La Bodeguita del Medio

In 1942 Angel Martínez bought a small grocery on Empedrado, the Bodega La Complaciente, and renamed it Casa Martínez. He sold Cuban produce and now and then served dinner to regulars, but most people came for a drink, and the new cocktail of rum, mint, sugar, lime and soda became the house drink. Writers, musicians and journalists made it their meeting place. Its present name grew out of the way a regular, the editor Felito Ayón, directed friends to it, and was adopted in 1950.

Pablo Neruda, Gabriel García Márquez, Nat King Cole and Salvador Allende were among the regulars. A line attributed to Hemingway, “My mojito in La Bodeguita, my daiquiri in El Floridita”, is displayed inside, although the bar’s claim to be the birthplace of the mojito is disputed.

A mojito at the front bar. If you stay to eat, the dining rooms behind serve Cuban home cooking: white rice and black beans, pork shank roasted in its juices, cassava, pork crackling and fried plantains.

From Marina Hemingway, a taxi to Plaza de la Catedral takes 30 to 40 minutes, and the bar is a few steps along Calle Empedrado. From El Floridita it is about ten minutes on foot through the old town, so the two make an easy pair for an evening.

The bar opens daily from late morning until late evening. It is small and often crowded with visitors, so expect to stand at the bar.