About Time: You Discovered Sobremesa by Havana ClubBy Angelica Malin
Looking for a fun, Cuban-themed dinging experience? Look no further: Havana Club present London’s newest dining concept, Sobremesa. We got the 411 on the new craze hitting the city:
Sobremesa: The Lowdown
To mark Havana Carnival and to promote the Iconica range of luxury rum, Havana will host Sobremesa, a unique dining experience that brings the spirit of Cuba to the heart of London. The basis of the idea is the paladar – the private restaurants which are run by Cubans from their own homes – and will see Havana take over a series of London’s leading members clubs for the evening. We love.
Sobremesa: What to Expect
On arrival, guests will enter a Cuban world with the live music, scents and atmosphere of Havana. In a nod to the island’s spirit of communal living, diners will be seated together at round ‘kitchen’ tables and introduced to one another by the host. Each diner the table will be joined by a cultural expert to engage in an after-dinner conversation – the sobremesa – on a different aspect of Cuban life: art, design, boxing, literature, fashion. Just as how in Cuba private cars are mandated to pick up hitchhikers, the element of a random guest enlivens proceedings and puts a modern spin on the after-dinner speech. At the start of the session, guests will be asked to set their phones to flight-safe mode, allowing them a little of the undisturbed social time that Cuba typically offers to visitors.
Sobremesa: La Comida
Food will be presented as a modern, Michelin-starred take on Cuban cuisine, with each course paired to a rum from Havana’s range, and the spirit recast as a discrete, sipping drink to replace whisky at a meal. The food will be prepared over a special Cuban tropical wood charcoal cultivated by Mark Parr. Get ready to feast.
Sobremesa: The Speakers
That’s not all, there’s entertainment too. Guest speakers across the events include London’s leading literary Salonista Damian Barr, award-winning author Dan Davies, art expert Michele Robbechi, boxing commentator, travel guru Tom Marchant and Cuban resident Sean Ingle. Any excuse to drink your favourite tipple, we say.
Interested? For a chance to attend an event yourself, email sobremesa@pernod-ricard.com. And to get your hands on some delicious rum, see here.
