Coppelia

Description:

• Made famous in Tomás Gutiérez Alea's hit film Fresa y Chocolate (Strawberry and Chocolate), this is the main branch of the Cuban national ice-cream company. At the center of the block-long complex is a postmodern building of curving concrete and glass, surrounded by a series of open courtyards with wrought-iron tables, where customers are served bowls of the frozen nectar. There are actually a dozen or so small booths selling cones and bowls spread around the park. Still, Coppelia is yet another glaring case of tourist apartheid: Cubans form long lines to wait their turn at a table or stand while tourists, who are paying in hard currency and not Cuban pesos, are always taken to the head of the line, or shown to a separate convertible peso stand. There are usually only two or three flavors available on any given day; if you're there on a rum raisin day, you're in for a treat. Ice cream in wrappers for tourists starts at about CUC$1.30 (US$1.40/70p); it costs a couple of pesos in moneda nacional.

• © Frommer's 2013

Awards:

Frommer's

•  Recommended 2010