Bodeguita del Medio

Brief information

The name “Bodeguita del Medio” literally grew out of the establishment’s position on the street: it was the “little shop in the middle” of Empedrado, rather than a corner grocery, as was often the case in Cuba. That is why the place matters not only as a famous bar, but as a former grocery store that gradually became a restaurant and an urban landmark of Old Havana.

The establishment’s history can be read through its changing functions. At first Cuban products were sold here, then dinners began to be served to regular customers, a print shop operated nearby, and the circle of visitors expanded to include journalists, writers, and artists. The mojito became Bodeguita’s main symbol, but the source emphasizes that the cocktail’s origin is disputed; therefore, it is more important to look not at the legend of “being first,” but at how the bar itself turned the drink, the walls, and the signatures into part of its image.

What to notice first

The main detail for reading the place is the walls. In the original description, they are covered with photographs, souvenirs, inscriptions, and autographs: here the decoration works as a trace of visits, not simply as decor. It makes sense to compare the autographs of famous guests and ordinary tourists: the tradition of signing the walls began with the journalist Leandro García, but later became a mass ritual.

Another layer is important as well: these walls were not always preserved. After the revolution they were repainted, and some of the autographs and photographs were lost; in 2021, restoration again provoked controversy because of the disappearance of inscriptions. Therefore, the wood, architecture, photographs, and guest book that the management described as preserved heritage help us see Bodeguita as a place where memory was constantly chosen anew. It is no accident that the brand’s branches copy precisely the walls with autographs and photographs: they copy not the recipe, but the recognizable way of looking like “that very” Bodeguita.