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Nov 28, 2021 1 min, 27 secs

“Whoever’s campaigning always comes by Versailles and has that picture in the ventanita (little window) drinking their Cuban coffee,” said Nicole Valls, 39, whose grandfather opened Versailles, a restaurant that has charted the growth and history of Miami's dynamic Cuban American community.

Through the decades, the front of Versailles has become the gathering place for huge crowds during protests and rallies — and a place to tap the Cuban American community's pulse.

Despite its storied history, Versailles is still a culinary home to many ordinary Cuban Americans who've forged a life in Florida.

“People in Cuba have heard of Versailles so it’s a point of reference," she said.

The interior of Versailles was designed by an uncle of Pitbull — yes, the famous rapper — who’s Cuban American.

“We used to run around this place,” said Nicole Valls, who remembers the eatery as a playground for her and her sisters.

During an interview on a recent rainy, yet busy, Friday afternoon, Valls recalled the early years of the restaurant.

The rallies outside the restaurant have long reflected the political and cultural history of the city's Cuban Americans, whose growing numbers and economic clout paved the way for Miami to become a destination for many Latin Americans — as well as a growing international hub.

In 1999, thousands of Cuban Americans turned out in front of Versailles to protest the U.S.

Former Presidents Ronald Reagan, both Bushes, Clinton and Trump all made a stop at Versailles, as well as presidential hopefuls like Mitt Romney and John McCain

On its website, Versailles calls itself "the world's most famous Cuban restaurant."

Valls said, “There’s nothing like Versailles, especially for Cubans."

"This is kind of their ground zero, the epicenter of the Cuban American community," she said

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