Miami Hot Spots

As the gateway to the Americas, Miami is home to restaurants, shops and streets that feel as though you've stepped off one continent and onto another. Shots of Cuban coffee are available almost anywhere in Miami's Little Havana, including convenience stores. In certain areas, everyone greets customers with "hola," never "hello."

Tourists might not be able to navigate Latin Miami successfully using only English, so brush up on basic Spanish before going, or take a Spanish-speaking friend. Regardless, a trip to Miami is incomplete without a nod to its Latin flavor.

Here are some essential stops in and around Little Havana:

Domino Park

At Domino Park (SW. 8th Street and 15th Avenue), signs warn players not to drink, smoke or bet. The domino tables have drink holders anyway, to make them look like the domino parks in Cuba, but they're empty. Dozens of old men wearing sunglasses and caps speak Spanish as they play under tents, interrupted by the sounds of clattering domino pieces. Watch and enjoy -- but don't interrupt a game to ask questions, or you'll risk irritating the players.

El Titan de Bronze Cigars

Named after a Cuban general, this family-owned cigar company has been in business since 1995. At the store, almost any type of cigar is for sale, ranging from about $4.65 to $13 for the longest.

Casa Unidos de Elian

It's the house where Elian Gonzalez stayed when the then 5-year-old Cuban boy was at the center of an international custody battle. The standoff ended when U.S. agents raided the home and seized him in 2000 and sent him back to Cuba with his father. The home has been renovated by his uncle, turned into a combination shrine and museum. Toys, photos and drawings are lined up in glass display cases.

Elian's clothes still hang in the closet, and the holes where agents kicked in the door haven't been repaired. The inner tube he came to Miami in hangs on the wall, accompanied by a sign in English and Spanish: "This is the tragedy of a nation that wants to live in freedom ... Whose fault? A tyrant."

The house (2319 NW. 2nd St.) is open whenever someone is home, so it's hit-or-miss since there's no public phone number. Admission is free; donations accepted.

El Palacio de los Jugos

Juices, the main attraction, are $2 per cup and $7 for a half-gallon. The mamey juice is the most popular, a thick juice that tastes a little like papaya or guava. But papaya and guava juices are also available, as are pineapple, carrot, beet and other combinations.

La Moon

This Venezuelan restaurant is popular with the post-clubbing crowd: Thursday through Saturday, it's open from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. and until at least midnight every day except Sunday.

Have an arepa con queso -- cheese between two corn pancakes -- or a Supermoon Perro, a hot dog with cheese, ketchup, mustard, mayonnaise, potato chip slivers, sausage, bacon and a quail egg. It can take 15 minutes during slow times just to get takeout, so beware the long wait during busy times at the restaurant (144 SW. 8th St., 1-305-860-6209).

La Carreta

Brave the lunchtime crowds to watch the old-school Cuban crowd eat lunch and have cafecitos (Cuban coffees), surrounded by a loud buzz of Spanish.