Havana (1953) (more "Moro" crabs)

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HAVANA: THE PORTRAIT OF A CITY
by W. Adolphe Roberts
Coward-McCann, Inc., NY
1953

Pg. 234:  Chapter 41 NANIGO, OR CUBAN HOCUS-POCUS

Pg. 245:  Chapter 44 FAMOUS RESTAURANTS AND BARS

Pg. 246:  _La Zaragozana_, on Monserrate opposite the Centro Asturiano.  THis is the oldest high-class restaurant in Havana.  It was founded in 1830 and there is some resemblance to the celebrated Antoine's, of New Orleans, founded ten years later.  Calmly old-fashioned, La Zaragozana maintains its standards in the face of modern competition, charges high prices and is approved by Cubans and foreigners alike.  It specializes in fish and shellfish dishes.  Better Moro crab, natural or stuffed, is not to be found anywhere.
(It still exists, right next to Floridita--ed.)

Pg. 249:  _La Florida_, often called _la Floridita_, is an exception.  This bar is famous for its Daiquiri cocktails, which many drinkers aver to be the best in the city.

Pg. 250:  Chapter 45 TYPICAL CUBAN DISHES
   ..._arroza con pollo_...

Pg. 251:  _Cangrejo_ Moro (Moro crab), a name that has nothing to do with Morro Castle, as some tourists imagine.  Moro means "Moorish."  This is a variety of stone crab with very large black-tipped claws.  If ordered _natural_, the claw-meat only is served cold, with mayonnaise.  But the masterpiece is stuffed Moro crab, the titbits of several crustaceans being used to pack one of the large shells and the result baked.  Different restaurants treat in different ways, the least imaginative of which is _au gratin_.
   _Langosta_ (rock lobster), really a giant crawfish.

Pg. 252:  _Pargo_ (red snapper, also called in English muttonfish). (...)  One of the best styles is _almendrina_, which means a covering of crushed almonds with a butter sauce.
   Other popular fish are _serrucho_ (kingfish), _aguja_ (sailfish), _atun_ (tuna), _pampano_ (pampano), and all the small, succulent species known in southern Florida.  If you want a mixed seafood grill, order _rancho de mariscos_.
   _Ajiaco_.  This is the down-to-earth native thick soup, a large helping of which is a meal.  All the tropical vegetables are used--plantain, yam, taro, sweet potato, yuca (cassava), tomato, green pepper, onion, and corn-on-the-cob sliced into counters--and pork as the basic enrichment.  The ajiaco of a poor country family may contain no meat except scraps of crackling.  In a good city restaurant there will be salt pork and pieces of smoked ham. (...)
   _Congri_ (rice and black beans) is often listed as a soup, though more resembling an hors d'oeuvre.

Pg. 254: Chapter 46 CUBAN FRUITS AND FRUIT DRINKS
1: _Pina_ (pineapple).
2. _Guanabana_ (soup-sop).
Pg. 255:
3. _Anon_ (sweet-sop).
4. _Chirimoya_ (custard apple).
5. _Mamey_ (Cuban mammee).
6. _Caimito_ (star apple).
7. _Zapote_ (naseberry).
8. _Guayaba_ (guava).
9. _Fruta Bomba_ (papaya).  Only in Havana, where _papaya_ has a vulgar connotation, is this fruit called fruta bomba.  (David Shulman told me the same thing about when he was in Havana.  I didn't know he liked papaya--ed.)
Pg. 256:
10. _Sandia_ (watermelon).
11. _Naranja_ (orange).
12. _Toronja_ (grapefruit).
13. _Limon_ (lemon).
14. _Lima_ (lime).
15. _Tamarindo_ (tamarind).
16. _Granada_ (pomegranate).
17. _Granadilla_ (passion flower fruit, or granadilla).
18. _Mango_ (mango).
19. _Maranon_ (cashew).
Pg. 257:
20. _Platano_ (plantain).
21. _Platanillo_ or _Platanito_ (banana).
22. _Uva_ (grape).
23. _Higo_ (fig).
24. _Tuna_ or _Higo Chumba_ (prickly pear).
25. _Pomarosa_ (rose apple).
26. _Mamoncillo_ (guinep).
27. _Aguacate_ (avocado pear).
28. _Coco_ (coconut).
Pg. 258:
29. _Almendra_ (almond).
30. _Cana_ (sugar cane).

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HAVANA: CINDERELLA'S CITY
by Hugh Bradley
Doubleday, Doran and Company, Inc.
Garden City, NY
1941

Pg. 427:  This also is the Havana where _pisto manchego_, Spanish scrambled eggs mixed with shrimp, peas, asparagus, tomato sauce, and ham is food for the gods and where the _cangrejos moros_, stone crabs, may be examined with fork far better than with pen.

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STANDARD GUIDE TO HAVANA
New York: Foster & Reynolds, Publishers
Havana: Diamond News Company
1906

Pg. 82:  Among the popular drinks is one called panal (honeycomb) or aucarillo, which is made from a mixture of sugar and white of egg, dried in rolls about six inches long, which look like spongy white candy; the rolls are served with a glass of water and with or without a lemon; when panal is dissolved it produces a sweetish drink like the eau sucre of the French.  There are many refrescos, or refreshments, made from the nativ fruits.  Pina fria is fresh pineapple, crushed and served in a glass with sugar and ice.

Pg. 83:  The drink called ensalada (salad) is a beverage composed of verious ingredients, the choice of which is determined by the fancy and skill of the composer.

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   From NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE, September 1933, pg. 365, col. 1:
   For the thirsty there is the "pineapple refreshment," made of freshly crushed pineapple, sugar, and water.  Some order it _colada_, which means strained; others like food and drink together, and order it _sin colar_ (without straining), with the pieces of crushed pineapple in the glass, a real treat.

Pg. 380, col. 1:
   I have sat at a sidewalk cafe table, surrounded by well-dressed, well-fed people, sipping a pina colada (see text, page 365), and listening to an orchestra of flashing-eyed beauties play and sing their native music with its strange, yearning rhythm.

Pg. 380, col. 2:
   In a cafe the sign on the wall which reads "Hay sandwiches," doesn't mean what it says in English, but means "There are (we have) sandwiches."