Good Cuban Food Free of Nouvelle Twists

If Don Johnson were a restaurant, he would not be Miami Spice. Despite its name, this homey Cuban coffee shop in Marina del Rey offers meals to go more in the spirit of Desi Arnaz.

Miami Spice opens at 6 in the morning, seven days a week. Consider starting the day with cafe con leche and sweet Cuban toast. (Most other breakfasts don’t travel as well.)

The large, bilingual menu has all the old Cuban-American standards (grilled shrimp with garlic, arroz con pollo, flan, black beans, sweet plantains, tropical fruit shakes). You won’t find “new Caribbean” cuisine here; you will find a full hand of tasty, simple things.

As at Versailles, the senior Cuban restaurant on the Westside, the roast chicken marinated with garlic and lemon is tops. Called “ a la criolla “ here, it’s marvelously juicy and crisp-skinned. (And giving the chicken at Versailles a run for its reputation, I think). All entrees come with enormous portions of perfect rice, fried plantains and plain, soft beans. The plantains alternate between too tuberous and fabulous, a caramelizing mass that will make your head spin.

Miami Spice knows its chicken and its “Miami Spice Cuban BBQ-style” is No. 2 on my list. Incredibly tender both times I’ve tried it, it’s roasted with lots of garlic and vinegar in a sweetly spicy sauce. (Despite the name of the restaurant, the spices are never brazen, but more like a flirty little cha cha cha).

Fried chicken comes batterless with a mild trace of garlic--nothing to write home to Havana about. Arroz con pollo is a better choice: a hefty portion of chicken (the dark meat’s delicious, the white tough) comes with a cascade of pimiento , peppers and pea-festooned moist “Spanish” rice. Roast pork is lean, dry-roasted meat with that garlic-lemon refrain.

I was amazed that the place produced so moist a piece of swordfish with such a dashing caper, lemon and green onion sauce. I was also surprised by the home-made soups. Swordfish soup was full of lemon and juicy fish chunks. Garbanzo and white bean soups were riffs on the same theme: rich broths packed with onions, carrots, roast pork, chorizo and vinegared greens. Only the chicken noodle soup--don’t order it--reveals a commercial hand.

Even though the pork and rice in the paella Valenciana are fine, tender and suffused with the sea (and even though the portion for two easily serves four), I wouldn’t order this again. The clams, large shrimp and lobster tail gave their all to the rice and have nothing left for themselves. (If you order the arroz con pollo , either eat it right away or take it out of its Styrofoam home--the rice seems to be genetically engineered to soak up everything it comes in contact with).

If you’re in the mood for extras, think about the neat, firm rings of calamari fried in a finely textured batter. Little Manila clams with parsley, garlic and white wine are also pleasing. The restaurant sends plenty of soft, white rolls to soak up the appealing clam broth. Media noche, a sandwich that translates as “midnight” (as in snack), is a nocturnal concoction composed of good ham, roast pork, melted Swiss cheese and an astringent pickle layered on a fragrant, sweet Cuban roll. Thick slabs of lightly fried yucca, with a squirt of lemon, were a nice alternative to thin French fries which didn’t make it home too well.

The flan and the rice pudding are very good. Fruit shakes made with ice cream and fresh papaya, mango, platano , guanabana or mamey are richly delicious and too subtle for kids. You can also get good, strong iced tea and good, stronger espresso to end a home-cooked meal that Ricky Ricardo just might kill for.

Miami Spice, 13515 Washington Blvd., Marina del Rey. (213) 306-7978. Open daily, 6 a.m.-11:30 p.m. Call half an hour ahead for orders to go. Parking in lot. MasterCard and Visa accepted.