Coco's Kitchen — Restaurant in Stock Island

This place is a local institution. Coco's has been around for my entire life and I am almost 40. In a building next to Dion's on Summerland when I was a mere Lad. Then on Cudjoe for a bit. Ending up in Winn-Dixie shopping plaza on Big Pine. Cuban comfort food. Done right at great prices. The best BLT you have ever tasted. Killer burger. Fresh avocado salad with fresh onions and limes when seasonal. Conch fritters with maybe the best cocktail sauce in the keys. Big Cuban sandwich. Not as good as 5-Brothers cause they use shaved meats instead of sliced but much better value. Fried Palomia steak is the epitome of comfort food Cuban style. With beans and rice. Do yourself a favor and go here if your looking for good food with great folks for the best...

Yes please. I didn’t expect much as I wandered into this unassuming strip mall diner. With acronyms like ATW (all the way) to select which condiments you want, to the parking lot chickens, I didn’t expect much. But the sandwiches. OMG. The ATW Cuban was a heavenly triumph. The perfect amount of mayo sauce and the crunchy outside of the roll cooked panini style and they had me. Fountain drinks were nice but the glass bottles coke was an added bonus. The staff was friendly and sheepishly asked if I would like some habanero hot sauce, delivering a modest amount so as to not scorch my face and leave me wondering if I’d been damned to hell. “Should I have it” I asked?...

We had breakfast and enjoyed it. I had Huevos Rancheros, and my wife had a breakfast burrito. Both were good, but a little bland compared to what we're used to. I guess they want to cater to everyone's taste and in their defense, there was hot sauce available. We did think their tortillas were very good. Oh yeah, we also had guava and cheese turnovers...yummy! I only gave a 4 for atmosphere because the seat cushions are old and they serve you with plastic cutlery. Nothing wrong with that, but I can't justify a five compared to everyone else's place settings. The staff was very friendly and efficient. We will be back to try some of...