Cuban Croqueta at the Ventanita, Then Dominoes on Calle Ocho
A guided walk that treats Little Havana's food as its history lesson, one counter at a time.
Little Havana is a neighborhood you eat standing up. This walk moves between family-owned restaurants, a walk-up coffee window and a cigar factory along Calle Ocho, and the food arrives in small servings spread across several stops. Every tasting on the route is already covered by the ticket. The guide works in English, the group stays small, and the whole walk runs 150 minutes.
Booking runs through Viator. The meeting point is the sidewalk in front of the restaurant at 1652 SW 8th Street, Tumbao Calle 8, and the operator asks the group to be in place 15 minutes before the start.
Little Havana: Authentic Food and Culture Walking TourFood Tours World LLC · 150 minutes · Small group · 4.8 from 718 reviewswww.viator.comWhat You Actually Eat
The tasting list is published in advance and does not change with the group.
- Churros with cinnamon and sugar
- A Cuban croqueta at what the operator calls the most famous ventanita in Little Havana
- Tropical juice, sugar cane or guava or mango depending on the season
- A baked beef empanada
- Pastelito con guayaba y queso
- A Cuban sandwich
- A mojito
- A Cuban coffee colada
A colada is four to six espresso shots in a single cup, meant to be split around the group. The mojito is poured only for travelers 21 and over. A vegetarian version works when the request goes in the booking comment box, and the kitchens cannot handle celiac disease, gluten allergies or a vegan diet.
The Stops That Are Not Food
Two stops on the route have nothing to do with eating. The first is a cigar factory, where the guide covers how the cigars are made and the women who roll them work at the bench. Domino Park is a scheduled stop, and the games at those tables are hosted by a social club whose members are over 50. Those competitions are typically members only, so the visit there is spent watching the tables and talking to the players. The park keeps 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. hours, seven days a week, for anyone coming back on their own.
The walk also passes the Bay of Pigs Memorial and Cuban Memorial Park. The memorial is a marble structure carrying the brigade's insignia and the engraved names of the men who died in the 1961 invasion, with an eternal flame at the top.
Who the Walk Suits
The operator rates the route for all physical fitness levels and says all areas and surfaces on it are wheelchair accessible. Service animals are allowed. Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller, and children have to be accompanied by an adult. A single booking can hold up to fifteen travelers, while the operator's own description calls it a small group with a maximum of ten. Public transport runs nearby, and the walk goes ahead in all weather. An umbrella or poncho belongs in the bag when rain is in the forecast.
Before You Book
Cancelling at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure returns the full amount. Inside that window nothing comes back. The operator can also call the walk off for bad weather or for too few travelers, which puts the booking into a refund or a new date.
Gratuities sit outside the ticket, and the operator suggests 15 to 20 percent per person. Street parking on Calle Ocho runs about two dollars an hour through the PayByPhone app. There is no hotel pickup, and tickets are issued one per booking. A single confirmation covers the party.
The walk ends at Churromania, two blocks from where it began. The six-foot rooster sculptures along Calle Ocho, dressed as farmworkers, carpenters and doctors, are worth a look on the way past. The guide leaves the group there, and Rooster Alley sits close enough to add on, with murals and street art running the length of it.