Paila, up a hill on the corner of Calle 25 & M.  Outdoor restaurant serves huge whole grilled fish.  Very affordable.

Club 1830, on the Malecon.  Outdoor food, drinks, dancing by the water.  A show and live band late evenings.  Small cover charge and bag check.  Beautiful grotto with pathways and vistas.

Nana Cafe, on Calle 25 just down the street and to the left of Paila.  It used to serve breakfast all day, and have live bolero music on Sunday evenings. It is still there and appears to be open, but has limited service now. There are two others in the same block, side by side with Nana’s, that are good. There are many vegan choices there these days.

Laurent Cafe, 257 Calle M, between 19 & 21.  In Penthouse (top floor--inside and outside dining).  Voted best restaurant of May 2016 trip. Reservations may be necessary.

Dona Carmela, across the bay near the fort.  Beautiful outdoor location with tropical rain forest flavor, birds, music, and good food.

Hotel Habana Libre Cafeteria on Calle M and 23, first floor (good breakfasts; open late night with good club sandwiches). Many participants loved the breakfast buffet on the second floor, above the lobby (separate location from cafeteria).

Artechef, Calle 3 (state-run restaurant near the Cohiba and Riviera hotels).  Best-kept secret, because it is a culinary school—3 to 4 CUC per meal includes fresh-squeezed juice. 

La Roca, on Calle 21 between L & M (fixed menu option for 4.50 CUC which includes complete meal with national drink (could be beer) and ice cream for dessert; red wine 1.50 a glass. Takes payment only in pesos. If you walk down L and turn right on Calle 21, there are many restaurants there as you walk down toward the Hotel Nacional. Also there is a restaurant that serves Cuban and Turkish food (look for the Turkish flag). Prices are in dollars and lobster is plentiful. If you turn left at L and 21 and go a block, you will see La Caretta. You can pay in dollars there and they have lobster for less than $12 U.S.

Basic Paladar next door to La Roca, open for lunch with good food (many locals order take out or eat there for 35 to 40 Cuban pesos); no napkins.

First floor, FOCSA building (Calle 17 & M, across from Malecon).  Similar menu and prices as La Roca, and you pay in pesos.  This 39-story building is the tallest in Havana (built 1956) and is considered a wonder of Cuban civil engineering.

Alliance Francaise restaurant, across from John Lennon Park on Calle 17 and 6.  The fixed price menus are $5 CUC and $10 CUC but they don’t include dessert.  Upstairs they serve pizza and pastas.  (The sculpture of Lennon is currently not wearing his signature round-lens glasses, which have been stolen, or vandalized, several times. However, during the day, a security guard will place glasses on the statue if there is a request.)

Waoo, right across from the Habana Libre, with a staff and bartenders who are very friendly, who make the best Mojitos in Havana (with honey) and who serve excellent food almost all of the time.  Specializing in squid. That last time I was there (May 2024), it appeared to have been closed.

Paladar Shalom is on 21 between L and K.  It’s very basic, but they have good Cuban food for under $2 CUC; bring your own napkin and drink, and someone who speaks Spanish.  There are usually three to five choices written on the board. Pay in pesos.

Restaurant Kasalta is in Miramar, just after the Calzada tunnel leading out of Vedado, on the way to Hemingway Marina; it is used as training for the tourist industry.  They have a regular menu and fixed prices. 

El Carmelo was the “in” place in the 50's and 60's.  It went to disrepair and was quite a dump in 2013.  However, it was recently bought and now has the flair of the old Carmelo with good food.  It is on Calle 23 at the corner of H (between G and F), across the street from a grand house that Che lived in for a while.

El Cochinito, on 23 between H and I.  Sometimes the service is slow, but the food is good and the prices are among the cheapest in Havana.  “Oferta” specials start at just 30 pesos (mn=moneda nacional) but doesn’t include a drink.  Portions are small, but if you order extra items it is hard to spend more than 60 pesos (mn) per person.  At 8 pm service is fastest.

Pizzeria Buona Sera, on 23 at the corner of I.  Service tends to be slow, but you can get pizza, spaghetti and drinks for 10-20 pesos.

Cinecittà, on 23 at the corner of 12th.  The theme of this state-run restaurant is the cinema.  Pizza and spaghetti plates start at 10 pesos and lasagna and cannelloni dishes are 25 pesos.  Ice cream is 3 pesos per scoop.  The lines to get in are long on weekends but if you go during the week, before 8 pm, there is faster service.

El Conejito, on the fancier side, has been there for 60 years.  It’s on the corner of Calle 17 and J & K (across from FOCSA); their specialty dish is rabbit but they have a good reputation for other international foods.  Plan to spend about 20 CUC.