a sit-down meal. Since all of their food is cooked constantly throughout the day, even the sit-down lunch only takes a few minutes (you can be in and out in 15 minutes!). Sophie’s also offers catering.
Where can I find Sophie’s Cuban Cuisine?
- Website: sophiescuban.com/dc/
- Twitter: @sophiescubandc
- Instagram: sophiescubandc
DC-area Location:
1134 19th Street, NW
Washington, DC 20036
–>within easy walking distance of both Farragut North and Dupont Circle metro stations
This is the first of 4 restaurants to open in the DC/Maryland/Virginia area owned by the Lambert Family. I’m crossing my fingers for a location really close to MY house. They’ve also got several restaurants in New York City.
Check out Sophie’s menu online….what would YOU order?
Many thanks to Sophie’s for inviting me to their DC restaurant opening event – we will be back!
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