Robert Is Here Gets Tapped as First Florida Establishment Listed on the National Culinary Heritage Register

Relatively speaking, Florida’s culinary history is still pretty short. But as the years pass some longtime mainstays are starting to get recognized for their contribution to the national food scene. The latest to be honored is popular fruit stand and farm located in Homestead, Robert is Here. Later this month the stand will be the first location in the Sunshine State to be added to the National Culinary Heritage Register.

The only register of its kind, the National Culinary Heritage Register is described as "an initiative designed to explore and preserve the complex history of food and beverage in America.” In ordered to be considered, “applicants must prove that the subject has made a significant impact on American food and beverage culture,” according to its website. Things that can meet those requirements include being the “origin of or is well-known for a specific regional food or beverage” or being the“first and/or longest continuously-running culinary establishment of a particular type,” amongst others.

Robert is Here has been selling exotic fruits and its famous milkshakes since 1959, when a then 11-year-old Robert set up a stand to sell his father’s cucumber crop. To encourage buyers he put up a sign saying “Robert Is Here” and he quickly sold out. Soon more and more produce was added and the Homestead fruit stand was born. To this day you can still visit to pick up tropical fruit, smoothies and other Florida-only bites.