#solpalmeras

I’m back from Cuba! Did you miss me? I’m trying to make my blog more eye-catching right off the top so here is a picture of me drinking a pina colada from a pineapple! 

More on that later...

So I went to an all inclusive resort in Veradero called Sol Palmeras. When people travel to Cuba they often complain about the food. As you all know, food is a very good friend of mine and I am here to say that Cuba is ALMOST there. 1 out of 5 dishes is VERY good and the rest is making a good effort. I like Cuba because it’s cheaper and the beaches are amaaaaazing. 

At this resort there was a breakfast, lunch and dinner buffet as well as 5 a la carte restaurants. Chinese, Sea food, Steak House, Mexican, Italian. We went to all but the Italian. 

For breakfast I ate eggs, cheese, bread and fruit. Their bread is delicious. I’ve never eaten so much white bread in my life. The papaya and pineapple were very good on on the rare occasion they had mango, it was the best goddamn mango I’ve ever had.

For lunch I stuck to roast chicken, rice and beans, bread and cheese. They had a fish grill station and sometimes I’d do that if the line wasn't too long.

Dinner at the buffet was similar. Various meats, rice, warmed vegetables, cheese and bread. Are you seeing a pattern with this cheese and bread? I avoided the salad bar because I’m on vacation and didn’t feel like salad but made sure to eat lots of fresh fruit to compensate. 

The a la carts were much better in my opinion. You also don’t feel like cattle being herded through. The staff was very nice but some of the elderly guests who spoke spanish looked at you like you were scum. They also moved at a snails pace looking at each buffet tray like they were admiring a painting at a museum. 

Our first a la carte was the Mexican restaurant. They had tacos, fajitas and a fish option. Unfortunately they were out of tortillas though. Hm. We got fajitas anyway and ate the meat and veg with rice, corn and re-fried black beans. She brought out jalopenos at our request. The meat and veg came out on a sizzling black skillet and it was actually quite delicious. We didn’t miss the tortillas at all!

The next night we ate the the Steak House. After an appetizer of “shrimp cocktail” which was pretty awful I had the filet of beef and Matt had the sirloin. This was VERY good. Cooked to order with a strange mix of white asparagus and mushrooms, potatoes with ranch sauce(?) and a starchy nub of corn. Like I said, it was ALMOST there. 

We messed up and accidentally made 2 resos for the steakhouse so ate there again the next night. I ordered the same thing because it was the best thing I had eaten so far. Matt got the bacon wrapped pork which was quite yummy. 

We did the seafood restaurant the next eve and our server was very enthusiastic. After finding out we were from Toronto he yelled “Go Blue Jays!” every time he passed by our table or poured more mediocre white wine.  I got the surf and turf which was a beef tenderloin, sautéed shrimp and veg with mashed potatoes. Considering the mashed potatoes at the buffet are pure soup, these were gooood. Again, a very nice meal. We ordered coconut pie for dessert but I suddenly felt like I might crap my pants (dress, which is far worse) and had to leave. I think I had too much sun and cheese that day. I ran to my room and after a small siesta I was back to normal. 

Our last a la carte meal was at the Chinese restaurant. The food was better than most places I’ve eaten at in Toronto, I kid you not. We started with spring rolls and shared shrimp chop suey, fried rice and General Thompson (not tao) chicken. I wanted to order more but we were so full. I had deep fried pineapple for dessert and Matt had deep fried banana with honey. On our way out we peaked into the kitchen and saw an Asian man cooking! 

From our day trip to Havana, we learned that Havana actually has a very large China town. I had no idea. On our way to Havana is where we stopped at a vendor who allegedly served the best pina coladas in town! The resort pina’s were terrible so I had to get one. OOOOO baby! So good and creamy and fresh. They top it with cinnamon! That’s the picture at the beginning of my blog. Just casually sipping pina colada from a pineapple. I’m tempted to make one right now before my yoga class. I’d make it without rum, obvi. Although drunk yoga might help with my flexibility...

In Havana we also visited this huge flea market where we got a fresh coconut that puts all other coconut water to shame and went to a brewery! The brewery felt like a hip place you’d go to in San Francisco on the wharf. The beer was amazing! Although I do I like Cristal beer, this was a nice change.

The mojitos at the resort were excellent. There was one bar that ONLY served mojitos and the lady made them right. (her name escapes me. What can I say, I was a wee bit tipsy.) Lots of muddled mint. Mmmm....

Eventually our trip to paradise ended and we headed home. The airport restaurant served up tasty delights such as ham and cheese sandwiches and ham and cheese “pizzas”.  Had I not been day drunk, burnt and starving I probably would have thought this was awful, but I didn’t mind it!

With out leftover pesos we also got some strange cuban treats from the duty free. I don’t know how I feel about the “Teens”...

Well, that was the food portion of my trip! I know I didn’t cook anything and there are no recipes, but for my next blog I want to look up some authentic cuban cuisine and try to make it myself.  Now I’m off to make a smoothie (pina colada) and go to the gym!

Thanks for eating with me in Cuba!

Byeeeee