|
 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 |
