Floridita

El Floridita
Former names	La Piña de Plata
General information
Type	Commercial
Architectural style	Neo classical
Location	Obispo and Monserrate streets
Address	557 Obispo
Town or city	Ciudad de La Habana
Country	Cuba
Inaugurated	1817
Owner	Constantino Ribalaigua Vert
Height
Architectural	6m
Tip	9m
Antenna spire	10m
Roof	8m
Technical details
Structural system	Wood
Material	Masonry
Floor count	Two
Known for	daiquiri

Floridita(Spanish pronunciation:[floɾiˈðita]) orEl Floriditais a historic fish restaurant and cocktail bar in the older part ofHavana(La Habana Vieja),Cuba.It lies at the end ofCalle Obispo(Bishop Street), across Monserrate Street from the National Museum of Fine Arts of Havana (Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes de La Habana). The establishment is famous for itsdaiquirisand for having been one of the favourite hangouts ofErnest Hemingwayin Havana. The bar now boasts a life size bronze statue of Ernest Hemingway positioned in his favourite spot at the end of the bar. On a small plaque hanging in El Floridita, hangs Hemingway's signed quote: "My mojito in the Bodeguita del Medio and my daiquiri in the Floridita".

History

El Floridita bar. The bar "patron" at the far left of the bar, below the wall-mounted photo, is a life-sized bronze statue of Ernest Hemingway

The origin of Daiquiri was highly linked with the Floridita bar.

The bar opened in 1817 with the name "La Piña de Plata" (English:The Silver Pineapple) in the place it still occupies, on the corner of Obispo and Monserrate streets. Almost 100 years later, the large number of North American tourists persuaded the owner to change the name to "El Florida".

In 1914, theCatalanimmigrant Constantino Ribalaigua Vert started working in the bar ascantinero(bartender). Constantino, nicknamedConstante,became the owner in 1918. Constante is credited for inventing the frozendaiquiriin the early 1930s, a drink that became linked to the fame of the place, whose motto is now "la cuna del daiquiri" (the cradle of the daiquiri). The bar became a school of highly skilledcantineros(bartenders) specialised in cocktails prepared with fresh fruit juices andrum,whose traditions are still preserved by the disciples of Constante.

The writerErnest Hemingwayfrequented the bar, which is at the end ofCalle Obispo,a short walk from theHotel Ambos Mundoswhere he maintained a room from 1932–1939. Hemingway's children also noted that in the early 1940s Hemingway and his wife "Mary" (Martha Gellhorn) continued to drive from their house outside Havana (Finca Vigía) to the Floridita for drinks.The establishment today contains many noticeablememorabiliaof the author, with photographs, a bust, and more recently (2003), a life-size bronze statue at the end of the bar near the wall, sculpted by theCubanartistJosé Villa Soberón.

Hemingway wasn't the only famous customer of the bar.The establishment was frequented by many generations ofCubanand foreign intellectuals and artists.Ezra Pound,John Dos Passos,andGraham Greene,the British novelist who wroteOur Man in Havana,were also frequent customers.

The place still preserves much of the atmosphere of the 1940s and 1950s, with the red coats of the bartenders matching the Regency style decoration that dates from the 1950s, although now most of its customers are occasional tourists. Besides thecocktails,the place is well knownfor its expensive seafood.

See also

• List of buildings in Havana

External links

• "El Floridita".World's Best Bars.Retrieved16 May2016.
• El Floridita Website
• Hemingway in El Floridita
• Hernández, Reina (10 April 2007)."The Most Famous Patron of the Most Famous Bar in Havana".CubaNow.net.Retrieved12 December2009.