Sandy's Cafe

1026 White St.
Key West, FL 33040
(305) 295-0159

For my final installment of Florida Key's eating, I saved the best for last. I can't stress enough the importance of going to Sandy's Cafe upon any visit to Key West. If you want 24 hour street food, you have come to the right spot. The food here is magical. One of my biggest disappointments of the trip was forgetting the other half of my gigantic Cuban sandwich in my car overnight, thus rendering it inedible for my foggy breakfast the next morning.

When you walk up, you will be greeted with a menu over the ordering window, which advises you to "Think Big." Noted. If you look through said ordering window, you will see that this hidden gem is indeed part of a laundromat, so you know its going to be delicious.

 

I went with the steak tacos, Cuban bread and Cuban sandwich. We grabbed some cans of beer from the grocery store across the street, finagled a seat next to the window where could watch the grill master work, and enjoyed the show. Heaven. By the way, Key West is LAX (and I don't mean the airport) when it comes to open containers, so I am pretty sure you will have no problem brown-bagging it while waiting for your food. No one seemed to bat an eye at us.

The steak tacos were the first victims. They were absolutely incredible. Tender, flavorful steak, chopped with onions on the grill, covered in cheese, and finished with cilantro. Simple perfection. I was blown away at the tender bites of steak, failing to run across even one chewy or gristly piece. I never knew Cuban-made Mexican tacos would be so fulfilling. They do them better than the vast majority of Mexican places at which I have eaten.

The Cuban bread was ordered on a whim, as it was $1, and I wanted to try it against the disappointing offering at Mo's a couple of doors down. Obviously, it was in a league of its own, and cost $2 less than its upscale competitor.

Thin, moist bread covered with a generous amount of garlicy butter, this is what Cuban bread is meant to be.

Last but not least, the long awaited Cubano! This thing was seriously massive, as you can see by the amount of space it fills in the Styrofoam to-go container pictured below. The french fries were delicious, thin, salty, and a real kicker when dipped into their extremely spicy hot sauce (you have to ask for a side).

The sandwich itself, well, it was one of my favorites I have ever eaten. A thicker bread than El Siboney, but more packed with delicious ingredients.

There was an ample portion of roast pork, supplemented with thinly sliced ham, pickles, Swiss, mayo and mustard. Creamy, salty, tangy and delicious. Damn, I am craving one right now.

If you are in the Key West area, move away from Duval and head towards White. You will be glad you did. Did I mention they are open 24 hours??? Cash only, and don't be surprised if there is a line, and you may have to get creative with the seating.

The Stuffed Pig

3520 Overseas Hwy
Marathon, FL 33050
(305) 743-4059
Website

The land of warm weather, crystal clear water and ocean breezes could also be known for something else, mediocre breakfasts, were it not for this diamond in the rough. I was hooked immediately upon seeing the name "The Stuffed Pig." They are located at mile marker 49, right at the turn for Keys Fisheries. And if you are looking for something that will carry you well over until lunch, this is the spot to stop.

With a small inside dining area, and a large tiki-style outdoor eating section, the Pig is a great place to grab some early morning grub before a day of adventure.

I had the pigs breakfast, which consisted of two eggs (over easy for me), two pieces of bacon, two sausage patties, two pieces of toast, home fries, AND biscuits and sausage gravy. Good lord. And I wonder why I never lose weight. The bacon was thick cut, sweet, smokey and salty. Perfection. The sausage patties were even better. I am not sure how you get better than perfection, but they achieved it. Although they weren't as browned as I would usually like, the meat was seasoned perfectly. Sage, pepper, and fairy tears, which we all know is the secret ingredient in well made breakfast sausage. The eggs were cooked perfectly, still quite runny, and the biscuits were up there with my favorites. I loved everything about this breakfast. Although it SOUNDS like a lot of food, it was really a quite manageable portion, given the number of components.

My dining partner order the Lobster Benedict, as it is apparently one of their specialties. They also offer a seafood version, as well as one toting crab. To my dismay, however, it was not topped with the local Florida stone crab, but rather Maryland blue crab. Now why would anyone travel to the Florida keys to eat blue crabs??? So the lobster was ordered. When it arrived, the eggs were perfectly poached (which unfortunately is not always the case), the hollandaise was great, with the requisite notes of citrus, however the lobster was a bit of an issue. It was fishy. Now I know that it comes from the sea, but fresh lobster should not have a distinct taste of fish. It was a bit off-putting, but not so much that the dish was not finished. I suppose my Catholic upbringing has something to do with the guilt I associate with not eating every piece of seafood in front of me. I will have eaten shrimp well into the double digits, and then when someone brings some more over, I will reluctantly eat them past the point of enjoyment, so as not to waste any. Come to think of it, I do this with most kinds of food. Funny how that works.

All in all, I loved this place. The attitude, breakfast meats, and decor were all hits in my book. I would probably order the benedict again, but I would ask if the lobster was fresh.