Original, yes. The Cuban sandwich was invented in Tampa and it had salami. But is it really correct?
Correct? Yes it is. The Miami Cuban sandwich didn't really become a thing until the 1960s. The Tampa Cuban sandwich was around for 60 years before that, but you can take whatever opinion you choose.
"The first recorded mentions of a distinct Cuban sandwich survive in descriptions of workers' cafés in
Ybor City and nearby
West Tampa from around 1900, leading other historians to theorize that the sandwich as now constituted first appeared there. A travel article published by the
Mason City Globe Gazette in
1934 said that Tampa's cooking was "much more distinctive than elsewhere in the state" and lists Cuban sandwiches (along with Cuban bread) among the city's "signature foods". Researcher Andrew Huse states that "the old 'mixtos' coalesced into something more distinct – the Cuban sandwiches we know and love – an original Tampa creation."
"A
1934 travel article describes a Tampa Cuban sandwich as a "complete meal" consisting of ham, lean pork, Swiss cheese,
soft salami, dill pickle and a "liberal moistening of mustard" served on "very crisp and crusty" Cuban bread. These ingredients are reiterated 27 years later in the first and all subsequent editions of
The Gasparilla Cookbook (1961), a still-popular collection of Tampa cuisine."
I've had both versions, and I prefer the Tampa Cuban.
Strangely enough, when I was working in SC for several months, I found a great little spot in Simpsonville (Mad Cuban Cafe) where they had modified Cuban sandwiches. My favorite Cuban sandwich added ham croquetas and maduros pressed into the sandwich. Unbelievably good.