MediaNoche Cafè
In November of 2020, the world was in a pandemic but not for Michelle Fernandez as she went ahead and opened up a Cuban restaurant in Berwyn. On November 21, 2020, MediaNoche Cafè was born at 6836 Windsor Ave, Berwyn, IL 60402.
Background:
Ms. Fernandez is a Mexican-American Latina who was born and raised in Chicago. In 2010, Michelle Fernandez opened a bakery right in her own home, making cakes, cupcakes, cookies, and cakepops. After her husband’s grandfather came to the States, he opened up his own restaurant in Elmwood Park, where Michelle was a waitress. Her husband’s grandfather, who was born and raised in Havana, Cuba, taught her Cuban seasonings. She then decided to bless Berwyn with her restaurant.
Interview:
I interviewed Ms. Fernandez about the future of MediaNoche Cafe, any events coming up, and what’s the best food to get.
What inspired you to open up your own restaurant?
“What inspired me to open MediaNoche Cafe was the fact that we always had a passion for food, kitchen, and family. So when I opened MediaNoche Cafe, my kids inspired me to continue with my dream and I opened a restaurant with them.”
Are there any plans to open up a second location?
“There is a plan to open up a second location when the time is right of course. Right now I’m just working really hard and hopefully we will be able to open up our second location.”
Are there any specials coming up?
“Our menu changes seasonally. Right now we are trying to work through comfort food, which will include our soup specials and sandwich specials, like the Cubano Frita, and include a burger size sandwich with french fries.”
Are there any events coming up?
“The event we are working on is the Holiday Stroll, which will be held at the Depot District, where we are located, and it will be very family oriented.”
What’s the best time to come in?
“The best time to come in is when we are open at 10:00 a.m. to grab a cup of coffee until 2:00 p.m. to enjoy a delicious lunch.”
What are the most popular foods?
“Our most popular food is the Ropa Vieja Bowl. It’s a shredded flank steak cooked in our homemade tomato sauce. Another common choice is the Chicago Classic, Jibaritos, a great fried plantain. Instead of using regular bread, we use plantain.”
What’s the most popular dessert?
“Our most popular dessert is flan. We have flan in three different flavors, including coconut, guava, and the regular one, which is the milk.”
What I recommend:
Tapas:
Beef Empanada & Croquetas
I love beef empanadas because it’s a simple dish that will fill you up if you get white rice with it. Whenever I go to work, I eat at least three empanadas. I also love croquetas because they remind me of mozzarella sticks but instead of cheese it’s ham.
Cuban Bowl (white rice, black beans, maduros, & protein), Lechon, & Ropa Vieja Bowl
My opinion on lechon, in general, is that the taste is so good and greasy in a way. Lechon is also roasted pork, which comes from a pig, and just the right seasoning makes it so good. The Ropa Vieja Bowl is also one of my favorites. It has a tangy flavor, but it’s so good.
Sandwiches:
Cuban, Chicken, & Media Noche Sandwich
This Cuban Sandwich is a classic: ham, pork, Swiss cheese, pickles, and mustard. (I get it without pickles because I don’t like pickles, but the sandwich is still so good.) The chicken sandwich includes the same ingredients as a Cuban, just with grilled chicken, and it’s just as good as the Cuban sandwich. The famous MediaNoche Sandwich includes ham, roasted pork (Lechon), pickles, mustard, and is made with our homemade sweet bread.
Sides:
Arroz con Gandules
Sometimes when I go to work with my mom, whenever I’m hungry and we don’t have beef empanadas, I take a bowl of Arroz con Gandules. You can’t not like Arroz con Gandules.
Conclusion
The purpose of this article was to shine some light on my mom’s restaurant. I feel like she should have the recognition she deserves. She has worked so hard to get to this point, so please stop by and get something to eat!
Her username for Tiktok, Instagram, and Facebook is @Medianocheberwyncafe
