Southern Luv BBQ Takes Second at the 2026 International Cuban Sandwich Festival

YBOR CITY, TAMPA, FL — March 29, 2026 — Southern Luv BBQ’s smoked-pork Cuban sandwich placed second in the World’s Best Traditional Cuban Sandwich competition at the 15th Annual International Cuban Sandwich Festival, held at Centennial Park in Historic Ybor City.

It is the second consecutive year the Citrus Park pit has finished on the podium — and it did so by crossing categories. At the 14th Annual festival the year before, Southern Luv’s brisket-based Cuban took second place in the non-traditional category. The two categories reward nearly opposite things: one rewards fidelity to the classic build, the other rewards departing from it.

The traditional Cuban is a Tampa institution with strict expectations — ham, roast pork, Swiss, pickles, mustard, pressed on Cuban bread. Southern Luv’s entry keeps that architecture intact and swaps in pork smoked over pecan wood, the same method used across the restaurant’s menu.

The sandwich is on the everyday menu as the Q-Bano, available year-round at the Citrus Park Drive location.

About Southern Luv BBQ

Southern Luv BBQ is a fast-casual Southern barbecue concept founded by Chef Essi Tadrus in Tampa, Florida. Brisket and chicken are hand-trimmed and smoked over pecan wood, sauces and sides are made from scratch — down to the barbecue potato chips — and the menu draws on the barbecue traditions of Texas, Georgia, the Carolinas, Alabama, Kansas, Tennessee, and Florida. The brand is currently expanding through franchising across Florida.