La Bodeguita del Medio

La Bodeguita is a place that you have to go! It is right on the malecon and has great views of the ocean. Sunset is great too!
It is a very cuban place. The headquarters are in Havana. They invented the MOJITO back in 1942. They have several restaurants in Mexico, Prague, London....
I am a fan of Cuban food back in New York. This is a great place to eat Cuban... The have a great ceviche, wonderful tamarind shrimp and delicious ropa vieja. You can also order mariquitas (banan chips) with your mojitos. Their mojitos are great, the prepare hundreds of them everyday. It is a simple and delicious drink. You can buy all the accesories to make them at home in their souvenir shop,
This is a very popular place. It is crowded every night. i love going there during the day to listen to their great accoustic cuban groups that go great with a couple of mojitos. You can always find a lot of celebrities from all over. We have seen Matt Dilon and Penelope Cruz in different days.
I think this place gives you a very good idea of what Cuba is like... Enjoy it!

We got there for dinner around close to 6 on a Friday night and it wasn't busy at all. I assume people don't come out until later. The lower level was full of people reading the paper and having a little drink. We were the only people staying on the 2nd level. We got the mixed plate for appetizers and also Pollo Grille. The appetizer is a good way to start if you want to try a little of everything. The taste of the food are amazing and even the steamed white rice has a little flavor to it. Definitely get the mojito, it's worth it! I wouldn't buy the shirts at the souvenir store since you can get shirts with Che on it for less at the local stands by the flea market.

This is a great place for some fun and excellent mojitos. It is always super-crowded and there is a fun shop with lots of cool Cuban merchandise.