Julio de la Cruz may need more brothers.

He has franchised El Siboney, a popular Key West Cuban restaurant, to his brothers and he plans on opening two more in 2008 and a fourth in 2009.

Brother Sam de la Cruz opened his El Siboney in Lindon on April 1, brother Gersson Batista will open El Siboney in June in Orlando, Fla., and the tentative plan is for another brother to open one more in Marathon, Fla..

That leaves just three more brothers to help with the restaurant expansion.

Julio de la Cruz owned two International House of Pancakes (IHOP) restaurants and discovered El Siboney, named after the pre-Colombian peoples native to Cuba.

“He used to go to El Siboney everyday,” Sam de la Cruz said of brother. “He loved the food and when he found out the owners wanted to sell it, he talked to him and decided to buy it.”

With Julio de la Cruz’s prior experience in the restaurant business, he was able to increase sales 75 percent at El Siboney and invited his family to help. Sam de la Cruz, a 13-year Utah resident, traveled back to Florida to learn the family business.

“He decided he wanted to expand and I’m the only (brother) who doesn’t live in Florida,” Sam de la Cruz said. “He decided he wanted to try another state and I agreed.”

Tucked away on 135 S. State St. in a Lindon shopping plaza, El Siboney provides the same quality of service and food found in the original popular Key West restaurant.

A brother-in-law Benrondo Abel Moscoso, who manages the Key West El Siboney, is helping Sam De la Cruz start up his restaurant.

Rated as its Best Cuban Restaurant of the Year annually since 1993 by Key West media, the restaurant is usually very busy.

Different than its western neighbors in flavor, Cuban dishes use a mix of Spanish, African, Chinese and Caribbean influences while emphasizing oregano, bay, cumin, onions and garlic seasonings.

“I think people are going to love the food,” said owner Sam de la Cruz. “It’s a good product. We’re trying to get the best to people.”

Yuca, plantains, Cuban bread, as well as oxtail soup, stuffed shrimp and roast pork are offered.

“Roast pork, that’s the number one sale and the most popular beef is the house steak,” said de la Cruz.

Called the Siboney Steak, it is a skirt steak prepared Cuban style. Desserts are all chef prepared and fresh daily.

The family has a house sangria, El Siboney Sangria. Not yet available in the Lindon restaurant, the owner is in the process of getting a license to serve this beverage.

“And we can give the recipe to nobody,” de la Cruz said and grinned.