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Some of Cuba's best restaurants...
Updated june 19, 2007
Restaurants:
5* hotels have good food
paladares:
ask locally about the best current food served
in local homes...
Restaurants suggestions
DINNER AT CAFE DE ORIENTE
It will cost around CUC 70.00 per person.
All depend of how many drinks, wines, and
special dishes.
Dinner at "Chocolate con Fresa" site.
It will cost around CUC 25 per person.
Meson de la Flota
Just around the corner from Los Frailes
Hotel.
They have a Tourist Menu for U$ 15.00 per
person (this is old pricing.... should not have changed much in cost
There is a Flamenco Show at lunch time.
You are expected to tip them with a Cuban
peso per person.
Spanish dishes, historical site since it was
same restaurant for the last 200 years or so.
It was were the Spanish sailor used to have
dinner, drinks and some girls.
no available girls today.
New posts: (jan 2005)
here about food in Havana...
1.) La Chansonnier, Calle
J entre Linea and 15 or
17. Elegant, beautiful, gracious, delicious - $10.
There are NO signs to tell you that this big house is a
paladares. You have to just "know" that it is. I once asked the owner why
they didn't put a sign out front or in some way advertise the place. Her
response was very Cuban, "We don't need to".
2.) There is also a restaurant opposite Focsa that
is the only place I know in Havana that will deliver your food to your CP or
Hotel. Just plan on waiting AT LEAST an hour for it.
We always order Arroz Con Pollo.
Each order is enough for 2 people - $6.
3.) La Fontana - about 3a + 46 in Miramar is another top quality - and I've
never had a problem just turning up. (La Guarida,
Cocina de Lilliam you
need to book in advance - 264 4940 and 209 6514 respectively).
4.) El Diluvio is a great Italian
paladar in Playa - about 72
entre 17 y 19.
5.) La Finca is top quality dining.
6.) By relative standards, a little pricier than paladares,
but La Taberna Restaurant in
Habana Vieja has a beautiful dining room,
good air conditioning, excellent music, a professional dancing couple performing
in the traditional style, and prices for dinners in the $8-$15 range. However,
watch out for the waiters, and check you bill closely!
7.) One of my favourite city places for a
continental quality lunch Huron Azul,
Humbolt near Calle
P...and even today cab drivers all tell you it's closed for reservations..
8.) La Esperanza (Miramar calle 16 #105 - phone 202
4361). Great food - $107 for 4 including 10% service change.
9.) I am surprised that nobody mentioned Dona Carmela
... love the place and the food, lot of choice ...
I went to La Guarida last week ... very good
food but WAY overpriced! a little plate con plain
arroz called a side dish for $2! But well when the
queen of Spain had dinner there it IS a reason right? ;)
10.) la Esperanza - Without question, its the best
atmosphere, decor and food for any paladar I visited
in Havana. A classy joint. Le
Chansonnier is a close second, La Guarida is
third, but they both feel like busy restaurants to me (all about $45-60./2
persons)
11.) A totally different feel, but still a fantastic meal, is VISTAMAR (mostly
euros there, especially Italian groups), right on the water, in a modernist
style house with pool that reminds of the Brady Bunch or Palms Springs circa
1955. (all about $50./2 persons)
12.) 'Paladar Marpoly'
is an odd place, slightly surreal, but the portions are huge and tasty (under
$25./2 persons), its an 'alternative' that never
disappointed me...
13.) Oh, and the 'Doctor's' next to the Maqueta in
Miramar - I finally went there in March, had the same bitter lobster tail as
everywhere else, but the dessert was good. (about
$50./2)
14.) Vistamar is on primera
in Miramar about 24th or 26th street. It has a large sign. Not far from that is
El Palio. Vistamar the
food is good - if you're lucky you can sit on the balcony overlooking the pool
and watch the sun set over the sea. They used to have a small crocodile in the
pool. It can often be busy, and a couple of times we have eaten at the poolside,
which can mean long delays as the staff tend to forget you down there.
15.) I like El Palio, too - smaller, less busy.
16.) And whilst La Guarida is expensive by Havana
standards, it is one of the best restaurants in the city - and also one of the
most fashionable places to go. I hate to think what you'd have to pay in the
most fashionable restaurant in Amsterdam or London. I think it is good value for
what you get. (I didn't think they did anything as boring as plain
rice !)
17.) Continuing reporting the prices - El Aljibe -
$68 for four (including 10% service charge - only one cocktail).
18.) Paladar Dona Carmela:Comunidad
#1, Casa 10, Habana del Este
863-6048 Maceo y Beatriz. Its
on the other side near El Morro. When I was there
last time I paid $25 pp incl white wine (Soroa)
Nice patio and they have everything you like (on Cuban standards of course)
19.) Marpoly, Calle K #
154 e Linea y 11
20.) Los Nardos, right across the street from the
Capitolio. This is now my
favourite restaurant, bar none, in Havana. Food is EXCELLENT, service is
FAST and professional. The dining room is very nice, with a piano player playing
romantic stuff in the background. Dinner for 2, oyster cocktails followed by
huge portions of fish and lobster termidor and a
bottle of white wine, $37.50, which included 10% for the tip. The wine I ordered
for this dinner was $16.50.
21.) A state-run place that's always been a good, reasonably priced meal is the
seafood restaurant "Puerta de
Sangra" (wrong spelling/name, sorry!) near the train station in Havana
Vieja. Its on a corner,
and reminds of Captain Nemo's submarine.
Its got vintage original mobster photos on the walls
- kinda like a Cuban 'El Teddy's'. I stumbled on
this place with a French couple and a New York hipster, and have returned
sporadically since its in a
neighbourhood I don’t frequent often. The clientele is almost all Cuban,
but its a dollar restaurant with excellent seafood
and a great bar.
22.) Alliance Francesa - went there late last year.
We were on the balcony, not inside, which was pleasant. I thought the main
course was quite good, but the vegetables left something to be desired. And yes,
overpriced.
23.) pan.com on 7ma in Miramar
esquina de 26 - sandwich place open 24 hours. [Sample cost - 5 people $23
- and this time the service was reasonable fast, but they only had one type of
bread. One friend was explaining how they have papa.pan,
mama.pan etc. Response - what about
peter.pan
?]
24.) And here's one that I doubt is in any of the guide books - Margot's Pizzas,
on the waterfront in Jaimanitas. Take away only, but
you can sit on the seawall opposite. Pizzas for 7 - 100
pesos (slightly less than $4). Pizzas start at 6 pesos. Fresh orange
juice 2 pesos. [Several comments about much better than the
$1.40 pizzas at Dinos.]
25.) Outside the Maternity Hospital in Vedado (I
think around Calle 4, 1 or 2 blocks off of La
Rampa (23rd) there is a woman who sells those little
fried balls of Yucca or Potato (3 pesos) - "Yucarellnas?".
She also sells batidos de mamey
y guayaba (2-3 pesos) or something like that. A
filling meal is never more than 50 pesos and delicious. There are several more
vendors there that offer a variety of sweets that are great.
26.) Pizza, 8-14 pesos , 1/2 block from the market at
Cuatro Caminos. The best street pizza I have found
in Havana.
27.) Paco
Mer on the corner of Infanta and
Neptuno. The best "biftec"
sandwich in Havana. Large breaded pork cutlet on huge bread, 20 pesos. Open
late. Also massive ham/cheese, same price.
Terrible Places:
1.) Alliance Francesa 17 y 6 -
TERRIBLE ! The Langostina was one part
Lobster to two parts salt. The waiter asked what kind of rice I wanted, seafood,
black beans and, or White. I assumed it was included with the $17 lobster.
Wrong! it was an additional $15 and it was just as
inundated with salt! I was starving and managed three mouthfuls before I gave up
and asked for some water and the check. They charged me $3 for the water!
Unbelievably bad.
2.) BOM Appetit is just that, it bombs (and not 'da
bomb!) - expensive, and there's a stinky latrine next door that brings whiffs
and odours that remind me of a Third Grade bathroom
in a unremodeled prewar elementary school. When I'm
spending $50 for a nice meal?? Yuck. The food is okay, but I was turned off by
that 'greedy paladar' feeling, not unlike the
'greedy casa' revulsion.
3.) Alliance Francesa, on the
Parque Lennon, is just insanely overpriced - its
a Cuban restaurant charging western prices! Isn’t it state-run? Dirty linens,
so-so food, zero ambiance : why waste your meal-time
there?
4.) I'd add "Las Mercedes" in Vedado (Calle
18 #204, entre 15 y 17), which used to fantastic and
cheap and highly recommended. Since 2000, the prices have nearly doubled, and
gone is the great unhurried meal and diverse menu. A SPOILED
paladar. Eh,
fuggeddaboutit!
The food in Cuba continues to get better and better:
My personal favorite is Papa's at the Marina Hemingway. Great for
Lobster and Steak
My second favorite is the pool side restaurant at the Melia Cohiba
Hotel. Third best steak of my life.
Third is La Guarida, the place many call the best.
Don Cangrejo has the best seafood in town. Owned by the Ministry of
Fishing.
La Cova Pizza Nova has the best Italian food and Pizza in town. Located
at Marina Hemingway.
El Aljibe offers rich and invigorating country food.
Floridita is one of Ernest Heminway's favorite places to eat and drink.
La Maison where you can watch a fashion show while you eat. Starts at
$25.
La Cecilia serving Cuban cuisine in an outdoor atmosphere.
Restaurant Pacifico for the best Cantonese food.
Best fast food
El Rapido and Rumbos
Best ice cream
Copellia for the best Cuban Ice Cream
Best desert
LA BODIGUITA DEL MEDIO. Calle
Empedrado No 207 e/ Cuba y San Ignacio, La Habana Vieja. Tels: 57-1374 /
57-1375 y 33-8857. Daily 12 noon to 12:45am.
- One of Ernest Hemingway's favorite
hang-outs was the Bodeguita a superb tavern almost 50 years ago. Famous for its graffiti, mojitos
and its authentic pork dishes, La Bodeguita was honored for
its cuisine in 1992 with the "Best of the Best Five Star Diamond
Award" by the North American Academy of Gastronomy. The
restaurant specializes in traditional Cuban dishes - most famously its
roast pork, steeped black beans, flat-fried bananas, garlicky yucca,
and sweet guava pudding - which are, as Nicolas Guillen (Cuba's
national poet) once put it "overflowing with surges of aged
rum". Don't fail to try the chicharrones accompanied by a Crystal
beer. Although lately the prices have climbed steeply due to the
constant tour bus traffic, one can still recommend the place for its
authentic local flavor. Certainly a must stop, if only to taste the
famous "mojito". Check out the La Bodeguita del Medio
webpage at www.labodeguita.com
EL RANCHO PALCO. Calle 19 y 140, Rpto. Cubanacan, Playa. Tel:
33-9346 / 23-5838. Daily 12 noon to 12:30 am. Home delivery service:
12 noon to 12pm.
LOS DOCE APOSTOLES. Parque Historico Militar Castillo de los
Tres Santos Reyes Magnos del Morro-La Cabaña, Carretera de La Cabaña,
Habana del Este. Tel: 63-8295. Daily from 12:30pm to 11pm.
LA MINA. Calle Oficio esq. Obispo, La Habana Vieja. Tel:
62-0216. Daily 24 hours.
A great café to sit down and sip a cool beer or a mojito under a
shady umbrella while over-looking the Plaza de Armas. La Mina is open
24 hours and offers an outdoor café and snack bar, live music, an ice
cream parlor facing Calle Oficios and a beautiful courtyard restaurant
serving cheap, mediocre Criollo meals. The outdoor café has a great
thirst quenching lemonade. The only draw back to La Miña is the
noise. Bands and troubadours perform here constantly and sometimes
it's enough to drive you crazy.
RANCHO MI HACIENDA. Calzada de Justiz, Campo Florido. Tels:
33-5485 / 96-3457. Diaily 9am to 9pm.
LA CASONA DE 17. Calle 17 No. 60 e/ M y N, El Vedado. Tel:
33-4062. Daily 12:30pm to 2am.
ABANICO DE CRISTAL. Hotel Melia Cohiba. Paseo e/ 1ra y 3ra, El
Vedado. Tel: 33-3636. First floor. Daily 7:30pm to midnight.
EL RANCRON DE ARNIANDO, Hotel Neptuno Triton. Avenida 3ra y 74,
Miramar. Tel: 24-1616. Barbeque by the swimming pool. Daily 12 noon to
5:30pm.
RINCON CRIOLLO. Hotel Panamericano. Calle A y Avenida Central,
Cojimar. Tels: 68-4111 al 19. Daily 2pm to 1am.
LA CASA DE QUITA Y 16. 5ta Avenida y 16, Miramar, Playa. Tel:
29-4040. Mondays to Satutdays 12 noon to 10:30pm.
- This is a small, rustic ranch house
located to the side of the Casa del Habana. It offers beautifully
presented portions of well-prepared food, seafood as well as fish and
meat. The prices are moderate.
CORAL AZUL. Calle 84 y Mar, Miramar, Playa. Tels: 24-5551 /
24-0700 ext 1401. Breakfast: 7 to 10:30am / luinch: 12 noon to 3pm /
Dinner: 7pm to 11pm.
BAR CABAÑA. Cuba No. 12 esq. Peña Pobre, La Habana Vieja.
Tel: 33-5670. Daily: 24 Hours.
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- El ALJIBE, 7ma Avenida e/
Calle 24 y 26, Miramar. Tels: 24 1583 or 24 1584
One of our favorite restaurants in Havana, El Aljibe is a popular
restaurant with Havana diplomats and government officials alike. This
atmosphere is charming as you dine beneath a soaring palm thatched
roof. Sergio and Pepe Garcia Macias, former owners of the famous
pre-Revolutionary Rancho Humo restaurant now run the El Aljibe. The
specialty of the house is "pollo aljibe", a plate of glazed
and roasted chicken famous for it's special garlic sauce. Included
with the $12 meal are fried plantain chips, rice, black beans, and
french fries. The Pollo Aljibe is apparently the best chicken dish in
Havana and to date we have never been disappointed. The house also
serves roasted fish or combination plate of meat, chicken, rice,
beans, salad, bread and house-made dessert. Portions are generous and
the food is both tasty and authentically Cuban. The "Mojito"
is the specialty drink of the house.
-
- LA CECILIA, No. 11010, 5ta.
Avenida. e/ Calle 110 y 112, Miramar. Tels: 24 1562; 22 6700, and 24
1243
La Cecilia is an elegant and romantic open-air restaurant and grill
house located in a beautiful restored mansion on 5ta Avenida. Most of
the tables are located in an outdoor patio , lit by Tiffany lams and
surrounded by palm trees. La Cecilia specializes in turn of the
century Cuban food adapted to present times. It features a snack bar
with a varied assortment of grilled red and white meats such as tasajo
(jerked meat), churrasco (broiled steak), and pollo con mojo (chicken
with a lemon, onion and garlic marinate). Entrees range from US$10 and
up. There is also a room for working dinners, private parties and
weddings. House drink specialties include Cuban cocktails, sorbets and
juices. Canchánchara is the drink of the house. There are cabaret
show most nights.
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- TOCORORO, No. 302, Calle 18
esq 3ra Avenida, Miramar. Tels: 33 2209; 33 4530
The Tocororo is an exquisite restaurant housed in a neoclassical
mansion on 3ra Avenida owned by the Cristal beer magnet before the
revolution. Apparently one of the best restaurants in Havana, it is
known as the favorite of Gabriel Garcia Marquez and many diplomats and
business people seem to agree. The lobby is a cross between a museum,
an art gallery, and a middle class Victorian parlor, full of rich
treasures. Tocororo extends out into a tropical garden patio replete
with rattan furniture, Art-nouveau Tiffany lamps and real cotorros
(parrots) in hanging cages. There is no menu but try the grilled lamb
chops and mixed seafood brochette and local favorites such as frijoles
(black beans). Specialties include the house appetizer "pechitos
de camarones" and the grilled lobster entrée. Visitors are
welcomed with a Tocororo cocktail ("daiquiri" and "blue
curacao"). Prepare yourself for sticker shock, as Tocororo is
expensive by Cuban standards. It was once one of Havana's best
restaurants, though quality has slipped with the departure of longtime
chef Erasmus. The fish isn't as fresh as it used to be, and the
kitchen has a reputation of sometimes running out of ingredients.
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- EL BARRACON, Hotel Habana
Libre, Calle L esq Calle 23, Vedado. Tel: 33 3704
Located in the lobby of the Hotel Habana Libre, this is apparently one
of the city's best restaurants for Criollo food. The pork-whether
roasted or in the form of masas fritas (fried skin)-the yuca con mojo,
and the frijoles dormidos are well prepared. The prices are moderate,
and the service is acceptable. The Criollo desserts are delicious.
-
- DON AGAMENON, Calle 17 No. 60
e/ M y N, Vedado. Tel: 33 4062
In the heart of Vedado, Don Agremon offers everything from lobster
pizzas to Criollo cuisine and an open-air barbecue in a stylishly
furnished neoclassical villa.
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- EL PATIO COLONIAL, Calle
Obispo esq a Baratillo, La Habana Vieja. Tel: 33 8146.
ABANICO DE CRISTAL, Hotel Meli-Cohiba. Paseo e/ 1ra. y 3ra. El
Vedado. Tel: 33 3636
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- EL RANCHO DE ARMANDO,
Parrillada en la piscina. Hotel Neptuno-Tritûn. Avenida 3ra. y Calle
74, Miramar. Tel: 24 1606
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DON CANGREJO. Calle 1ra e/ 16 y
18, Miramar. Tel: 24-4169. Daily 12 noon to 12 midnight.
A selection of live seafood cooked to your taste.
PAPA'S. Marina Hemingway. 5ta Avenida y Calle 248, Santa Fe. Tels:
24-1150 al 56. Daily 12 noon to 12 midnight. Cafeteria at PAPA'S. Daily
9am to 7pm.
CORAL NEGRO, Hotel Neptuno-Triton. Calle 3ra y 70, Miramar. Tel:
24-1606 (ext 109). Daily 12 noon to 11pm.
EL MORAMBOM, 5ta
Avenida y Calle32, Miramar
LA FERMINIA, 5ta Avenida No. 18207 e/ Calle 182 y 184, Rpto
Flores, Playa. Tel: 33 6555 and 33 6786
La Ferminia is described by some as the most formal restaurant in Havana
and is located on 5ta Avenida at the western outskirts of Miramar. The
ambience is elegant with splendid chandeliers and turn of the century
antique furniture. The restaurant has six private rooms, each with a
different color scheme or you can dine outside beneath a timbered roof.
The house specialty is "Gran Grillada Mixta" (mixed-grill)
with shrimp, lobster, fish, chicken and scallops for US$28. The menu
also includes soups (US$3), grilled chicken (US$8), and fish dishes
(US$12). "Coco Rosa" and "Tropical Silver" are the
drink specialties of the house. La Ferminia will also cater for special
events and has a vintage wine collection.
- LA DIVINA PASTORA, Fortaleza
de San Carlos de la Cabaña, Habana del Este. Tel: 62 3886
This is without a doubt one of the most beautiful settings for a
restaurant in Havana. Situated at the mouth of the bay atop one of the
artillery batteries that once defended the entrance to the harbor, it
is more than a restaurant, it is a unique museum. It's a shame that
the fare is not up to the level of the surroundings. The restaurant is
situated on a lovely terrace under La Cabaña fortress and offers
seafood (including paella) and one of the best views of Old Havana in
the city. In previous centuries, a cannon was fired each evening to
announce the dropping of the chain across the harbor and the closing
of the city gates. This ceremony is reenacted each evening at 9pm and
is worth a visit.
LA TERRAZA, Calle Real No. 161 e/ Rìo y Montaòa, Cojìmar, La
Habana del Este. Tel: 63 3471
Follow the Hemingway tradition and enjoy the arroz con bacalao (rice
and salt cod) in the town of Cojimar, the small fishing village that
inspired Hemingway's classic novella The Old Man and the Sea. Built
overlooking the river and founded in 1925, the very romantic and
well-sited La Terraza is a great place to enjoy seafood. Although the
odd bus of tourists is inevitable, Cojimar remains a charming, sleepy
and laid back place away from the activity of downtown Havana. It is
even possible to meet some of the fishermen about whom Hemingway wrote
when he was alive. Among them is Gregorio Fuentes, the 100-year old
captain (in 1997) of the writer's boat, El Pilar.
- FLORIDITA, Calle Obispo NO.
557 esq Monserrate, La Habana Vieja. Tel: 63 1063, 63 1111, 63 1060.
Coined as la cuna del daiquiris (the cradle of the daiquiris), El
Floridita is the other must visit restaurant in Havana.
Internationally renowned as the favorite watering hole of Ernest
Hemingway during his years in Havana, the restaurant was immortalized
by its mention in Hemingway's Islands in the Stream. La Floridita's
fame was further bolstered by a rave review from Esquire Magazine in
1943, which called it one of the seven most famous bars in the world.
Here you'll find a mix of tradition and good cuisine. The wide
traditional bar has the ambience of times past with a splendid mural
of the 18th-century port of Havana on the restaurants back wall and a
statue of the Greek God Bacchus that provides for a little
philosophical inspiration to go along with your post meal Cohiba
Esplendido. This has been Havana's most famous restaurant since the
1930's and still has a fin de siecle elegance that harkens back to a
simpler, more festive Havana time. The prices are high but keep in
mind that you're paying to sit at the once frequented tables of Errol
Flynn, Spencer Tracy, Ava Gardner and Marlene Dietrich. As Hemingway
used to say: "My daiquiris in La Floridita and my mojito in La
Bodeguita del Medio". Don't leave the island without trying one
of the famous "daiquiris" concocted by Antonio Meilán,
reputed to be one of the best "mixologists" in Cuba. He
works in the El Floridita bar every other day.
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HABANA CAFE, Hotel Melia Cohiba.
Calle Paseo y Malecon, El Vedado. Tel: 33-3636. First Floor. Daily 12
noon to 3am.
COMEDOR DE AGUIAR. Hotel Nacional de Cuba. Calle O esq 21, El
Vedado. Tel: 33-3564. Daily 12 noon to 4pm and 7pm to 12 midnight.
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- CAFE CANTANTE MI HABANA,
Teatro Nacional de Cuba, Plaza de La Revolución. Telephone.: 33-5713
Gastronomy and cultural complex with two restaurants
EL PATIO. San Ignacio esq Empedrado, La Habana Vieja. Tel:
57-1034 / 57-1035. Daily from 12 noon to 11pm.
- One of Havana's prettiest courtyard
fountains provides a backdrop to this romantic restaurant, located in
one of the finest palaces on the Plaza de la Catedral. In addition to
the bar and patio café, El Patio has four dining rooms including a
folkloric dining room that purportedly specializes in Mexican cuisine.
The patio bar serves snacks such as the el Patio sandwich (US$3.50), a
hamburger (US$3), and a steak palomilla with French fries (US$2.75).
The food is average and the prices in the restaurant are expensive. A
visit is recommended, if only for a beer or coffee in the fabulous
surroundings of the El Portal patio bar overlooking the Plaza de la
Catedral. Good value and one the best people watching outdoor cafes in
Old Havana.
MIRAMAR, Hotel Melia Habana, Calle 3ra e/ 76 y 80, Miramar.
Tel: 24-8500. Breakfast: 7am to 10am / Lunch: 12:30pm to 3pm / Dinner
7pm to 10:30pm.
LA BELLA CUBANA. Hotel Melia Habana, Calle 3ra e/ 76 y 80,
Miramar. Tel: 24-8500. Daily: 7pm to 11pm.
CLUB 21. Calle 21 esq N, El Vedado, Plaza. Tel: 32-9602. Daily
12 noon to 10pm.
ITAPOA. Hotel Copacabana. Avenida 1ra e/ 44 y 60, Miramar,
Playa. Tel: 24-1037. Daily: 7pm to 1am.
L'AIGLON. Hotel Havana Riviera. Paseo y Malecon. El Vedado.
Tel: 33-4051. Daily: 12 noon to 10pm.
MONSEIGNEUR. Calle O esq 21, El Vedado. Tel: 32-9884. Daily 12
noon to 12 midnight.
LA TORRE. Calle 17 e/ M y N, El Vedado. Tels: 32-4630 /
32-5650. Daily 12 noon to 12 midnight.
LA PAMPA. Hotel Comodoro. Calle 84 y Mar, Miramar. Tels:
33-2703 / 33-2470 / 33-2008. Daily: 7pm to 1am.
EL CONEJITO. Calle M esq 17, El Vedado. Tel: 32-4671.
Daily: 12 noon to 1am.
1830. Malecon y 20, El Vedado. Tels: 33-4521 / 55-3090. Daily:
12 noon to 12 midnight.
- Restaurante 1830 or "Mil
Ochocientos Treinta" as coined by Habaneros, is located in a
beautiful bourgeois seaside mansion from the 19th century and is
perhaps the most expensive disappointment in Havana when it comes to
fine dining restaurants. You can choose from four plush dining rooms
with huge bay windows overlooking the sea. Service is often slow and
surly and the food can be equally bad. The gardens become a
discotheque at night.
DOS GARDENIAS. Avenida 7ma y 26, Miramar. Tel: 24-2353. Daily
12 noon to 1am.
- Three specialized restaurants: "Rincón
del Bolero" for Cuban food; "Gambina" for Italian food
and "Shanghai" for Chinese food. Dos Gardenias is a
gastronomy and cultural complex which includes three specialized
restaurants, night floor, coffee shop, Cigar House, liquor and
chocolate shop, boutique and photographic studio. This eclectic
complex serves Creole, Italian and Chinese cuisine. It is all
inexpensive fast food of average quality
VICTORIA. Hotel Victoria. Calle M y 19, El Vedado. Tel:
32-6531. Daily 12am to 1am.
TROPICAL. Hotel Panamericano. Calle A y Avenida Central,
Cojimar. Tels: 68-4101 al 09. Daily from12 noon to 11pm.
BAR CABAÑA. Video Bar Cabaña. Peña Pobre No 12 esq Cuba, La
Habana Vieja.
VILLA PARAISO. Parrillada y Snack-bar. Marina Hemingway, 5ta
Avenida y Calle 248, Santa Fe. Tels: 24-1150 al 56. Daily 10am to 7pm.
LA FUENTE. 5ta Avenida e/ 40 y 42, Miramar. Tel: 24-2150. Daily
12 noon to 12 midnight.
CHEZ VEDADO. Hotel Vedado. Calle O e/ 23 y 25, El Vedado. Daily
7am to 10pm.
RESTAURANT BUFFET CARIBE. Hotel Habana Libre Tryp. Calle L e/
23 y 25, El Vedado. Tel: 33-4011 (ext: 132). Breakfast: 7am to 11am;
lunch: 12:30pm to 3pm; and Dinner Buffet from 7pm to 11pm.
EL CORAL NEGRO. Hotel Neptuno-Triton. Avenida 3ra y 74,
Miramar. Tel: 24-1606. D Daily: 12 noon to 12 midnight.
TUCAN. Hotel Copacabana, Calle 1ra e/ 44 y 46, Miramar. Tel:
24-1037. Breakfast Buffet from 7am to 10am; Lunch Buffet from 12 noon
to 3pm; and Dinner Buffet from 7pm to 10pm.
PRINCIPAL MEDITERRANEO. Hotel Parque Central, Neptuno e/ Prado
y Zulueta, Habana Vieja. Tel: 66-6627 al 29. Breakfast: 7am to 10am;
lunch and dinner from 11:30am to 11pm.
EL PASEO. Hotel Parque Central, Neptuno e/ Prado y Zulueta,
Habana Vieja. Tel: 66-6627 al 29. Open: 7pm to 11pm.
LE ROI. Hotel Chateau Miramar, Avenida 1rs e/ 60 y 70, Miramar.
Tel: 24-1951 / 21-1957. Daily: Lunch and Dinner from 11am to 12pm.
EL CEDRANO. Hotel Melia Cohiba, Avenida Paseo y Malecon, El
Vedado. Tel: 33-3636. Daily: Breakfast from 7am to 10:30am; lunch from
12:30pm to 3:30pm; and dinner from 7pm to 11pm.
LA BRASA. Hotel Melia Cohiba, Avenida Paseo y Malecon, El
Vedado. Tel: 33-3636. Daily: 10am to 12 midnight. Specialises in
barbequed meat.
PRIMAVERA. Hotel Riviera, Avenida Paseo y Malecon. Tel:
33-4051. Daily from 7am to 10am. Breakfast Buffet.
EL MIRADOR DE LA HABANA. Hotel Riviera, Avenida Paseo y Malecon.
Tel: 33-4051. Daily from 8am to 3am. Specialises in grilled steak.
LA GIRALDA. Hotel Sevilla. Trocadero No 55 e/ Prado y Zulueta,
Habana Vieja. Tel: 33-8560. Daily from 7pm to 10pm.
ROOF GARDEN. Hotel Sevilla. Trocadero No 55 e/ Prado y Zulueta,
Habana Vieja Tel: 33-8560. Daily from 6pm to midnight. French Cuisine.
- Perhaps the most elegant space in all
of Havana, the Roof Garden Restaurant in the Hotel Sevilla offers the
most spectacular décor and views of the Paseo de Marti (The Prado).
Tall French doors open to balconies over-looking the city. Very
romantic, very expensive, and a great place to celebrate an
anniversary or special occasion. Somehow however, the food never lives
up to the billing. We've left here on more than one occasion feeling
cheated.
CAFE DEL ORIENTE. Oficio No 110 esq Amargura, La Habana Vieja.
Tel: 66-6686. Daily: 12 noon to 12 midnight.
LOS JARDINES (Tropicana). Calle 72 y Lionea del Ferrocarril,
Marianao. Tels: 270110 / 271717. Daily from 7pm to 1am.
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- LE SELECT, Calle 28 e/ 5ta y
7ma, Miramar, Playa. Tel: 24-7410
Dine indoors in an air-conditioned mansion that was once home to Che
Guevara, or poolside in back. The food is old-style French. Enjoy the
tasty cold soup of pureed spinach, asparagus and carrot, individually
swirled into a colorful arrangement. Try the broiled Pargo (fish)
which comes with a mushroom sauce and is topped with shredded
vegetables.
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- COMEDOR DE AGUIAR, Hotel
Nacional de Cuba, Calle O esq Calle 21, Vedado. Tel: 33 3564
This restaurant has a great chef and elegant quarters in one of
Havana's landmark hotels. It is considered one of the city's most
luxurious dining spots. The house specialty is the whole shrimp served
with rum flambé. The dishes are expensive and the best wines
unaffordable.
-
- LA CASONA
17, No. 60, Calle
17, e/ M y N, Vedado. Tel: 33 4529
Chicken and rice is the specialty of the house.
-
- LA CASA DE 5ta Y 16. 5ta. Ave.
y Calle 16, Miramar, Playa. Tel: 29 4040
RESTAURANT CARIBE, Hotel Habana Libre Tryp. Calle L e/ 23 y 25,
Vedado. Tel: 33 4011. ext. 132
EL CORAL NEGRO, Hotel Neptuno-Tritûn. Ave 3ra. y 74, Miramar.
Tel.: 24-1606
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- CENTRO VASCO.
Calle 4 esq 3ra,
El Vedado. Tel: 3-9354. Daily from 12 noon to 6am.
FIESTA. Marina Hemingway. 5ta Avenida y Calle 248, Santa Fe.
Tels: 33-1150 al 56. Daily from 12 noon to midnight.
- La Fiesta specialized in Spanish
cuisine and has served us some of the best steaks we have eaten in
Cuba. La Fiesta has improved its service and the quality of its
offerings considerably in the last two years. With a variety of steak
and seafood dishes, it is now one of the most highly recommended
dining spots on the island. Try the Chateau Briand steak or the
brochetta mixta (mixed brochette). The drink specialty of the house
is, of course, sangria. Try it!
EL CORTIJO. Hotel Vedado. Calle O e/ 23 y 25, El Vedado. Daily
to midnight.
-
- BODEGON DE LOS VINOS, Parque
Morro-Cabaña. Tel: 66 9132
Try the sangria, the specialty of the house.
-
- LA PAELLA, No. 53, Calle
Oficios e/ Obrapia y Lamparilla, La Habana Vieja, Tel: 62 3801
One block south of Plaza de Armas in Habana Vieja. La Paella is the
premier (and our favorite) paella house in Havana. Located in Hostal
Valencia, the dining room is surrounded by large open windows and is
furnished with antique wood furniture and colonial chandeliers. The
restaurant serves a variety of paellas for US$7. The caldo (soup) and
bread is a meal in itself (US$3). The menu includes steak, grilled
fish and a variety of chicken dishes served with authentic Spanish
wines.
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- LA ZARAGOZANA (Est. 1830), No.
352, Calle Monserrate, e/ Obispo y Obrapia, La Habana Vieja. Tels: 63
1062, 61 8350
La Zaragozana is a wonderful, dark and sometimes moody Spanish-style
bodega that serves a mix of criollo fare and seafood dishes. Located
on the busy Monserrate, we love the restaurant because they serve the
best sopa de cebolla (French onion soup) and camarones al aljillo
(grilled shrimp with garlic) in Havana. The atmosphere is steeped in
Spanish tradition with Real Madrid football paraphernalia hanging on
the walls and flamenco dancers performing on weekend nights.
Definitely try one of the camarones plates. La Zaragozana claims to
have been established in 1830 and I promised to mention it.
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- LA PIAZZA.
Hotel Melia Cohiba.
Avenida Paseo y Malecon, El Vedado. Tel. 33-3636. First Floor. Daily
from 1pm to 12 midnight.
D'GIOVANI. Calle Tacon No 4 esq Empedrado, La Habana Vieja.
Tels: 57-1036 / 33-5979. Fridays to Wednesdays from 11:30am to 12
midnight.
- This Italian restaurant is situated
very near the Plaza de la Catedral. The food is undistinguished and
the service is slow. You would do better ordering the Spaghetti
Bolonese or Lasagna at Pizza Nova in Marina Hemingway than trying to
fulfill a pasta crave at Don Giovani. The most attractive feature of
Don Giovani's is the authentic and beautiful colonial house it
occupies.
LA SCALA. Hotel Melia Habana, Calle 3ra e/ 76 y 80, Miramar.
Tel: 24-8500. Daily from 12 noon to 11pm.
PIZZERIA. Hotel Riviera. Avenida Paseo y Malecon, El Vedado.
Tel: 33-4051. Daily from 8am 8pm.
LA COVA-PIZZA NOVA. Marina Hemingway, 5ta Avenida y Calle 248,
Santa Fe, Playa. Tels: 33- 1150 al 56. Daily from 11am to 12 midnight.
- When you're absolutely craving a
pizza (the Canadian way), visit Pizza Nova at Marina Hemingway. We
love it so much we get Pizza Nova cravings even when we're at home in
Vancouver. Try the pizza with jamon,, queso y champiñon (ham, cheese
and mushrooms). The lasagna is also great.
ROSSINI. 5ta Avenida e/ 40 y 42, Miramar, Playa. Tels: 33-2450
/ 33- 2372 / 33-3372. Daily from 12 noon to 11pm.
EL RINCONCITO. Avenida de las Terrazas y Calle 4, Villa Los
Pinos, Santa Maria del Mar, La Habana del Este. Tuesday to Sunday from
12 noon to 5pm. Great Pizza!
ALLEGRO. Complejo Turistico Panamericano. Calle A y Avenida
Central, Cojimar, La Habana del Este. Tel: 68-4221. Daily 12pm to
10:45pm.
CAFE DO PORTO. Hotel Copacabana. Avenida 1ra e/ 44 y 60,
Miramar, Playa. Tel: 24-1037. Daily: 24 hours.
CAFETERIA LA RAMPA. Hotel Habana Libre Tryp. Calle L e/ 23 y
25, El Vedado. Tel: 33 4011 (ext 125). Open daily: 24 hours.
- PRADO Y NEPTUNO, Calle Prado
esq Neptuno, La Habana Vieja. Tel:
The most upscale "Italian" pizza joint in Havana, the
historic and neotraditional Prado y Neptuno has never disappointed us.
The décor is1930's modern and is a celebration to architects of the
modern era including Frank Lloyd Wright and Le Corbusier. Great
pizza's and French onion soup. We eat here alot!
LA FLORENTINA, Comida italiana e Internacional. Hotel
Horizontes Capri. Calle 21 esq. a N, piso 19, El Vedado. Tel: 33 3747
(ext. 230)
DELIRIO HABANERO PIANO BAR, Teatro Nacional de Cuba, Plaza de
La Revolución.
LA TERRAZA FLORENTINA. Hotel Capri. Calle 21 y N, 19th Floor,
El Vedado. Tel: 33-3747 (ext 230). Open from 12 noon to 12 midnight.
- Terraza Florentino has an excellent
selection of Italian pasta dishes, pizza and steaks for very
reasonable prices. It is sometimes a little difficult to negotiate
yourself into the restaurant with a Cuban friend as the restaurant is
located on the famous rooftop of the Hotel Capri. The restaurant has
perhaps the best views of Havana and a romantic and cozy outdoor deck.
A great location to take pictures of Havana day or night. Make sure
the Hotel Capri doorman knows you have a reservation in the restaurant
and are not heading back to a hotel room or you might be in for an
argument at the door.
CAFETERIA TERRAZA JARDIN. Hotel Capri. Calle N e/ 19 y 21, El
Vedado. Tel: 33-3747 (ext 117 or 234). Open: 10am to 12 midnight.
RESTAURANTE BUFFET SALON CRISTAL. Hotel Neptuno-Triton. Calle
3ra y 70, Miramar. Tel: 24-1606 (ext 108). Breakfast: 7:30am to
10:30am; lunch: 12:30pm to 2:30pm; and dinner from 7pm to 10pm.
RANCHON PARRILLADA. Hotel Neptuno-Triton. Calle 3ra y 70,
Miramar. Tel: 24-1606 (ext 181). Swimming pool open from 12 noon to
8pm.
CHEZ VEDADO. Hotel Vedado. Calle O e/ 23 y 25, El Vedado. Tel:
33-4072 (ext 111). Hours: 7am to 10am / 12 noon to 3pm / 7pm to 10pm.
PLAZA DE ARMAS. Hotel Ambos Mundos. Calle Obispo No 153 esq
Mercaderes, La Habana Vieja. Tel: 66-9529 al 31 (ext 2118). Daily from
7am to 11pm.
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- EL PACIFICO.
San Nicolas e/
Zanja y Dragones, (Chinatown) Centro Habana. Tel: 63-3243. Tuesdays to
Sundays from 12 noon to 8:30pm.
LA TORRE DE MARFIL. Mercaderes e/ Oficios y Obrapia, La Habana
Vieja. Tel: 57-1041. Tuesdays to Sundays from 12 noon to midnight.
EL MANDARIN. Calle 23 y M, El Vedado. Tel: 32-0677. Daily 12
noon to midnight.
EL PAVO REAL. Calle 7ma No 205 e/ 2 y 4, Miramar, Playa. Tel:
24-2315. Daily from 12 noon to midnight.
VISTA AL MAR. 5ta Avenida esq 438, Boca Ciega, La Habana del
Este. Daily from 12 noon to midnight.
EL POLINESIO. Hotel Habana Libre Tryp. Calle 23 e/ L y M, El
Vedado. Tel: 30-4011 (ext 129). Open daily from 12 noon to midnight.
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- AL MEDINA. Oficios 12 e/
Obispo y Obrapia, La Habana Vieja. Tel: 57-1041. Daily from 11:30am to
11pm.
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- BAR LAS CAILTAS.
Variada
cocteleria internacional. Hotel Habana Libre, calle L y 23, El Veda-
do. Tel: 33 401 1.
PIANO BAN SIBOMET. Bebidas y coctelerias durante 24 Hours.
Hotel Habaria Libre, calle L y 23, El Vedado. Tel: 33 401 1.
CAFETERIA LA RAMPA. Oferta variada de bebidas y ccmidas li
geras las 24 Hours. Hotel Habana Libre, calle L y 23, El Vedado. Tel:
33 4011.
BAR EL RELICARID. Aroma de habanos y maderas preciosas,
perfumes de licores y el gran cafe cubano. Hotel Melia Cohiba, Ave.
Paseo e/ Ira y 3ra, El Vadado. Tel: 33 36-36. Diariamente/Daily 1:00
PM - 1:00 am.
COCK-TAIL BLUE. Eco lejano de un gran momento del glamour.
Hotel Melia Cohiba, Ave. Paseo e/ Ira y 3ra, El Vedado, Tel: 33 3636.
Dia- riamente / Daily 8:00 PM - 4:00 a.m.
LOBBY BAR MON PETIT CHATEAU. Hotel Chateau Miramar, calle 1 ra
e/ 60 y 70, Miramar. Tel: 24 1952/57. Abierto las 24 Hours.
SNACK BAR ARRICIFES. Piscina del Hotel Chateau Miramar, calle 1
ra e/ 60 y 70 , Miramar, Tel: 24 1952/57. Abierto de 9:00 am - 9:00
PM.
SNACK BAR NUEVO MUNDO. Hotel Parque Central, Neptuno e/ Prado y
Zulueta, Habana Vieja. Tel: 66 6627/29. Abierto 10:00 am - 10:00 PM.
LOBBY BAR QUINTA AVENIDA. Cafe, copas y coctelerfa. Hotel Melia
Habana, planta L, calle 3ra e/ 76 y 80, Miramar. Tel: 24 8500.
Servicio 24 Hours.
BAR PISCINA EL COBO. Bebidas refrescantes, Hotel Melia Habana,
calle 3ra e/ 76 y 80, Miramar. Tel: 24 8500. Abierto de 9:00 am - 8:00
pm.
DEGUSTADOR VEGAS ROSAINA. Tabacos, seleccion de rones y licores.
Basamento, Hotel MeliA Ha- bana, calle 3ra e/ 76 y 80, Miramar. Tel:
24 8500. Abierto de 12:00 m - 1:00 A.M
CAFETERIA-HELADERIA BOSQUE DE LA HABANA. Snacks, comidas
rapidas, helados, pan y pasteleria. Basamento, Hotel Melia
Habana, calle 3ra e/ 76 y 80, Miramar. Tel: 24 8500. Servicio 24
Hours.
LOBBY BAR PORTICO. Hotel Parque Central, Neptuno c-,/ Pradc) y
Zulueta, Habana Vieja. Tel: 66 6627/29. Abierto 9:00 am - 12:30 am.
BAR ALAMEDA. Hotel Parque Central, Neptuno e/ Prado y Zulueta,
Habana Vieja. Tel: 66 6627/29. Abierto 10:00 am - 12 :00 de la noche.
SALON DE RESIDENTES ALAMEDA. Puede disfrutar, de Licores,
cafes, oporto, pasteleria. Hotel Parque Central, Neptuno e/ Prado y
Zulueta, Habana Vieja. Tel: 66 6627/29. Abierto 10:00 am -12:00 de la
noche.
LOBBY BAR PIANO MAR. Hotel Riviera , Ave. Paseo y Malecon, El
Vedado. Tel: 33 4051/55. Abierto las 24 Hours.
L'ELEGANT. Hotel Riviera , Ave. Paseo y Malecbn, El Vedado.
Tel: 33 4051/55. Abierto 8:00 pm - 2:00 am.
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- CAFETERIA EL FRESCO.
Hotel
Riviera, Ave. Paseo y Malec6n, El Vedado. Tel: 33 4051/55. Abierto
7:00 pm - 2:00 am.
SNACK BAR PISCINA. Hotel Sevilla, Trocadero No. 55, Habana
Vieja. Tel: 33-8560. Diariamente Daily 9:30 am - 8:00 pm.
PATIO SEVILLANO. Hotel Sevilla, Trocadero No. 55, Habana Vieja.
Tel: 33-8560. Diariamente / Daily 24 Hours. Comidas ligeras y cocteles.
BAR HABANA. Hotel Sevilla, Trocadero No. 55, Habana Vieja. Tel:
33-8560, Diariamente / Daily 4:00 Pm - 12:00 am.. 9no. piso. LOBBY
BAR. Hotel Comodoro, Calle 84 y Mar Miramar, Playa. Tel
24-5551. ext. 1106. Diariamente Daily 10:00 am - 02:00 am.
RINCON CUBANO. Hotel Comodoro, Calle 84 y Mar, Miramar, Playa.
Tel: 24-5551. ext. 1403. Diariamente / Daily 12:00 pm - 12:00 am.
GRILL BAN EL GALEON. Hotel Comodoro. Calle 84 y Mar, Miramar,
Playa. Tel: 24-5551. ext. 1102. Diariamente/ Daily I 1:00 am - 7:00
pm.
SNACK BAR Y AQUA BAR EL LAGO. Hotel Comodoro, Calle 84 y Mar,
Miramar, Playa. Tel: 24-5551. ext. 1246. Diariamente / Daily 10:00 am
- 10:00 pm.
SNACK BAR Y AQUA BAR LOS DELFINES. Hotel Comodoro, Calle 84 y
Mar, Miramar, Playa. Tel: 24- 5551. ext. 1400. Diariamente
Daily 11:00 am - 10:00 pm.
AQUA BAR EL ARRECIFE. Hotel Comodoro, Calle 84 y Mar, Miramar,
Playa. -Tel: 24-5551. Diariamente /Daily 10:00 am - 6 00 pm,
MAi AMEDS M'UNDOS. Hotel Hotel Ambos Mundos. Calle Obispo No.
153 esq. a Mercaderes, La Habana Vieia. Tel: 669529 al 31 (ext 2115)
Diariamente 24 Hours.
LOBBY BAR. Hotel Vedado. Calle 0 e/ 23 y 25, El Vedado. Tel:
334072. Comidas ligeras, 24 Hours,
SNACK BAR PISCINA. Holel Vedado, Calle C e/ 23 y 25, El Vedado.
Tel: 334072. (ext. 168). Comidas ligeras, y algunas ofertas del
restaurants. Diariamente 10:00 am. - 7:00 pri.
SNACK BAN PISCINA. Hotel Neptuno-Triton. Calle 3ra y 70,
Miramar. Tel: 241606 (ext. 181). Abieto: 10:00 am-11:00 pm.
LOBBY BAR NEPTUNO. Hotel Neptuno-Triton. Calle 3ra y 70,
Miramar. Tel: 241606 (ext. 120). Abierto las 24 Hours.
SNACK BAR TRITON. Hotel Neptuno-Triton. Calle 3ra y 70,
Miramar. Tel: 241606 (ext. 232). Abieto las 24 Hours.
SNACK BAR Casa de las lnfusionos. Mercaders no, 109 e/ Obispo y
Obrapla, Habana Vieja. Hours: 24 Hours
CAFÉ RODNEY. Cabaret Tropicana. Calle 72 y Linea del
Ferrocarril, Marianeo. Tels: 2701 1 0 / 271717. Fax: 270109.
Diariamente: 12:00, 1:00 am.
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