Mi Apa Latin Cafe

I am eating here at 5:33 on a Saturday afternoon. Radha took care of me and was on her game! She chose everything I ate with the exception of the Cortadito. I am from out of town and decided to try this restaurant out because they had a sign on interstate 75. I am pleasantly surprised. Simple: shredded beef, rice, and plantain (oh my goodness). It is all good, but the plantain are an absolute must! I just ate another one and… yep…they are delicious!
Flan completes the meal. For those of you wondering what to order to complete your meal. Definitely leave room for this. The flan may be in a styrofoam bowl, but it could easily be at a restaurant and cost $ 8 – 10.
P. s. I did not get my meal free and have no idea who the owner is and am not affiliated in any way what so ever. I have developed a new love for Cuban food!
Total cost of meal was $ 11.33
What a gem this place is. :-)

Pretty good food however very inconsistent. My wife and I enjoy the Miami Sandwich and the Cuban sandwich. The location on 34^th street always makes them fresh and properly. The location in Alachua is very inconsistent. Sometimes they forget the ham or sometimes they forget the bacon or sometimes they forget the turkey. It’s always a crapshoot what your going to get. This place ranges from 2 to 4 stars.

I ordered the Breaded Chicken with yellow rice and chicken soup as my sides along with a dessert and pineapple juice. The juice was the only thing actually good. The chicken came out as a giant uninviting patty of chicken that had bland flavoring. The rice was wet as if it wasn’t cooked correctly. The soup was okay. The entrée itself just didn’t taste good. It was like eating a block of bland chicken. The server forgot my dessert. It did not seem that they were very busy, but they also forgot something at another table. This visit was enough for me to determine no future visits. Moe’s, I’m coming to you next time if I come to this plaza.

This place was so delicious! Mi Apa, Mi Amore! Great place to stop and refuel on some fresh, authentic Cuban food. Found this place driving down from Atlanta to Orlando and wanted some something other than Fast Food. Saw the Unilocal reviews and decided to check it out and we were not disappointed.
I got the Roasted Chicken w/​grilled Onions (Tender, Hot & Juicy), Moro Rice (Dark Rice, fluffy and firm) and Sweet Plantains (Carmelized, Crispy on the outside & hot, soft sweetness on the inside). «Hot» is the key word. I burnt my mouth a little bit throwing one of those bad boys in my mouth too fast, but totally worth it. Just take your time when biting into them.
My Husband got the «No. 3 Pelua Hot Arepa» (Shredded Beef w/​Cheese). It was like biting into a piece of Cuba, in a good way. The pressed Corn Meal patties were warm and fresh & the shredded beef was juicy and flavorful. Warning: Eat over your plate because the juices tend to drip down without you knowing.
Awesome place, will probably stop by again on the way back to Atlanta.

I was looking for some traditional Spanish food. Great rice and beans. The breaded steak was great. The coffee is even better. I’ll be back in the morning for breakfast. Service was excellent.

Yes! When im here visiting my friends, this is our go to spot for our cuban fix. No hassle just call in and the order is ready when we get there. Great prices also.

Their Miami sandwich is delicious! Their bread was crispy and fresh! I would come back again :)

I ate here once and ONLY once and the reason being is because I got ridiculously sick from the chicken and rice. I had a short wait time to get my to go order despite how crowded they were and when I got it everything was hot and fresh. The chicken was cooked right and the rice was a bit hard but other then that I can’t figure out why I got so sick. Makes me wish I was back down in south fla so I can get some better food.

Stopped here by chance, so glad we did. Tons of amazing food without the wait and it didn’t break the bank. Very friendly staff and atmosphere.

Palomilla Steak was good. Roast Pork not so much.
Tostones were okay. I was not a fan of their black beans. It was a decent quick lunch but this is not the bar by which Cuban food should be measured.
I was also disappointed that while eating in their dining room you are served on foam plates with plastic utensils.

My family and I, 3 of whom are Cuban by descent, and frequent customers of both Mi Apa locations, just had the worst meal ever at the Alachua location, and the combination of poor food quality and lack of caring from the staff means we’ve eaten here for the last time.
From platano maduro burned black and to a crisp, to ropa vieja that was watery, flavorless, and uninspired, we wasted money on all but rice and a media noche.
When we advised the waitress, she admitted that sometimes the food isn’t as good as others. as she rang up our tab and tip without flinching. She was, however, quite interested in flirting with the young dude wrapping silverware. O_​o
The restaurant was mostly empty, and we were 2 hours from closing time. So no excuses other than a lack of care…
To be crystal clear, I rarely write a bad review, as I love food and love to eat. I actually left all but a bite of ropa vieja on my plate as we left. Wasn’t worth bringing home even…

This place is great. If they could couple this with a bar, it’d be knocking it out of the park! Seriously, great service, great prices, great portions… oh, and I was introduced to mojo sauce… delicious! Absolutely recommend.

Great service, food is very consistent, and always delicious. Never turn down a trip to Mi Apa!

Pretty good food. Good service. A little known place for breakfast. Café con lechwe always good

I have to give this place a five star. This isn’t the best Cuban I’ve ever had but…
This place blows away the other restaurants in the area.
Maybe I am saying this because we’ve been eating total crap food at the Summer camp down the road, or maybe this place is just that good. I guess the only way you will know is if you try it.
Delicious food
Cheap prices
Quick service
What more do you want???
I had the Cuban and the guava tart.
My wife had the beef empanadas and the rice pudding
The deserts were delicious.

The original Gainesville Mi Apá was at one time one of my favorite local restaurants but from around 2011 I saw their quality really go down (at least in my experience) and it seemed like the kids who worked there were indifferent at best – and like no one was really a manager, it was just a bunch of bored kids running it. A lot of simple but very annoying mistakes were made with multiple orders I placed, the food wasn’t of the quality it once was, and finally I just stopped going.
Today, because I was on my way to High Springs and passing it on 441, I decided to give the Alachua Mi Apá a try. The space is bright, welcoming, and of the same themes and approach to atmosphere as the original but newer and cleaner it seemed. The waitress who helped me was tremendously on point, friendly, and helpful. A total reversal from the people at the Gainesville location.
The food was honestly of the quality I remember from my very first few visits to the original Mi Apá circa 2004, which is to say quite impressive. For one, they make empanadas to order here whereas in Gainesville they always have in my experience had them in a case already made, leading to these pastries at times being great and at other times quite stale. Needless to say, making them to order is a far better approach – at least for the customer. My empanada was great and my guava shake just as good. I am eager now to return and try their Cuban sandwiches and other dishes.
I don’t know if I’ll return to the Gainesville location or not, maybe they’ve cleaned things up back there now, but the Alachua outpost is indeed very impressive.

Visiting Florida and I wanted to eat local flavor.
Classic Cuban flavors in a casual setting. Friendly staff and good food.
I know others have not had the best experience, but we had a good experience and would come again.

Food was delicious, but given the price, i’d prefer not to eat on paper plates and plastic utensils!

Food can be great… but can also be slow service and a complete miss. The food selection has variety and great flavor when the employees on the clock are on there «A“game.
The service is a 1 STAR at the most. Also DO NOT ONLINE ORDER!, I have attempted this twice and both times I arrived to pickup order and told «Oh we got an order… we haven’t put it in yet.» — what was the point in ordering online?!
Good luck if you attempt! Good food… I want to say mediocre service, but that is giving it too much credit.

I was looking for a good lunch. I exited the highway and saw a Moe’s and got quite excited. When I pulled in I saw Mí Apa. A Cuban grill!?! No contest, sorry Moe’s. Quick good quality food. Clean and friendly atmosphere. I will def come by again on my way back through.