Felix Has Flair for Cuban Fare

This may sound harsh, but my husband is a meathead. He’s proud of it and makes no excuses for his favorites: roasted animals with potatoes and gravy covering the whole plate. So it’s not surprising that one of his favorite places is Felix Continental Cafe in Orange.

Felix, which specializes in Cuban and Spanish foods, is mostly about meat and potatoes. But we’re not talking pork chops here. Combinations of flavors like thyme with bitter orange or green olives with raisins and sofrito sauce elevate the humble roast to new heights.

Along with these he-man entrees is the sidewalk cafe atmosphere that seems slightly European and not very local, considering Orange County’s surplus of strip mall diners and shopping center restaurants. In short, a pleasantly quirky destination for a lazy Sunday morning.

Although the restaurant doesn’t offer brunch per se, weekend mornings are busy times at Felix. Local families settle in for long meals, combining egg dishes with lunch platters. You don’t have to be a meat lover to enjoy the food. Our most sanctimonious vegetarian friends love the place and swear Felix has the best breakfast deals in town. But you should be fond of pimentos. They can be found in nearly every dish.

Felix is in the middle of Old Towne Orange on the southwest segment of the traffic circle at Glassell Street and Chapman Avenue. The area’s homey charm and its antique stores are attracting regular crowds every weekend, and Felix is a good stop on a shopping trip.

The restaurant’s popularity has pushed the terrace seating up and down the street, spilling onto the patios of shops near the restaurant. If you’re lucky, helpful waiters in white guayabera shirts will show you to a table quickly. More likely, you’ll have to wait, especially if you want to eat outside.

Inside, things get a little grim. The dining room is dark, with cramped tables bunched up together like a church breakfast. Wait for a table outside and catch the rare glimpse of small-time life passing by: a man walking his poodle; elderly shoppers strolling hand in hand; and Pleasantville’s version of punk teenagers hanging around, preening their mohawks and trying to look menacing.

Cuban cooking depends on the distinctive flavors of thyme, cumin, garlic, onions and other herbs to make spicy sauces for its long-simmered meats. Although the dishes are spicy, they are not hot (but any meal can be ordered spicy hot).

The best dishes are the Cuban classics: picadillo criollo (ground beef and pork in a tomato sauce with raisins and green olives); the Cuban sandwich (roasted leg of pork with ham, Swiss cheese, pickles and mustard on Cuban bread); roast chicken with garlic and lemon; and arroz a la Cubana, a casserole of pork, chicken and chorizo (spicy sausage) with saffron rice.

Pierna de Puerco is a lunch casserole of tender leg of pork slowly roasted in its own drippings. It comes in a flavorful sauce of bitter orange and thyme and a side of white rice. Palomilla steak is another Cuban standard, served here as a tasty but not especially tender grilled round steak with onions.

Picadillo Criollo is one of the most successful dishes at Felix, a very seasoned mix of ground beef and pork in sofrito sauce, which is a tomato-based sauce of bell peppers, onions and herbs.

Roast chicken at Felix is always a good bet, a crispy, moist bird with plenty of garlic and lemon. And the yellow rice (the waiters say it’s made with pricey saffron, but it tastes like turmeric) is always excellent.

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On one visit, my pork roast was dry and my daughter’s carne con papas, beef stew with potatoes, had stringy beef and not enough potatoes. On another visit the pork was moist and delicious and the beef tender, with lots of potatoes.

The Cuban sandwich is a good baseline item to gauge authenticity, since most restaurants serve it. Here, the pork and ham are good, the cheese looks and tastes like processed material instead of the Swiss cheese described on the menu and, although the entire thing tastes fine, it’s flatter than most Cuban sandwiches because it doesn’t have as much meat. I don’t know anyone who doesn’t like the fried plantains at Felix. Sweet and sticky, they are a good match for white rice.

The breakfast menu offers a huge array (32 dishes) of tortilla, vegetable and egg entrees, from simple Spanish omelets to complicated casseroles. And the prices are a bargain ($6-$10).

Some of the morning favorites are tostada Latina, an English muffin filled with guava jam and cream cheese, dipped in egg and toasted; tortilla con papas, a huge omelet with potatoes and onions; spinach crepes; and eggs benedict. My reliable vegetarian friend says the pancakes, fried potatoes and Cuban toast are heavenly. And where else can you get tropical fruit milk shakes? Try the guava batidos.

Let’s not forget dessert. The flan is silken and caramel coated, lighter and tastier than many custards. The bread pudding is the best finale, however: light and creamy with bread, pineapple and raisins, crowned with a luscious rum sauce.

Felix Continental Cafe, 36 Plaza Square, Orange. (714) 633-5842. Sunday hours, 8 a.m-10 p.m.