IL RUSTICO
AND THE BEST ITALIAN & SICILIAN TOO!
Il Rustico opened in November in Old Havana and is owned by Sicilian Chef Fabio Palazzo, and the food here is just as good as the food at Casa Nostra, his other restaurant in the Havana suburb of Miramar. It is a few minutes’ walk from the Museum of Bellas Artes and the Museum of the Revolution. For less than ten dollars you can have a great pizza, beer and dessert at a most uniquely furnished restaurant. The grilled tuna and octopus are amazing, the tuna is sushi quality and the best in Cuba. The pizzas are prepared in a wood burning oven, and they are the best in Cuba. Il Rustico offers over thirty pizza varieties, ranging from the cheese only Margherite, to the Don Fabio with home-made salchicha, smoked cheese and mushrooms, and the Mediterranea which is topped with swordfish, pesto, and fresh mozzarella.
Il Rustico has a full bar, the micheladas are excellent, and they offer Chianti, which is difficult to find in Havana. Il Rustico is at San Juan de Dios #53, between Habana and Compostela, a couple of blocks from La Bodeguita del Medio, and a block from Helado de Oro, the best ice cream shop in Cuba. The phone number is 5 539 4514, you probably won’t need reservations, yet!
This place makes a for a great lunch stop during a city tour of Old Havana, and you won’t be disappointed.
By Frank Gonzalez