Cuban restaurant opens in downtown Belmont

Kara Fohner, The Gaston Gazette
·2 min read
Owner Nicole Montero, left, poses with Nancy Cobos at the fron counter of the newly opened My Cuban Corner on Catawba Street in Belmont Monday morning, March 6, 2023.
Owner Nicole Montero, left, poses with Nancy Cobos at the fron counter of the newly opened My Cuban Corner on Catawba Street in Belmont Monday morning, March 6, 2023.

When Nicole Montero first saw the space at 417 N. Catawba St. in downtown Belmont, it was love at first sight.

Montero and her husband, Junior, were hoping to open a Cuban restaurant, the kind of business that would remind Montero of her childhood in Hialeah, Florida, a city that has been referred to as "Little Cuba."

Nancy Cobos serves breakfast to Steve and Dana Ray at the newly opened My Cuban Corner on Catawba Street in Belmont Monday morning, March 6, 2023.
Nancy Cobos serves breakfast to Steve and Dana Ray at the newly opened My Cuban Corner on Catawba Street in Belmont Monday morning, March 6, 2023.

The space at 417 N. Catawba St., formerly the site of White's Restaurant, was perfect. White's closed in 2021 after being in business 41 years.

"We drove by. We kind of peeked through the window, you know, we saw what it was about. We called Matt, who is our landlord, met him that same night, and we just totally fell in love with the place immediately," Montero said. "We just both looked at each other. And we said,' yeah, like, Absolutely. This is it.'"

My Cuban Corner opened Monday, March 6. The restaurant, which is open for breakfast and lunch, offers eggs, croquetas, french fries, Cuban toast, and Cuban cafe con leche, or coffee and milk.

For lunch, the restaurant offers sandwiches: steak sandwich, chicken sandwich, pork sandwiches, and more, as well as sweet plantains.

Every Friday, they'll offer rice, beans, and a protein, like pork or chicken.

"And then on occasion, we'll throw in a special here and there, you know? To kind of spice things up," she said. "And then obviously, you know, when we see what the foot traffic is and what the demand is, maybe at some point in time we'll switch up our menu and start adding new things."

Montero and her family moved to Belmont from Florida in 2019. They were looking for a place with a lower cost of living, and they found what they were looking for here in Gaston County.

"It's a lot cheaper than Florida. And we're just looking for a better place to raise our children. Life is a little slower. Schools are better, you know?" Montero said.

As for the restaurant, "it's been a dream of ours for quite some time," Montero said.

Manny Gonzalez works on a breakfast order in the kitchen of the newly opened My Cuban Corner on Catawba Street in Belmont Monday morning, March 6, 2023.
Manny Gonzalez works on a breakfast order in the kitchen of the newly opened My Cuban Corner on Catawba Street in Belmont Monday morning, March 6, 2023.

She wants to create an environment where regulars can drop in and have their coffee, eggs and Cuban toast before going to work: "very family oriented, very relaxed," Montero said.

"I mean, I remember growing up I used to walk to the cafeteria to grab a steak sandwich, and I knew everybody that worked there," she said. "I was 13, 14 years old. My grandmother would give me five bucks and say go get yourself a steak sandwich and soda. So they all knew me, you know?"

Jamie Gonzalez, left, and Nancy Cobos prepare coffee in the kitchen of the newly opened My Cuban Corner on Catawba Street in Belmont Monday morning, March 6, 2023.
Jamie Gonzalez, left, and Nancy Cobos prepare coffee in the kitchen of the newly opened My Cuban Corner on Catawba Street in Belmont Monday morning, March 6, 2023.

"That's the kind of vibe that we want to give off, where you walk in and you feel like you're at home, like you're family," she added.

My Cuban Corner will be open Monday through Saturday from 7 a.m. until 4 p.m.

This article originally appeared on The Gaston Gazette: Cuban restaurant opens in downtown Belmont