10:24 AM
La Bodeguita del Medio: Mojito's emblematic place
For people like us, the name « Bodeguita del Medio » is the synonym for one of our most beloved cocktails: the Mojito. Not only is this Cuban bar in La Havana the birthplace of this delicious beverage, but it also serves one of the greatest mojitos we’ve ever had the chance to sip on.
Local promoter Angel Martinez created La Bodeguita del Medio in 1942, originally naming it Casa Martinez. Thought up as a grocery store and restaurant, the place soon became famous for its unique drink, the Mojito, and the delicious food prepared by chef Silvia “La China” Torres, and therefore soon became a proper bar and restaurant.
Quickly, Casa Martinez was the center of Havana’s cultural effervescence. Musicians, artists, writers, journalists, all the Cuban intelligentsia of the late 1940’s met there. Felito Ayon, a charismatic editor and one of the most active members of Havana’s avant-garde, was one of the regulars. He was the person who made the bar popular amongst the artistic community. As Casa Martinez was – and still is – situated right in the middle of a street, Ayon used to send his friends to “the Bodeguita in the middle”. As people started using the name, Angel Martinez changed Casa Martinez to La Bodeguita Del Medio.
A lot of celebrities have visited this place from Salvador Allende, Pablo Neruda and Gabriel Garcia Marquez, to Nat King Cole and Marlene Dietrich. But the most famous regular by far was certainly Ernest Hemingway. The great writer left his imprint on the place; if you step by La Bodeguita, you’ll see a little note, hanged on the wall, on which Hemingway wrote: “My Mojito in La Bodeguita, My Daiquiri in El Floridita”.
If you want to take a little tour inside the place, it’s now possible within a few clicks: just go to the website Havana dedicated to the bar and take a look! There, you’ll learn everything about the history of the place, and you’ll be given all the secrets to making a great Mojito. If you have a smartphone, feel free to check the Mojito app specially designed by Havana to give you the full experience of this fabulous cocktail.
Today, the bar is still one of the most popular places in Cuba, and it intends to stay this way--their drinks have never been so good!
Photos by Ricardo Meza, Martin Abegglen and Derek Blackadder.
Local promoter Angel Martinez created La Bodeguita del Medio in 1942, originally naming it Casa Martinez. Thought up as a grocery store and restaurant, the place soon became famous for its unique drink, the Mojito, and the delicious food prepared by chef Silvia “La China” Torres, and therefore soon became a proper bar and restaurant.
Quickly, Casa Martinez was the center of Havana’s cultural effervescence. Musicians, artists, writers, journalists, all the Cuban intelligentsia of the late 1940’s met there. Felito Ayon, a charismatic editor and one of the most active members of Havana’s avant-garde, was one of the regulars. He was the person who made the bar popular amongst the artistic community. As Casa Martinez was – and still is – situated right in the middle of a street, Ayon used to send his friends to “the Bodeguita in the middle”. As people started using the name, Angel Martinez changed Casa Martinez to La Bodeguita Del Medio.
A lot of celebrities have visited this place from Salvador Allende, Pablo Neruda and Gabriel Garcia Marquez, to Nat King Cole and Marlene Dietrich. But the most famous regular by far was certainly Ernest Hemingway. The great writer left his imprint on the place; if you step by La Bodeguita, you’ll see a little note, hanged on the wall, on which Hemingway wrote: “My Mojito in La Bodeguita, My Daiquiri in El Floridita”.
If you want to take a little tour inside the place, it’s now possible within a few clicks: just go to the website Havana dedicated to the bar and take a look! There, you’ll learn everything about the history of the place, and you’ll be given all the secrets to making a great Mojito. If you have a smartphone, feel free to check the Mojito app specially designed by Havana to give you the full experience of this fabulous cocktail.
Today, the bar is still one of the most popular places in Cuba, and it intends to stay this way--their drinks have never been so good!
Photos by Ricardo Meza, Martin Abegglen and Derek Blackadder.
By clement
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10:01 AM
La Bodeguita's Mojito recipe
The original Cuban Mojito:
1. Add two teaspoons of sugar to a highball glass
2. Add the juice of half a lime
3. Add two sprigs of fresh mint
4. Pour two parts of sparkling water (9cL)
5. Muddle well
6. Pour one part of Havana Club 3 anos rum (4.5 cL)
7. Add 4 ice cubes
8. Stir well and Enjoy!
1. Add two teaspoons of sugar to a highball glass
2. Add the juice of half a lime
3. Add two sprigs of fresh mint
4. Pour two parts of sparkling water (9cL)
5. Muddle well
6. Pour one part of Havana Club 3 anos rum (4.5 cL)
7. Add 4 ice cubes
8. Stir well and Enjoy!
By clement
+ add a comment
Submit