Fridays with Jim Korkis: Bongos Cuban Cafe
By Dave Shute
Welcome back to Fridays with Jim Korkis! Jim, the dean of Disney historians, writes about Walt Disney World history every Friday on yourfirstvisit.net.
BONGOS CUBAN CAFE
By Jim Korkis
Bongos Cuban Café with both indoor and outdoor seating for up to 550 guests opened at Downtown Disney’s West Side in September 1997 and closed in August 2019. During its twenty-two years of operation, it remained pretty much the same without any significant changes. It was the only original restaurant at West Side that had never renovated in any manner.
International superstars Emilio and Gloria Estefan were the owners of Bongos Cuban Café that showcased a blend of authentic Cuban cuisine with the culture of old Havana, presented in a setting that mixed tropical deco with the sizzle of South Beach glamour.
In 1993, the couple entered the restaurant business with two successful restaurants on Miami’s famous Ocean Drive: Larios and Allioli. At the opening of the Bongos location, Emilio Estefan said, “Gloria and I are pleased to bring the Cuban tradition and heritage to Disney World, where so many people from around the world will be able to enjoy it.”
The building’s triangular architectural design, by the renowned architect Bernardo Fort Brescia, was dominated by the massive seventy-five foot tall pineapple-shaped adobe structure. The pineapple leaves alone weighed 37,500 pounds.
Guests were able to walk into the pineapple (a traditional symbol of hospitality), visit the Pineapple bar in the center of the room, and eat in one of the seven, small individual coves that lined the outer rim of the giant structure.
The tables featured lighting illuminating the table from within. The second floor balcony also offered seating and a second bar.
Well-known interior designer Luciano Franchi supplied distinctive touches from a dazzling mosaic of hand-painted murals evoking old world Cuba of the 1940s and 1950s to conga drum-shaped bar stools.
The images of Cuba were made up of tiny glass mosaic tiles. Huge sculptures of palm trees with leaves that spread across the ceiling filled the restaurant. The ceiling coves featured fiber optic lighting that allowed them to change color.
In addition, there was a stage for nightly entertainment and the restaurant was known for its lively Latin rhythms and dancing.
The restaurant featured authentic Cuban cuisine including tostones rellenos, con camarones, enchilados o picadillio, pan con lechon and paella de mariscos. At the time of its opening, it was the only place in the world to feature Hatuey draft beer on tap.
An express window at the front offered Cuban sandwiches, pastries, soft drinks and Cuban specialty drinks. A shop inside the restaurant offered merchandise including t-shirts, sweatshirts, chocolate Cuban cigars and other items personally chosen by the Estefans.
“With the lease coming to full term this summer (2019), rather than renovating the current location, we’re transitioning our brand into Estefan Kitchen at Margaritaville Resort Orlando,” Estefan’s team said in a statement with many of the restaurant workers moving to the new location.
“They (Disney Springs) are growing in a different direction, and we are growing in a different direction. So we thought a fresh start is wanted,” said Gloria Estefan.
The site was demolished, and construction on a new restaurant was reportedly postponed because of COVID restrictions effecting building. It is now just a green space. It was supposed to be the site of a Beatrix healthy food location, but that was eventually cancelled.
It was later announced that the site would be Summer House on the Lake to open in 2023. The new location is a spin-off of the popular Chicago and North Bethesda, Maryland restaurant Summer House Santa Monica owned by the same company that owns Beatrix.
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Thanks, Jim! And come back next Friday for more from Jim Korkis!
In the meantime, check out his books, including his latest, Off to Never Land: 70 Years of Disney’s Peter Pan and Final Secret Stories of Walt Disney World!
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