Vegetarianism a lo cubano...
A 2010 updated report on Tito and the wonderful restaurant: 
http://www.lavidalocavore.org/showDiary.do?diaryId=3639 

DINING OUT – Our Man in Havana
25 Jan 05 - Roberto Burdese - Sloweek

The gastronomic prospect presented to tourists visiting the island of Cuba is definitely not one of the most varied. Chicken and pork predominate, whilst fillets of fish (though the fish in question is rarely specified) or lobster — a particular delicacy if one is lucky enough to find the right place — are the only real alternatives. The choice of accompaniments is equally limited: congrí (rice and black beans that may also be called moros y cristianos), fried bananas, yucca or sweet potatoes.

However, the average quality of meals is fairly good and, all things considered, is usually better in the paladares (‘private’ restaurants run in Cuban houses where the rules establish there should be no more than twelve diners) than in the state run restaurants. Undoubtedly, the fact that the available materials are both fresh and natural plays a significant role and shows very clearly that, having to make to do with what one has, is almost always a blessing where cooking is concerned.

Since the fall of the Berlin Wall eliminated the considerable economic support provided to Cuba by Moscow, growing food without the use of chemicals and reducing waste to a minimum has become an almost obligatory choice. Consequently, the raw materials of Creole cooking are almost always supplied by small local cooperatives and are both organic and fresh given that no-one has enough money and restaurants prefer to invest only in what they calculate will be absolutely necessary for each day.

Nonetheless, in this rather monotonous landscape which is, unfortunately, ever more conditioned by western ‘mass tourism’ that usually targets restaurants serving a very bland kind of international cooking, it is still possible to discover some addresses worthy of being signposted.

I discovered one memorable place during a recent trip to the beautiful mountain community of Las Terrazas, 50 kilometres east of Havana, founded in 1967 as part of a reforestation project needed to reconstruct the natural environment destroyed by the French colonials who had turned over the whole of the mountain to the cultivation of coffee beans. Las Terrazas was classified as a Biosphere Reserve by UNESCO in 1985 under the name ‘Reserva Sierra del Rosario’, and 1990 saw the construction of an elegant eco-tourist resort, following the wishes of Osmani Cienfuegos, government minister and the brother of the national hero Camilo, who died in a aircraft accident a few months after the end of the Revolution and is loved by the Cubans almost as much as ‘Che’.

In September 2003, the El Romero eco-restaurant was opened inside the tourist complex.

As stated on its menu, ‘The eco-restaurant seeks to present the food required by humans on the basis of the resources produced by the earth’ and in the spirit of ‘organizing a gastronomic offering in harmony with the environment’. This is done by the cultivation of the products used in the kitchens (rigorously vegetarian) through to the recycling of waste that is used either for producing fertilizers or as animal fodder. The aim is to achieve a productive cycle that is not contaminating, is low cost and is consistently bound to the principles of a healthier alimentation based on fresh and organic products.

I can just imagine readers’ reactions: with all this philosophizing going on, what ever are you going to eat! But, this is where the surprise comes in – because, for Tito Núñez Gudàs, the creator of El Romero and of the eco-restaurant concept, organoleptic quality comes first and foremost. Having inherited his eating habits from his father, Tito, a professional restaurant manager, used to be a great meat lover. He had to fall back on vegetarianism for health reasons, but there must be the genes of a Slow Foodie in his DNA because the taste quality of food became his immediate concern.

So, on seating yourself at one of El Romero’s tables you will be greeted with a cool and energizing cebiche de loto (gathered from the plant opposite the restaurant terrace and marinated in lemon with onions and aromatic herbs), together with an invitation to close your eyes, hold hands with your eating partners and give up thanks to Nature. Whilst reading the menu, you will be served with excellent homemade bread and a glass of water perfumed with rosemary, lemon and cucumbers rather than with pineapple, orange and basil.

The list of the starter soups is enough to get your gastric juices running already. We tried and much appreciated the cold cream of pumpkin and onion and the hot beetroot and coriander.

The fried vegetables were delicious and were prepared in accordance with the teachings of a Japanese chef and, therefore, described as tempura.

Salads were both tasty and abundant but the chef of El Romero really gives his best in the ‘large main courses’: crepes filled with fried beans and accompanied by stuffed tomatoes and steamed vegetables; soya steak garnished with onion, garlic and rice with vegetables cooked in beer; fresh vegetable lasagne with black bean shoots (an absolute novelty!). One curious point is the fact that all the dishes on the menu are available in three sizes (large, medium and small) so that the amount of food offered can be proportionate to the customer’s appetite.

Food can be accompanied by excellent tropical fruit juices. But, do not despair – wine (even though it is better to do without in Cuba), beer and the classic Cuban cocktails are readily available.

The bill is equally competitive, above all, considering that prices in Cuba are now decidedly westernized. With the equivalent of 20 euros you will leave the restaurant happy and replete.

In conclusion, this is an address to take note of and proposes a philosophy for the restaurant industry that merits exportation to other countries. After all, you don’t necessarily have to be a vegetarian to eat in a good vegetarian restaurant!


Roberto Burdese is the national vice-president of Slow Food


Adapted by Nicola Rudge Iannelli
http://www.slowfood.com/sloweb/eng/dettaglio.lasso?cod=SW_01509


A “Crazy” Uncle Got Tito Thinking 

A new interview with Tito in 2010. Terrific!
http://www.havanatimes.org/?p=23974

 


A further note
by Walter Lippmann
April 3, 2004

Cuba isn't usually thought of as a place where vegetarianism might easily catch on. Cubans are, and long have been, meat and potato lovers. Especially meat. But among the many changes which have come about since the "special period", when the island's main trading partners, the Soviet bloc countries, collapsed, is a move toward many green practices. Vegetarianism is only one of these. The Cuban public health system has been moving toward the acceptance of homeopathy, herbs and other green and traditional treatments, and much more. The island has moved toward greater utilization of its many natural advantages, such as its ability to grow vegetables of all kinds.

This page is a work in progress. On January 29, 2004, I went to the island's latest vegetarian restaurant with a group of friends. It's located in Las Terrazas, in Pinar del Rio province, about an hour's drive east of Havana. Here's an interview with Tito Armanto Núñez, the man who founded this place. This isn't his first, but his third vegetarian restaurant. The famous El Bambu at the National Botanical Gardens was his first. It's still active and the food there is different but as completely vegan as the food here is. 

The prices for visitors like ourselves are in US dollars, as is typical of such places in Cuba. The funds to furnish the restaurant were provided by the local authorities in the community of Las Terrazas. One extremely interesting thing we learned was that, to encourage residents of the city which is an ecologically-protected zone founded by the Cuban government in 1968, residents of the city pay only TEN PERCENT of the menu price, and in Cuban pesos! This is one of the many ways Cuba is so unique. 

===============


Granma Diario

24 January 2002 
"I'm neither a goat nor crazy"
Tito Armando Núñez. renowned researcher in natural cuisine. 
tells Granma about the health advantages of a vegetarian diet. 

By FELIX LÓPEZ and ISMEL ENRÍQUEZ

Ten years ago. Tito Armando Núñez didn't feel like a person. From his birthplace in Sagua la Grande. north of Villa Clara. he had brought the eating habits of his family--full of meats. sauces. and fats--with him to the capital. One day. as he likes to say. "his health called." and there was no alternative but to change his diet.  He began a new life. The fundamental rule is that preparation has to be correct. and that there should be a school to teach it.

Ten years later. Tito Armando Núñez. dedicated vegetarian. has left illnesses and hospitals behind him to dedicate himself entirely to research in natural foods.

-What led you to abandon your previous eating habits to become a vegetarian?

"It's a decision I took because of my abundant clinical history.  At the age of 12. I suffered from fatigue. hypoglycemia. allergies. gastritis. ulcers. and elevated cholesterol--illnesses that undoubtedly had their origin in my family's eating habits.  One day I became convinced that the solution was in a radical change of diet."

"Then. I was working with Professor Orfilio Peláez on a Spanish translation of his German patients' clinical histories. Many of them were vegetarians and had an admirable physical constitution. and that was more evidence that people who practice vegetarianism are not crazy. as some think."

-What does vegetarian cuisine have to have?

"Basically. the food must be correctly prepared.  In addition. there should be a school that teaches how to do it. because people don't like to eat vegetables prepared in the most primitive way possible.  To lay out a table with a variety of dishes. it's necessary to understand the techniques of preparation. of the cooking and the composition of sauces. seasonings. or dressings."

"These last three elements are very important. especially in the first stage where people familiar with eating meat (a very strong type of food) find that sauces and dressings help in the transition.  There is no doubt that a vegetarian diet supplying all the nutrients requires subtleties of flavor."

"For vegetarians. the right way is to consume 70 percent of their intake in the form of raw and fresh products every day so that they consume nutrients in the ideal form. The other 30 percent should be in the form of cooked foods."

-Understanding that the eating habits of Cubans have historically not favored the eating of vegetables. what would be the best way to move toward the healthy world of eating vegetables?

"It isn't a question of converting to vegetarianism.  Each person should decide what to eat.  However. you can't develop a culinary culture that favors the eating of vegetables simply by explaining the nutritional properties of those foods.  You have to offer natural foods properly cooked and varied and with a menu designed to cover all a person's nutritional needs."

"Many of the chronic illnesses we suffer from today are basically the result of nutritional problems; we are eating something we should not eat.  I ask myself why children have to go to the dentist at the age of five.  Acidity prevents the teeth from developing properly and produces caries. which is a reflection of what happens in rest of the body's cells."

"It's normal for most people to go to the doctor and to buy medicines. However. it's perfectly possible to live without taking pills. All one needs is to eat well in harmony with nature.  That was my great personal discovery. I used to see the doctor every two weeks. and within three months of converting to vegetarianism. I never had to go back."

-And how did you become involved in the eco-restaurant project in the National Botanical  Garden?

"I worked for 20 years in gastronomy for the Ministry of Domestic Commerce (MINCIN) on dietary guidelines and the preparation of meals that I knew had done damage to me with their sauces and fats. Returning from a trip to Germany . I brought literature on vegetarian cooking and began to look for support in developing it."

"The first disaster was that there were no vegetables.  In the 1990s. organic gardening did not exist.  The only things 'planted' in the self-sufficiency gardens were pigs.  In that period. according to data from the Institute of Nutrition . Cubans consumed 0.04 portions of salad per month."

"The only option was at the National Botanical Garden .  One afternoon in November 1991. a group of us from MINCIN met there. There had been a culinary event there between Cuba and Mexico . and it was our job to present a buffet table of vegetables.  It was a success. The enthusiasm of the institution's director allowed that idea to triumph.  The Botanical Garden already had the plants; the fruits were falling to the ground and only had to be gathered up."

"We began to investigate and to understand that vast world. In a country that is green. with more than 300 or 400 varieties of edible fruits. the majority of Cubans were only familiar with mangos. pineapples. guayaba. and grapefruit. We have no familiarity with the more exotic varieties.  Some justify this by suggesting that they are not productive. or that they take years to cultivate."

"All this means we need a change of outlook.  It's important to continue with what is happening today with the increase in vegetable gardens through the Urban Agriculture Program."

"If we do not make ourselves responsible for the diversity of nutritional plants. the only thing we will be accomplishing is the impoverishment of our cultivation and the biological patrimony of the nation."

-Are what is the reaction of people who wait on you in restaurants when you say. "I'm a vegetarian"?

"Most of the time they serve me a plate of beans. tomatoes. and cucumber without anything on it. as if I were a goat. and without a menu for those who need that option. They think we are happy eating a plate of grass."

"For a long time. there has been a vacuum surrounding vegetarian cooking. with the exception of the Botanical Garden. but that is a place you go to  on your day off."

"That reality leads us to support the idea of an experimental workshop where students from the Sergio Perez School of Gastronomy and Tourism. with more than 25 years of experience. could involve themselves in and understand how to prepare vegetarian dishes. something little known among cooks. dieticians. and nutrition specialists."

"Fortunately for gastronomy. such a workshop already exists in the Palmares group of the Cubanacán Company.  There we train students in balanced menu preparation. the proper balance between cooked and raw foods. distribution of nutrients among the dishes. avoidance of industrially manufactured ingredients. as well as conservation techniques. cooking. presentation. and decoration of dishes."

-Would you like to have a similar experience for children?

"I'd love to. but it's hard for the parents."

-Finally. don't you sometimes feel like eating a steak?

"Not at all.  In my house. my mother has continued eating meat. but I have my own knife and chopping board.

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
Translation by Robert Sandels

"Ni Chivo Ni Loco. intrevista con Tito Armando Nunez (Espanol)

El Romero
Rosmarinus officinalis Lin.
(English language menu)

"That your food is your medicine and
that your medication is your food."
---Hippocrates (460-377 B.C

Founded September 1, 2003

 

   
From Our Kitchen:  
Chef’s specials
Main dishes: 
Crepol. Cayajabo Galante. Rey. Mama Roma y Ranchero

Menu dated January 10. 2004

Prices in US Dollars 

Appetizers
 

Malva
Cebiche of Lotus.
It is the dish of courtesy of the house. Unique with lotus. lemon. cúrcuma. onion and other aromatic. healing plants. Very energetic.


Before consuming this dish we suggest you take yours  hands. and with the closed eyes. make an invocation to give thanks to the nature for the foods. the love. the health. the harmony. the solidarity and the peace.  

RECOMMENDATION ON SIZES:
We suggest you:  
S.    Only to taste.  
M.   If you eat moderately and select 
        one plate for each group of the menu.  
B.    If you eat only a plate.
Bakery

Bread

B

0.90

M

0.60

S

0.30

Bread rolls and breadsticks

1.15

0.70

0.45

Dips 

Yoly
Cream made from toasted peanut. onion. lemon with a bouquet of aromatic plants.

B

 

0.30

M

 

0.20

S

 

0.10

Alianza  
Softened Cream cheese. garlic and cúrcuma.

 

0.60

 

0.40

 

0.20

Tianísimo  
Chickpeas mixed with lemon. garlic and pepper.

 

0.90

 

0.60

 

0.30

Entrées

Otoño  
Puree of roots and aromatic plants.

B

1.65

M

1.10

S

0.55

Del Negro  
Thick purée of black beans seasoned with Thyme and Pepper.

 

1.65

 

1.10

 

0.55

Marcia  
Purée of Pumpkin. Potato and Onion.

 

1.95

 

1.30

 

0.65

Potajada  
Thick soup of seasoned beans and garnished with different roots and vegetables.

 

 

3.00

 

 

2.00

 

 

1.00

Deep Fried  

Tempura  
Deep fried  vegetables in a light batter soya sauce.

B

 

1.65

M

 

1.10

S

 

0.55

 

Salads  

De Verduras  
Combination of vegetables of your choice.

B

2.40

M

1.60

S

0.80

De Frutas  
Combination of your favorite fruits

 

2.70

 

1.80

 

0.90

Salad Dressings

Ancla  
Chives and Basil mixed with garlic and lemon juice

 

 

 

0.40

So-Ja  
Soya sauce with onions and lemon  juice.

 

 

 

0.45

Mancuerna  
Marinaded mustard and coffee.
 

 

 

 

0.50

Fuegos  
Chili in wine vinegar

 

 

 

0.55

Prisionero  
Mayonnaise with peppers and coriander.

 

 

 

0.60

 To the Letter:

B

M

S

Tortillas  
Egg and your choice: onion. peppers. potatoes. tomato. bean.

3.00

2.00

1.00

Verduras Salteadas  
Vegetables and Sauce of your choice –Bechamel. Creole. Green -.

3.30

2.20

1.10

Puré de Viandas  
Root vegetables (Malanga. Papa. plátanos etcétera.).

3.30

2.20

1.10

Confianza  
Spaghetti with Vegetables Sauce.

3.60

2.40

1.20

Volcán  
Vegetables and Rice cooked with light beer.

3.90

2.60

1.30

Terrina Pinareña  
Terrine of vegetable and egg.

3.90

2.60

1.30

Seitansteak  
Steak made from wheat protein marinaded in lemon juice. onion. garlic and soy sauce.

4.20

2.80

1.40

Buletas  
Croquette of Potatoes seasoned with Onions and spices.

6.00

4.00

2.00

“The Big Main Plates”

Crepol  
Bean pancake. stuffed tomato and; 
Vegetables cooked in Green Sauce.

B

 

5.55

M

 

3.70

S

 

1.85

Cayajabo  
Steak made from wheat protein marinaded with onion. garlic. soy sauce and lemon juice; rice and vegetables cooked in Beer and; fresh vegetables.

 

 

6.30

 

 

4.20

 

 

2.10

Galante  
Terrine Pinareña of chesse and vegetable; lasagna and; fresh vegetables with Mayonnaise.

 

 

7.05

 

 

4.70

 

 

2.35

Rey  
Tofu cream –asian food rich in protein. fried vegetable and rice croquettes.
                              

 

7.50

 

5.00

 

2.50

Mama Roma
Wedge of pizza. Ravioli. steamed vegetables and salad.

 

7.50

 

5.00

 

2.50

Ranchero  
Croquettes of Potato and Chaya seasoned with onion garlic and spices; Spaghetti with Basil sauce and fried vegetables.

   

9.75

   

6.50

 

3.25

Desserts

Nieves  
Fruits snow or fool.

B

1.20

M

0.80

S

0.40

Naranjita  
Orange juice thickened with Cornstarch and natural fruits.

 

1.35

 

0.90

 

0.45

Eclair  
With Coconut Filling.

 

1.65

 

1.10

 

0.55

Moka  
Panatella of Chocolate. ginger and cinnamon.

 

1.80

 

1.20

 

0.60

Refreshing drinks  

Agua Brava
Preparation using the active ingredients of leaves. roots. stems. seeds and 
other parts of local vegetable and plants. These infusions conserve the 
goodness of the plants and take it to all parts of your body.

Purita  
Skins of orange and caisimón.

 

M

0.20

S

0.10

Conquista  
Pineapple. orange and basil

 

 

0.20

 

0.10

Ann & Larry  
Rosemary. cucumber and Slices of lemon.

 

 

0.40

 

0.30

Manantial  
Spring water

 


0.45

 
0.35

Juices and Extracts  
Juice are mixed 50:50 with water. Extract are thicker. Both are prepared with fresh fruits that
were harvested today. Request them without sugar. take care of your weight and avoid the
dependence on the sweet flavors of refined sugar but. if you still need the sweetness ask
for them with honey of bees or brown sugar.

Antihipertensión  
Grapefruit cucumber and mint.

 

M

0.80

S

0.40

Cusco  
Guava. papaya. cass and banana.

 

 

0.90

 

0.45

Bicoca  
Juice of cress and orange

 

 
1.00

 
0.50

Energético
Coconut and fine herbs.

 

 
1.20

 
0.60

Liquefied
Preparations with vegetables and fruits. Contains vitamins and minerals of the different plants. 
They give novel, delicious and very nutritious flavours.

Lemonade
Juice of lemon. diluted with water and honey.

 

M

0.60

S

0.30

Roble  
Seven vegetables.

 


0.70


0.45

Antiestrés  
Pineapple. orange. cactusl and mint.

 

 
0.80

 
0.40

Digestivo  
Juice of grapefruit. mandarin orange and rosemary.

 

 


0.80


0.40

Alcoholic drinks  
Fruit shakes  

Preparations with fruits, ice, a little bit of rum or 
another alcoholic drink of your  preference.

Cruzado  
Pineapple. mint and rum.

M

3.00

S

1.50

Candela  
Silver dry rum. orange. ginger.

 

3.20

 

1.60

Rompope  
Silver dry rum. milk. egg. sugar. and cinnamon.

 

4.00

 

2.00

 Cocktails

Mojito  
Gased water. lemon. rum and mint.

1.90

Limonada Clarete  
Lemonade and red wine.

2.00

Daiquirí  
Limon juice. marrasquino. rum . sugar and ice.

2.00

Cubanito  
Tomato juice. Chilli sauce. rum and olive.

2.10

Ron Collins
Limon juice. carbonated wather. rum and ice.

2.10

After dinner drinks  

Iced coffee  

Café Cacao Frappé  
Coffee. Cream of Chocolate and Ice frappé

1.80

Mazzagran I  
Sugar. Marrasquino and crushed ice coffee

1.90

Daiquiri Coffee  
Sugar. lemon. liquor of coffee and marraschino.

2.00

Hot coffee

Café Express  
Espresso Coffee

1.00

Café a la Finas Hierbas  
Coffee and herb extracts.

1.10

Café Belga  
Coffee and Meringue

1.20

Capuccino  

1.30

Infusiones

Tranquilo  
Pasiflora and Tila.

 

 

1.00

Te Perfecto  
Any combination of your choice.

 

 

1.00

  Eco-Restorán “El Romero”  

So that the cows. the chickens. the lobsters. the jutías.
the male goats. the fish and all our relatives live.

 We don't offer cigarettes or tobaccos.
Please. don’t smoke inside the restorán.
 

Tip is not included in the bill.

Other  Drinks  
Aperitif

Dubonnet Red                                                                   

Cup            
0.55

Dubonnet White

Cup           
0.55

Frangelico

Cup            
1.50

Pernot

Cup           
1.00
 Wines

San Cristóbal. Pinot Grigio. 2002. Cuba.  
White Wine

Cup       

Bottle    

1.80

10.80

San Cristóbal. Castillo del Morro. Selección Especial. Cuba.  
White Wine

Cup       

Bottle    

2.40

14.50

San Cristóbal. Tempranillo. 2000. Cuba.
Red Wine

Cup       

Bottle    

1.80

10.80

San Cristóbal Castillo Morro. Special Reserve  
Red Wine

Cup

Botella

2.40

14.50

Rum

Habana Club 3 years-old

Cup

0.55

Habana Club Silver Dry Rum

Cup

0.50

 Digestiv

Guayabita del Pinar

Cup

0.20

Licores Habana Club

Cup

0.30

Crema Ponche Kuba

Cup

0.60

Añejo 7 Años

Cup

0.80

Kahlua

Cup

1.90

Beers and Malta

Bucanero malta

1.00

Cristal Beer

1.25

Bucanero Beer

1.25

Heiniken Beer

1.50

Bottled Water  
Natural or Carbonated                                                                                                        1.00

 Eco-Restorán Staff:
Manager: Jesús Felipe Castillo Naite.  
Cook Chef 1: Julio Mark Vergara.  
Cook Chef 2: Aldo García Ramírez.  
Salads and Desert Chef 1: Roselin (Ro) Rivera Rivera  
Salads and Desert Chef 2: Yobsaine (Job) Sirgo Noriega.  

C
ook: Alfredo Varela del Toro.
Saubermacherin: Misleidy Romero Rojas  

Barman: Andrey Cordovez Martínez.
Captain: Yerandi Graverán García
Permaculturer: Robustiano Reyes
Informatisation: Carlos Zafra Martell.
Student: Yeniel Pérez Pérez. 

Executive Cook Chef and General Director: 
Ing.
Tito Núñez Gudás.

 

 

   

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