It was cold. I was waiting for my friend to come. I witnessed crowds of people waiting for their table in front of Frita Batidos, shaking in their winter coats. I saw people holding churros. I wanted churros. Many people were eating outside, and I observed their burgers with sunny-side-up eggs and their drinks with tiny blue umbrellas. My friend came and we got a table.

The restaurant inside had white brick walls with an accent of light blue. We sat down at a crisp white table and looked at the menu from our phones. We both ordered beef fritas. We waited impatiently for the food to come while people-watching. Some people were talking about how Frita Batidos was their favorite restaurant in Ann Arbor, while others were talking about all the variations of fritas they’ve tried and how they loved all of them. 

The restaurant serves up elegant but simple fare with a Cuban flair, and the signature burger, or “Frita” is the star of the show. While Frita’s may not fit the mold of a traditional burger, The Daily’s readers have crowned it Ann Arbor’s best eight years in a row. The menu is truly something all its own, drawing on Cuban influences while incorporating various other cultures’ culinary successes.

Eve Aronoff, the owner of Frita Batidos, said the menu was inspired by her time in Miami, where she was immersed in Cuban culture. 

“I grew up spending a lot of time with my grandmother in Miami,” Aronoff said. “I just really had fallen in love with the spirit of the culture and the ingredients and the cuisine.”

The food may not be perfectly Cuban, but ask any Ann Arborite, and they’ll tell you it is just perfect.

Our food came, and it took us roughly five bites before we finished it. Sitting in our post-meal happiness, I understood why Frita Batidos was the restaurant I wanted to try first during my first semester on campus. I listened to the hype, devoured the food and immediately started to think about what I would order the next time I come. 

Daily Staff Reporter Caroline Wang can be reached at wangca@umich.edu. Daily Staff Reporter Samantha Rich contributed to the reporting of this article.