A little history about Cuban food
As the first and last Spanish colony in the Caribbean, Cuban food has strong ties to Spain, although it had many other influences. Cuban cuisine is a blend of Native American Taino food, Spanish, African, and Caribbean cuisines.
During the colonial era, Havana was an important trading port and Spanish immigrants passed through the city before moving on to other towns and islands. The Spanish brought cattle and pigs, which were incorporated into the foods. Many of the immigrants were from southern Spain; hence many Cuban dishes have their roots in Andalucia.
A noteworthy Chinese influence on the food also cropped up in the Havana area in the mid-1800s. Large groups of Chinese indentured laborers came from China to do the work formerly done by African slaves when slavery was outlawed.
Why Mariposa?
Choosing a name for our restaurant was so easy to do The White Ginger (Hedychium coronarium) called “Mariposa” in Cuba, is a native flower of India but it has become so common in the island that it has been selected as the national flower.
Our love for flowers and butterflies made the name Mariposa perfect. Mariposas are white, yellow or salmon color with an exquisite perfume. It is extremely abundant during the rainy season, and it can grow up to six feet tall. It is characteristic of the Cuban scenery.
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