Ricky Bakery II on Coral Way Offers Croquetas and More

Photo by Christina Staalstrom

​Any good Cuban will tell you there are good croquetas and great ones. The good ones are crunchy and chewy and leave a comforting layer of grease on your hands. The great ones are a dichotomy of flavors and textures with a warm crispy, salty layer on the outside and a soft, gooey creamy filling.

Ricky Bakery II on Coral Way has more than 46 varieties of pastelitos, bocaditos, empanadas and croquetas all neatly displayed behind several large counters. It opens at 6 a.m., perfect for your morning artery-clogging commute, but the baking continues all day.  If you ask nicely, they will fry up a fresh batch of croquetas while you wait.

On a recent visit, I walked out of the store with about 40+ croquetas. Everyone wanted to make sure I got a nice sampling for my first croqueta buying experience, so how could I decline?

On the car ride home, the smell of freshly fried cheese and ham filled the air. I could not resist having three before I even made it into my driveway. I had planned an ambitious Cuban meatloaf, but instead I put most of them on a plate. I opened a nice bottle of Mencina wine, Dominio de Tares Baltos, and ate them one by one.

Photo by Christina Staalstrom

Photo by Christina Staalstrom

Ricky Bakery II
3115 SW 22nd Street, Coral Gables
786-552-9494