On any given day in Havana, Cuba, up to 35,000 people will line up to find relief from the glaring sun and tiring heat in the form of a few scoops from the Coppelia ice cream shop. Since opening on June 4, 1966, Coppelia has become a fixture of life in the city. It’s where locals go on their first date or take their mother on her birthday or meet up with friends (Stout). This social significance is due in part to the fact that ice cream from Coppelia is reliably cheap and delicious, although its flavor selection has dwindled recently (Scarpaci). In the establishment’s early years, Coppelia-brand ice cream was entered in international food fairs and sent abroad as gifts. Cuban President Fidel Castro sent three flavors to Ho Chi Minh city shortly after Coppelia opened (Stout).
The project began as a collaboration between Fidel and Celia Sánchez, who besides being Fidel’s long-time private secretary also wielded great power on the Central Committee of the Cuban Communist Party. In order to advance the ideals of the recent revolution like excellency and equality, Fidel conceived Coppelia as the world’s biggest ice cream shop serving the world’s best ice cream to the world’s greatest people. He found (or confiscated, depending on the story) recipes for 37 ice cream flavors and sent technicians to Canada to learn how to produce them. The shop continued to invent flavors until it reached about sixty in 1980 (Stout). Coppelia remains one of the largest ice cream shops in the world with a capacity of 1,000 guests (Elena).
Coppelia was an opportunity to reinforce Cuban identity in addition to immortalizing an exciting moment in the nation's post-revolutionary history. The striking design incorporates ideals of the revolution while referencing other parts of Cuba's history like its colonial era and recurring periods of American influence.
Sánchez enlisted architect Mario Girona for the project, who designed and managed the construction of Coppelia along with architects Rita María Grau and Candelario Ajuria (De Las Cuevas). This was not Girona’s only experience with ice cream-related design, as he also designed a Coppelia outpost in Santa Clara and a boutique ice cream shop for Expo 67 in Montreal (Cárdenas).
The city block where Coppelia is located was originally the sight of Hospital Reina Mercedes (De Las Cuevas). In the years since the hospital was demolished, the park deteriorated into a low-brow beer garden. Girona described it as “a problem spot on an important artery.” Cuban leadership wanted to return the block to a respectable state and hoped a refurbishment could be completed in time for an international conference happening in the Yara Theater located across the street from the park. The Yara was considered the city’s best piece of modern architecture at the time. Also, the Russian delegation would be staying at the Hotel Havana Libre during the conference, which is diagonally across from the site. Fidel Castro and his colleagues thought an impressive piece of modern architecture surrounded by a lush park would be a welcome addition to the neighborhood (Stout).
Many aspects of the structure's design reflect traditional Cuban architecture, especially those aspects that reference climate. As an emerging Communist nation, Coppelia can also be appreciated in the context of limited materials and resources. At the time of Coppelia's construction, Cuba was struggling with the recently implemented U.S. embargo. Girona proudly stated, "Everything [in the building] was from Cuba" (Stout). This condition was likely a result of economic circumstances as much as national pride.
Despite being given a short time frame, Girona developed a design suitable for an ice cream emporium that is both playful and iconic. As an informal town square, Coppelia and the park that surrounds it were designed to place importance on public rather than private or religious interaction. It has become a place where people of all ages, ethnicities, and social statuses can come together to enjoy a universally-pleasing frozen treat (Scarpaci).
Bibliography
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