Gilbert’s Bakery

I was so sad to find out that the Gilbert’s on 32^nd Avenue and Coral Way is now permanently closed! What’s up with that? :(That being said, I came here to get my pastelito de queso y guayaba fix while I’m town a couple of weeks ago, because no matter what, there is not a single Cuban bakery that makes them better. Maybe it’s in the way they shape the dough? I also really like their croquetas de bacalao, their pastica sandwiches and their sandwichones. The ladies are always nice and it’s all very reasonably priced.

I am reviewing the Gilbert’s Bakery that is in the UM Medical Campus.
The Cuban coffee is great! Probably the only reason why I would go. The problem here is that they pre-​make everything, so by the time you buy something, is tastes stale and old. The Cuban toast has been prepared since the morning — the bread is not fresh, they pack it up in foil and then flatten it. Needless to say, it tastes like an Old Navy flip flop. How can you serve customers that?
Lunch — I had a turkey sandwich that was on display for god knows how long. It was awful.
Word of advice: Do not pre-​make tostadas; the way you are serving them is gross! Do not pre-​make lunch sandwiches — if we wanted that, we would go to the 711. You’re giving Cuban bakeries a bad name.

Nice higher class cuban bakery, café con leche is good and staff are super friendly. Crosiant with ham and cheese was good, they have pastelitos and sandwiches, but they are smaller than the usual sizes, but pretty good bakery, only a few tables outside.

This location is really good too, never a let down… pastelitos de coco, pastelitos de guayaba y queso con café con leche, now thats a breakfast!

Gilbert’s comes in handy when I find myself in the Redbird Shopping Plaza craving a cortadito and yes, I usually get some croquetas on the side.
To start, the ladies working here are always cheery and ready to serve. Not all of the pastelitos and baked goods are labeled so they are happy to talk you through what each contains. If you don’t speak Spanish, you can still get around and not feel like you’re an uninvited guest… Something not always easy to come by in Miami!
They have unique croquetas you won’t find everywhere. If you like spicy, try the jalapeño. Last time I stopped by, I had a Cuban empanada that was essentially a medianoche wrapped up in a empanada (pickles included). It was pretty tasty. What wasn’t? The pumpkin spice cortadito. I was urged to try it but it was overly sweet and had an odd grainy texture. Did I drink it all? You bet! The things we do for caffeine…
If you’re looking to pick up bites for a party or meeting, they have platters ready to go. Also an array of enticing pastries and cakes to add to the mix.
This shopping plaza fulfills a lot of my needs (dry cleaning, grocery shopping, pharmacy) and I’m glad Gilbert’s is added to the mix to always get me through my afternoon slump!

Nice bakery! Love their Empanadas and Pasteles but most of all I love the display, it is clean, well organized and look delicious !
I liked it and will return again

Excellent bakery and very nice service. As soon as you come in they greet you nicely with a «buenos días» (good morning) and «ya estamos con usted» (we’ll be with you shortly). All in a genuine manner.
Then there are the displays, there is a wide variety of pastelitos, pastries, appetizers ready to go and all look great.
I had an empanada with a café con leche and it was delicious, will definitely comeback.

Hi Gilbert,
Nice pastries.
Friendly servers.
Nice display of foods.
Good job!
Kind regards,
Keith P.

We recently used Gilbert’s for our wedding favors of mini pies. They were fantastic! We did a mix of the mini apple and key-​lime pies. All the guests loved them and we did as well. They made the process hassel free and they delivered the pies to the wedding location. We will use them again!

I guess this place is a shadow of what it used to be, was in the area & stopped in on the recommendation of my boyfriend’s colleague who said it was her favorite Cuban Bakery. Honestly the Vicky Bakery in Miami Lakes blows this place away

here are some colorful adjectives to describe my experience at Gilbert’s:
–doughy
–insipid
–loud
–hiahleah-​ish
Have you ever arrived 3 hrs late to a latin family’s party and you pick at the last bit of beaten up Hors d’oeuvres just to be polite when you get starred at and ordered to eat something by somebody’s grandma, madrina, tia loca?
If I’m going to consume such an offensive amount of carbs it better taste amazing. This crap and the burnt coffee they slang deserve an immediate citation for making foolproof fat Cuban finger foods an even more horrific and guilt tinged experience.
This was just offensive on all levels, the only thing that wasn’t as terrible was their attempt to make some sandwich de miga thing with a glob of cream cheese and oregano on top.
In their defense, Gilbert’s actually weren’t offensive 15+ years ago and were the better place to get cuban pastries but like all good Miami things in the 90’s they had to meet their demise.
R.I.P Gilbert’s t and Gianni Versace

Well… lets see I eat pretty much half fried half frozen pastry and a bocadito that tasted like it had been sitting there since the new counter top had been replaced with a new one the service sucked lets face it she didnt want to fry my cheesy papa rellena thanks god my diet pepsi wasnt flat my god breathing dust while the center sidewalk was being fixed and the tables wiggling like they werent even new ones i got home and vomited all my food out now i have 3 years simplement of diarrhea
any ways adiós gilberts que dios no sue enferma

Why is everyone hating on this place?! I remember a few years ago this was THE place to get your pastries. The quality is no longer as good, hence my 4 vs 5 stars but it really is not less than 3 stars no matter how you look at it.
My reason for coming here are likely the same as everyone else. I like their pastelitos de guayaba, pan Cubano and their croquettas. They have a ton of other great options but these are what I always get.
Disclaimer: I haven’t had their cakes or dessert. For me, it’s about the pastelitos and the other «savory» dishes.

Just like the other Gilbert’s location I’ve tried, I have to ask: What is WRONG with the bakers at this place? For my birthday, a friend purchased an assortment of bite-​size treats, mostly chocolate. Everything was so soaked in raw rum or vodka that no one could eat more than a bite. I have had rum cakes before, and they are always delicious and the alcohol is cooked so that everyone can enjoy them. This was so disappointing!

Gilbert… can you say miniature, overpriced pastries that are not even that tasty. same goes for their cakes! I was there last month to purchase a dessert for a dinner invite and although everything is extremely appealing, this is where that old adage comes to mind «Looks can be deceiving», and they are. Everything looks good but lacks in taste. 1^st off, as always you ask what they cakes are made of and their staff NEVER KNOWS, always needs to consult with someone; very annoying. The cake was relatively small, overpriced and guess what? not very tasty and kind of stale. This is a place that’s all about the hype and still don’t understand how it got so popular when it’s just not that good.

This place made me look forward to early morning meetings on Thursdays at work. Their croquetas, bocaditos, and café con leche put a smile on this snarky Cuban girl’s face (I really don’t do mornings very well, so this is a bold statement.)
Service is a little slow but if you can stick through it, it’s worth that precious little box of goodies you get to take with you.

I was talking to my Miami heartthrob today about how much I miss a good café con leche, a cortadito and my very favorite: the guava pastelito. When you’re living completely across the country, where Cubans aren’t commonplace, it’s a little hard to locate my favorite treats!
Growing up, my mom did a lot of shopping at Milam’s and with Gilbert’s right next door, I always knew she’d come home with pastelitos. Anyway, this isn’t your Cuban cafeteria 5 cent treat, these pastelitos are a little more gourmet… and I love them.

This place catered an event at my job and I figured, hey, pastelitos and such, I love ‘em like everyone else, but I was not expecting to be wowed, but I seriously was! The pastelitos were soft, not excessively flaky, and super flavorful! I couldn’t get enough of them! We had the finger food size and they were a perfect size with the perfect amount of filling. The bocaditos de pasta were really yummy and full of soft, fluffy, addictively flavorful goodness. Some other bocaditos with a green and white cream were tasty, too.
On the desserts end, they had these super cute and dainty dessert minis, and I mean mini! They were perfect for a finger food menu and packed with gigantic flavor! I had some mango pie and a mini flan. Both were super delicious! I have never actually had traditional flan (my teacher made a delicious more cheesecake-​y version), so I was glad I had my first experience with this one. It was very good and had only a very very slight bit of eggy-​ness, but overall, the caramel flavor was perfect, as was the texture.
The downside – Well, I really wasn’t a fan of the chicken pastelitos. They used a different type of dough that was harder and drier like a shortbread and I wasn’t a fan of their spin on this particular item.
In terms of presentation, everything looked classy and they did some simple elegant touches with fruit flowers, romaine lettuce, and such. Also, they arrived on time, which is also super important.
Overall, 4.5 stars. Very very good! Everyone at my job is Cuban, mostly first generation, and they love this place! It is their go-​to for catering. Based on this experience, I was very pleased and the only small issues are the dough for the chicken pastelitos and the very slightest eggy taste in the mini flan. I just can’t believe that this is the place that I’ve been avoiding because of such terrible reviews. I guess either they have gotten a lot better or the catering is just far superior to their common bakery stock. Either way, I promise you that they are sure to wow on catering.
And just an FYI, it’s quite pricey from what I hear.

Pastries were ok, but why did my café con leche cost $ 3.50? In an area where a good coffee can be had for around a buck, there is just no explanation.

Cake: ok but a bit on the salty side. Was told it had crème de vie, but it was actually drenched in rum. Almost got fired for bringing it to the work BDAy party. But we were happy campers from 3 to 5. I think I’m still employed. Will know soon.
The cake was quite expensive and very small. I still prefer publix. but i had to give this a try since my friends raved about it.

Coffee is good.
Pastries, and other stuff… not worthy for any real Cubans in Miami. It is upscale, but think Starbucks.
It’s all looks, and yet still hollow. That’s Gilbert’s, the Starbucks of Cuban bakeries in Miami — the «sabor» of the pastelitos is just not up to par.
Additionally, none of the staff here speaks English (surprisingly, and this is rare, even in Spanish Miami since there’s usually at least one staff that is bilingual).
For Cuban bakeries, I would go somewhere else, for sure.