Up in smoke on Calle Ocho
Cutting through the air like a hot knife through butter, the smoldering cigars of Little Havana provide the aromatic essence of Cuba’s splendor as well as its plight. It’s an unmistakable redolence. As the infamous Marxist revolutionary Che Guevara once said, “A smoke in times of rest is a great companion to the solitary soldier.” Along every block of the perpetually bustling Calle Ocho, Cuban Americans, squeezed out of their native country by an oppressive government, enjoy their stogies full of flavor and a slow-burning sorrow.
Cuba Tobacco Cigar Co. is run by one of the oldest cigar manufacturing families in Cuba. The Bello family’s roots in tobacco can be traced back to the 19th century, when Don Bello, of the Canary Islands, left for Cuba in search of a better growing climate. In 1896, Bello established his first cigar factory, Tabacalera Las Villas. After Fidel Castro assumed power in Cuba in 1959, he demanded the surrender of all cigar factories to the government, or else the owners would be declared traitors to the revolution. Stripped of their business, the Bellos eventually relocated to Miami and eventually set up shop on 8th Street.
Info
Address 1528 SW 8th Street, Miami, FL 33135, +1 305.649.2717, www.cubatobaccocigarco.com | Hours Daily 10am–6pm| Tip Complement your cigar with a glass of whiskey from the historic Ball & Chain lounge (1513 SW 8th St) across the street.
From the street, the establishment appears as just another storefront catering to its Spanish-speaking clientele. Inside, the smell of fresh tobacco is almost blinding. The piquant perfume gives vibrancy to the walls stacked with cigar boxes from floor to ceiling. The Bello family makes and sells their hand-rolled cigars here, ranging in size from the shorter Belicoso to the longer Esplendido.
Up front, regulars swap stories with the shopkeeper. In the back, rows of tabacaleras (rollers), seated at their respective cubicles, quietly wrap cigars. For tourists, the thrill of smoking a cigar rolled right in front of them is a novelty never to be forgotten. For the natives of Little Havana, it’s both a comforting and bitter reminder of the past.
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