A Taste of Cuba Linda in Downtown Concord

Linda Swartz has always envisioned owning a restaurant.

She has been in the food business for 10 years. She started in catering, graduated from Diablo Valley College's culinary program and managed Danville’s The Peasant and The Pear.

“I’ve always wanted to have my own restaurant,” Swartz said. “So I just decided that at this time in my life that’s what I would do.”

The decision of establishing a Cuban restaurant is the result of Swartz’s exposure to her husband’s culture. Rafael Morffi and his family escaped from Cuba, arriving in the United States with little more than traditional recipes and their culture.

Swartz is eager to disseminate the Cuban cuisine and culture she has fallen in love with: “There seems to be an absence or lack of authentic Cuban food in the Bay Area; that old, traditional Cuban food like you’d find in Miami or New York or L.A.”

Swartz explained the name of Cuba Linda Tropical Cafe. Cuba linda ("beautiful Cuba") is a common phrase among Cubans to describe their country. It is also the name of a very popular song. It does not hurt that the phrase happens to have her first name in it as well.

For the Martinez native, Concord’s diverse culture played an essential role in choosing a location for Cuba Linda.

“I wanted to bring that [Cuban cuisine] here to Concord,” said Swartz. “This area in particular seems very receptive to diverse foods, diverse cuisine, so I thought Concord would be a great place for it.”

The idea of a Cuban restaurant started a year ago, when Swartz started to gathered traditional recipes from her husband’s family.

The first six months she dedicated to trying out all the recipes and ensuring they could be made in large quantities for the restaurant.

Swartz wants the menu to offer people authentic Cuban cuisine, recreating the meals one would find at a Cuban home.

“We want to give people a taste of what Cuban people have enjoyed for generations and what a typical Cuban person would eat up to the early parts of the revolution.”

The menu at Cuba Linda also offers flexibility in prices, ranging from a small cup of coffee for $1 to a shrimp plate for $13.

The restaurant has two signature dishes reflecting the traditional Cuban cuisine, the Sandwich Cubano and the Lechon (roasted pork).

People wanting to try Cuban cuisine can visit Cuba Linda at 1909 Salvio St., Concord or can look at their menu online.