Calle Ocho: dominoes, cafecito and live son
The Cuban heart of Miami in six blocks, ending in a bar where the band starts at ten.
Little Havana is a street more than a neighborhood: SW 8th, Calle Ocho, from about 13th to 17th Avenue. Dominoes at the park, a cafecito at a ventanita, cigars rolled in the window, and a bar with a band. Go slowly; everything here is about the conversation.
Les étapes
- Máximo Gómez Domino Park25 min
Old men play dominoes here every afternoon. Watch, don't photograph faces without asking, and read the mural of the 1994 Summit of the Americas on the wall.
Itinéraire vers cette étape - Ventanitas along Calle Ocho30 min
Order a cafecito or a cortadito through a walk-up window. A colada is a shared shot for four; drink it with the little cups it comes with.
Itinéraire vers cette étape - Ball & Chain50 min
The 1935 club, reopened with a pineapple-shaped stage in the back garden. Live salsa most evenings, mojitos, and dancing by nine.
Itinéraire vers cette étape - Café La Trova75 min
Cantinero bar: bartenders in white jackets, a Trova Daiquiri, and a son band after ten. Book a table on weekends.
Itinéraire vers cette étape
Bon à savoir
- Cash is useful at the ventanitas.
- The Viernes Culturales street festival is the last Friday of the month.
- It's a hot, shadeless walk at midday; late afternoon is the right start.
Les questions qu’on se pose
What is a ventanita?
A walk-up coffee window on a Cuban café. You order a cafecito, cortadito or colada standing on the sidewalk, and that is the whole point.