Cuba de Ayer

Address: 15446 Old Columbia Pike, Burtonsville, MD 20866

Phone: 301-476-9622

Neighborhood: Burtonsville

Cuisines: South American, Cuban

Opening Hours: Tuesday through Thursday 11:30 to 8:30, Friday and Saturday 11:30 to 10, and Sunday 11:30 to 8:30

Wheelchair Accessible: Yes

Kid Friendly: Yes

Price Range: Inexpensive

Dress: Informal

Noise Level: Chatty

Reservations: Not Needed

Website: Click here to open in new window.

Best Dishes Ham croquettes; beef empanadas; vaca frita; ropa vieja; masitas; picadillo; Cubano sandwich; plantains; black beans and rice; tres leches cake.

Price Details: Appetizers $2 to $7, entrées $8 to $15.

Special Features:
Wheelchair Accessible, Kid Friendly

If you’ve ever attended a Cuban Christmas dinner, you’ve probably feasted on pernil, a homey dish of roast pork shoulder that features tender meat and crisp, garlicky skin. Here it’s done wonderfully, demonstrating yet again that owners Jessica and William Rodriguez understand the mandate of the Cuban restaurant: The food should never be too fine or fussy.

The best plates brim with the values of great homecooking, such as the picadillo (beef-and-potato hash studded with raisins), the lechon (slow-cooked pork shoulder draped in sweet onions), and the excellent black beans and rice. Dessert brings one of the best versions of tres leches around. Resist the cocktail list—the drinks are as thin as the food is full-bodied.

Also good: Ham croquetas; vaca fritta, shredded, pan-fried flank steak; pork masitas.