 |
Casa Pilar.
(Photo: Nicholas Gill) |
Havana’s dining scene, once a rough collection of state-run establishments, has seen an explosion of paladares�privately run restaurants. (Over 400 new ones have opened in the past several years.) Álvaro Diez Fernández, co-owner of Otramanera, an eight-month-old market-based spot in Miramar, breaks down the full spectrum of new Havana cuisine.
�Doña Eutimia (Callejón del Chorro 60c, Plaza de la Catedral; 535-281-5883) is stashed away down a cobbled alleyway beside the Taller Experimental de Gráfica and focuses on traditional Cuban dishes. It serves a tried-and-true ropa vieja, but I recommend ordering the pollo Doña Eutimia, roasted chicken with black beans. It’s maravillosa.�
�La Corte del Príncipe (Calle 9na, at Calle 74; 535-255-9091) is this little Italian paladar with no pizza�which dominates every other Italian-restaurant menu here. Sergio, the owner, makes pasta from scratch. Get the langostinos al vapor (steamed prawns) that Sergio cuts open butterfly style, like little lobster tails, and are served with a wedge of lime.�
�It’s all about the starters at Casa Pilar (Calle 36, No. 103; 537-214-1002), an open-air restaurant with a shaded upstairs terrace and zebra-print bar stools. I love the lobster fritters; they’re perfectly crisp and fried without being overcooked. Or try the pulpo con patatas (octopus with potatoes).�
�It’s really more of a pub, but the food at O’Reilly 304 (O’Reilly 304; 535-264-4745) is refreshing to see in Havana. They have this sopa de coba, a sort of seafood stew that’s infused with shrimp heads and has this spectacular, umami-rich flavor that’s unlike anything I’ve ever had in this city.�
�Get to El Cocinero (Calle 26e, at Calle 11; 537-832-2355), a fusion spot, by climbing up three windy flights of stairs. Duck is hard to find in Havana, and most chefs don’t know what to do with it, but the chef here rarely misses�whether it’s served confited on blinis or in a berry sauce. It’s a really wild scene at night up on the roof. There’s this towering brick chimney left over from when it was still a factory space.�