another fantastic reason to visit cuba

[Ken Gargett]

i've eaten at mugaritz but no idea how he'd cope in havana. very keen to see.

Yearning for a challenge, two top chefs plan restaurant in Cuba

By Noe TorresNovember 13, 2014 2:39 PM

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By Noe Torres

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - They have already earned a place in the firmament of the world's best chefs. Now Basque chef Andoni Luis Aduriz and Mexico's Enrique Olvera have set their sights on one of the world's toughest markets: communist-run Cuba.

The island has seen a restaurant boom in recent years, fed by market-style reforms enacted under President Raul Castro, though ingredients can be scarce.

The pair are eager to take on the challenge.

Aduriz's restaurant Mugaritz, in Spain's northern Basque region, was named the sixth best restaurant in the world this year by Restaurant Magazine, while Olvera's Pujol in Mexico City ranked at No. 20.

"We're at a stage where we don't just want to cook good, creative, avant-garde food," Aduriz told Reuters by telephone as he prepared dinner with Olvera at Pujol on Wednesday. "Why not do a project that aspires to be on a hypothetical list of the most fun restaurants in the world?"

Since 2011, restaurateurs in Cuba, who previously were limited to 12-seat establishments in their homes, can seat up to 50 people in rented spaces.

While state restaurants and joint ventures with the state can import luxury items, Cuba's private restaurants, known as paladares, often struggle to find ingredients from supermarkets and other retailers.

In keeping with Cuba's communist ideals, Aduriz and Olvera aim to create a restaurant that levels the social playing field.

"Gastronomy is not a privilege of people with money, but rather of intelligent people. Why not dream of a restaurant in which we manage to mix all social classes of people and no one asks who anyone else is?" Adruriz said.

It is not clear how economically viable the planned restaurant would be. The pair are still at the early stages, with no planned start-up date.

Havana's dining choices now include inventive fusion spots, ethnic choices offering Spanish, Italian or Russian food, and white-tablecloth restaurants serving haute cuisine.

They serve tourists, foreigners including diplomats, and a growing number of Cubans who have access to hard currency from their jobs, small businesses or relatives working abroad.

"We are going through the beginnings of something that didn't exist a short time ago," said Pilar Fernandez, who opened her second restaurant, Casa Pilar, in Havana a month ago.

"This is going to create a new school in the world of Cuban gastronomy. With time, all these young people learning new skills will end up being good chefs."

(Additional reporting by Daniel Trotta in Havana; Writing by Simon Gardner; Editing by Leslie Adler)

Enrique Olvera and Andoni Luis Aduriz Planning New Restaurant in Cuba

by Erin DeJesus Nov 14 2014, 12:17p

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Olvera/Facebook; Aduriz/Ulla

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They want to it to be one of the "most fun restaurants in the world."

Chefs Enrique Olvera (of NYC's white-hot Cosme and Mexico City's Pujol, the #20 World's Best Restaurant) and Andoni Luis Aduriz (whose San Sebastian restaurant Mugaritz is ranked #6) will join forces to open a restaurant in an unlikely locale: Cuba. Aduriz confirms to Reuters that the duo plan to expand to the communist country, and want to create a project that "aspires to be on a hypothetical list of the most fun restaurants in the world." Last week, Olvera Tweeted the restaurant would be located in Havana, although Yahoo notes the "pair are still at the early stages, with no planned start-up date." Updates as they become available.

[NJP]

I wish them the best of luck. It will be interesting to see if they actually open the doors and what type of venue it will be. Also how far away from the original approach it will end up.

[PuffDaddie]

Best of luck

[shlomo]

Cuba has all the ingredients, but nobody to put them all together properly. Hence the lousy food scene in the country. Hope this works for these two and opens doors for future good chefs!

[Ken Gargett]

Cuba has all the ingredients, but nobody to put them all together properly. Hence the lousy food scene in the country. Hope this works for these two and opens doors for future good chefs!

shlomo, spot on. the only thing i'd add is that they need to educate primary producers to ensure the highest quality of the produce. it is there but so often treated hopelessly. with good quality ingredients, we could have a winner. easier said than done.

[CanuckSARTech]

Cuba has all the ingredients, but nobody to put them all together properly. Hence the lousy food scene in the country. Hope this works for these two and opens doors for future good chefs!

On a much larger scale than anywhere else, yes. But there are some bright spots here and there. Just gotta know where to look.

[tmac77]

Having been to cuba many times I am often asked about the food there. It has a bad reputation to be sure but you can get a bad meal in just about any city in the world. Sometimes you get what you pay for. This is especially true of the resort food in cuba but as I say "pay a penny get a penny". Sure Cuba has more than its disproportionate number of places to get served bad food but the last half dozen or so times I have been there I have not been dissapointed with the food and in a number of cases have been pleasantly surprised if not downright amazed when you consider the lack of quality ingredients at their disposal. You really just have to do some research and pick the right spots.

[dangolf18]

I was expecting to see some hot chicks Ken...what a disappointment.