Much like shopping in Cuba, Cuban food is not largely responsible for bringing in visitors. Cuban dishes generally combine traditional Spanish maneuvers with what the island’s agricultural endeavors can churn up. Just because Cuban food isn’t on the international radar, that doesn’t mean you can’t find a good meal at a Cuban restaurant. As tourists increase their presence in the country, more and more international restaurants are springing up to meet the demand, and if you are hesitant to explore the options, you can always play it safe by eating at a Cuban restaurant that is found at one of the country’s most-frequented hotels or resorts. Though the food gets a bad rap in Cuba and the service is known to be sub-par at times, having an open mind can lead to an enjoyable time with the Cuban cuisine. And hey, who knows, since everyone has their own ideas about what is good or not, you might even come away from your Cuba vacation raving about Cuban food.
A “paladar”, which is essentially a private Cuban restaurant, is a common option when looking to explore Cuban cuisine. As you might imagine, finding paladares is easier in bigger cities like Havana and Santiago de Cuba, though they can generally be found at just about any destination you will arrive at. Most, if not all, Cuban paladares are prohibited from serving shrimp and/or lobster, which is curious indeed. Cuban fast food restaurants are becoming more prevalent, namely “El Rápido” (the Fast One), which serves burgers, pizzas and thing the like. Most provincial capitals will have both fast food restaurants and paladares, both of which can be quite cheap. For a quick bite, you might head to a Pain de Paris store in the cities, as they serve up some nice croissants, sandwiches and other delicacies. Chinese food is on the rise in Cuba, and Havana even has its own small Chinatown, which is found in Central Havana.
So what can you expect from Cuban cuisine? Well, that very much depends on your Cuba vacation experience. If you are traveling to one of the all inclusive Cuba resorts, the restaurants there will feature mostly international selections, with buffets and a la carte restaurants the prevailing choices. Some of the resort restaurants will focus on one certain cuisine, like Japanese or Italian, for example. This can also be true at the Havana hotels and other lodging establishments that are popular with tourists. If you dine outside of the resort and hotel restaurants, you will have the chance to find out more about what Cuban cuisine is all about. As mentioned, Spanish influences are prevalent in Cuban food, and the slaves that came from Africa and the Caribbean have certainly brought their own food intricacies. Like most Latin American countries, beans and rice are a main staple in Cuban dishes, and meats are generally marinated in citrus juices before being seasoned and roasted, sometimes for hours.
In eastern Cuba, “criollo” cooking is common, and the Creole cuisine in Cuba does not generally use peppers, which is a bit of a shock to some, perhaps. Oregano, bay leaves, garlic and onion are common spices used in Cuban cuisine, especially in criollo cooking, and plantains are definitely a common food item. Vegetables such as yuca, tomatoes and avocado are used quite a bit in Cuban cuisine, and interestingly enough, criollo cooking tends to stay away from using fresh fruits. Mojo, which is also known as Mojito, is a popular east Cuban meat dish, featuring meat that is served in a light sauce with garlic, onion and oil among the main components. If you are in Santiago de Cuba, Boliche and Ropa Vieja are common meat dishes you might find on the menu. The former involves beef roast that is deliciously stuffed with spicy chorizo. The latter is basically a shredded beef dish, where the tender meat is simmered in a criollo sauce made from tomatoes. Also in eastern Cuba, tamales are one of the more common Cuban dishes. Different than the tamales you might know, as they are often boiled in saltwater. Yuca, black beans and rice are often side dishes. Spanish influence on Cuban cuisine can be seen in soups and stews like the Caldo Gallego and the Fabada Asturiana. These dishes feature white beans, and can include blood sausage, chorizo and saffron. As you head west across Cuba, the criollo cooking tendencies continue to largely prevail, with Havana offering the most abundant choices for other Cuban cuisine. Many western Cuba dishes feature what is known as “alcaparrado”, which is an interesting raisin, olive and caper mix that results in a sweet and sour effect.
Pastries and other finger foods are popular in Cuba, and a growing amount of pastry shops and bakeries are joining the Cuban cuisine market. Western Cubans tend to use eggs more so than do their eastern counterparts, and among the egg dishes you can find in Havana, for example, is “huevos a la habanera” (Havana eggs), which involves a bed of white rice and fried plantains, which is then topped by fried eggs. Fried potato balls stuffed with ground beef, which are known as “papas rellenos” are one of the common Cuban dishes found more so in the west, as is “niños envueltos”, which is alcaparrado-stuffed beef that is served in conjunction with a fairly hot pepper sauce. Whether you are in eastern, middle, or western Cuba, seafood is a prime part of Cuban cuisine along the coast. As lobster usually is too expensive for most Cuban families, other Cuban dishes using seafood developed over time. Crab, shrimp and fish can make the menu, and often times, a Basque tomato sauce known as “a la vizcaína” is usually part of the deal. Coastal cities like Trinidad and Havana tend to offer the best Cuban food scenes, due largely in part to the fresh seafood at hand.
As for drinks, Cuban rum is king, and of course, the famed “mojito” is a favorite Cuban cuisine offering of the liquid variety. Believed to have originated at the famous “La Bodeguita del Medio” bar in Havana, the mojito is a rum based drink that is mixed with soda water, lime juice, mint leaves, and of course, Cuban sugar. Wine is not generally popular in Cuba, and Cubans would many times much rather use it for making “sangría”.
