The Best Cuban Flan in Key West
The Best Cuban Flan in Key West is cooked by Cubans
The most famous dessert in Key West is, of course, Key Lime Pie. It’s literally in the name: Key. Around the world, Key Lime Pie is to Key West what pizza pies is to New York City. People come to Key West and they must have their Key Lime Pie. It’s a worthy tradition.
Yet as all native Key Westers know, the only dessert better than Key Lime Pie is a homemade Cuban flan.
Indeed, the most beloved dessert in Key West is none other than the refined, burnt carmel, decadent delicacy that is Key West Cuban flan.
And unless your own mama, tía, or abuela is making you personally a flan, the most highly-prized Key West Cuban flan is found across Cow Key Channel at El Mocho Cuban restaurant on Stock Island, since 1983.
In Key West, a custardy flan floating in a shallow reflection of toasted carmel sauce is, in the words of culinary writer Anya von Bremzen “as essential as black beans and rice.”
Flan with a candle? Sí. Local fisherman, blue collar workers, local trades and craftspeople, working on their birthday–after all, a work day is a work day–at lunch or dinner with their peers at El Mocho, regularly signify the occasion on any given day of the week by the special treat of a serving of flan. Do not be offended if after taking the first bite, the fortunate diner exclaims with joy, “¡Coño, este flan está bueno!!” Better than cake, this is Marlenis’ mother’s homemade Cuban flan.
Flan is the delicacy made for us all. It is perfectly sized so as not to fill, and suits occasions as casual as lunch as a special as a wedding. Key West Cuban flan is the one-size fits all dessert that is more for locals and folks who appreciate life’s rich bounty is not only for the rich.
Key West will always be famous for Key Lime Pie. Aside from Jimmy Buffett, it is Key West’s most famous export. And deservedly so! After all, who does not love a good Key Lime Pie?
Yet for natives and locals, as well as visitors with the right friends and the right kind of sensibilities, when it comes to a dessert that evokes the tones, flavors, and best experiences of Key West, for real indulgence, the true dessert of Key West will always be a good Cuban flan. For those of us without our own Cuban grandmothers, the best flan in Key West can be found today, as it has been since 1983, on Maloney Avenue, Stock Island at El Mocho Cuban Restaurant.
El Mocho Cuban Restaurant
5708 Maloney Avenue
Key West, FL 32920
6am-9pm Mon-Sat
