14ymedio, Pedro Espinosa, Havana, February 12, 2024 — The combination restaurant, cafe and dessert shop that make up El Biky, located at 412 Infanta Street, is less and less shy about flaunting its privileges. One of the most striking examples is the garbage truck that was recently parked alongside it, on Concordia Street, right in front of a luxury automobile.
In contrast to the neighborhood’s other street corners, with their mountains of trash spilling out of their containers, El Biky’s are pristine. The restaurant has at its disposal no less than ten new, well-maintained garbage bins, all of them with locks to prevent the public from using them. This is especially paradoxical when it comes to comparing this “non-agricultural cooperative” (CNA) to a micro, small or medium-sized business (MSME), which — according to the regime — is “more commercial in nature while the former is “more social.”
Their prices, however, have never been for everyone. And though their desserts are still reputed to be the best in the city, that is not the case for their restaurant or their service. “For what it costs, you shouldn’t leave feeling starved,” says Lydia, who recently celebrated her wedding anniversary there with her husband. “A teaspoon of rice, a little bit of this, a little bit of that. They tell you it’s because it looks nicer, that refined people prefer small portions. It’s not about refineme