O'Reilly 304

O'Reilly 304 takes its name from its address, a narrow doorway between Habana and Aguiar streets in Old Havana. Chef Jose Carlos Imperatori opened it as a paladar, one of Cuba's private restaurants, and the bar programme outgrew the kitchen; Cubania Travel charts how the family then took over number 303 across the street, the rooftop now known as El del Frente.

The contrarian bet is gin. In a city that runs on rum, the house pours gin and tonics in goblets crowned with herbs, fruit, and chili, and Tripadvisor reviewers have called them the best cocktails in Havana outright. InsightCuba profiled the room as a marker of how far the city's private food scene has stretched.

Who would hate it? Anyone after a quiet table. The room is small, loud, and full by nine.

The space is tight: a bar counter and a few tables below, a mezzanine kitchen above, art crammed on every wall. Reviewers on Tripadvisor describe squeezing past the blender station to reach the stairs. When the room fills, the overflow waits on the pavement or crosses the street to the sister rooftop.

Order the Habana Londres, the house gin and tonic built on Beefeater, or the spicy variant with chili, each about USD 8 and dressed like a centrepiece. The kitchen's ceviche and tacos, around USD 7 to 10, are the right ballast. Tripadvisor reviewers describe the elaborately garnished goblets as the best they drank in Cuba; the short rum list is fine but misses the house's point.

Early evening brings travelers tipped off by guidebooks; by 9pm the queue runs out the door and the Imperatori family's two addresses trade overflow across O'Reilly. The crowd skews young, international, and patient, because the goblets take time to dress.

What regulars say:

• A Tripadvisor review titled it the best gin and tonics in Havana and the line has agreed since.
• Cubania Travel credits the family with building a small culinary monopoly on one Old Havana street.
• InsightCuba's paladar profile flags the imagination of the kitchen as much as the bar.

Who it is for:

• Drinkers worn out on mojito rounds who want botanicals instead
• A first date that needs a centrepiece drink and shared plates
• Avoid if you want space and quiet; Dos Hermanos has both

The most convincing modern bar in Old Havana, and the rare tourist queue that pays off. Order the Habana Londres, eat the ceviche, then cross the street and finish on the sister rooftop.

Getting there: Calle O'Reilly 304, between Habana and Aguiar, a four block walk from the Plaza de Armas. The sister rooftop El del Frente faces it from number 303.

Timing: Open daily from around noon to midnight. Arrive before 8pm or expect to queue; the kitchen holds later than most paladares.

Cost: Gin and tonics about USD 8, plates USD 7 to 10. Bring cash; card terminals in Havana fail more often than they work.