By Chad Allen
Las Floriditas daquiri and Cuban sandwich are on the list of 100 Dishes to Eat in Alabama. (Chad Allen / Alabama News Center)
A bank vault in downtown Mobile might as well be a portal.
That’s because if you know the password (available daily on Facebook), that bank vault provides access to Las Floriditas, a speakeasy bar set in classic Cuban culture.
Las Floriditas is the latest offering from Bob Baumhower, CEO of Aloha Hospitality. The former Alabama Crimson Tide and NFL great fell in love with southern Florida culture while playing for the Miami Dolphins and Las Floriditas is an homage to that Cuban-influenced place.
It is also a direct tribute to El Floridita, the famous bar in Havana, Cuba, frequented by Earnest Hemingway and where the daquiri was invented.
You may hear “daquiri” and think of the frozen concoction, popular in U.S. beachside bars, that has more in common with a Slurpee than a cocktail. The El Floridita daiquiri is simpler and more refined. Baumhower and his team spent hours behind the bar at El Floridita learning their technique before bringing it back to Las Floriditas.
The Las Floriditas daquiri pairs nicely with the Las Floriditas Cuban sandwich. The pairing has earned a spot on the Alabama Tourism Department’s list of 100 Dishes to Eat in Alabama.
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