15 JANUARY 22-28, 2026 westword.com WESTWORD | CONTENTS | LETTERS | NIGHT+DAY | CULTURE | CAFE | MUSIC | stretch are not just businesses serving food. They are community hubs where expats from around the globe gather to share a small connection to home, or where their fi rst-generation offspring can experience a fl eeting glimpse of their heritage. Food, in this context, becomes something more than just a meal. It’s a communion. As an outsider, I’m humbled to have had the opportunity to serve witness. Kids hanging out late at Thank Sool Pocha, tilting back beers and spinning little wooden skewers of beef over a grill built into the table, reminiscent of Korean night market culture. A man rolling out his prayer rug in the corner of Maandeeq Restaurant & Cafe. The roast- ing coffee beans of a buna ceremony at Nile Ethiopian setting off the fi re alarm every time they’re brought out. The server’s nonchalant reaction to a three-foot grease fi re fl are-up at Seoul Korean BBQ & Hot Pot. Learning how tofu is made at Tofu Story. The Lesson Before I started the Eat Up Havana series, I played it pretty safe with my restaurant choices. Like most people, I’d look for rec- ommendations from infl uencers and read reviews from other writers, and if I peeked into a place that was empty, I’d skip it entirely. We all do this because we don’t want to be disappointed. We don’t want to waste our money or our time. But I realize now that doing this is playing it just as safe as those people do at Olive Gar- den. It’s just another cocoon of familiarity, slowly eroding our sense of adventure and shrinking our sphere of attention to what the algorithm serves up. It’s being told where to go or seeking validation of what we already think. It’s fl attening culture. Now, at the end of this experience, I’ve gained a new appreciation for not only tak- ing the risk in visiting the outlier restaurants unseen or overlooked by the herd, but in seeking these places out. Using that little voice of doubt in my head as not a warning, but an encouragement to create an oppor- tunity to be pleasantly surprised. If there’s any takeaway to be had from the Eat Up Havana experience, it’s not a list of recommended restaurants or dishes. It’s a call to action to take the journey. All that’s required is the courage to open an unfamiliar door and walk into an unfamil- iar room serving unfamiliar food, in some cases using an unfamiliar language in a space fi lled with people who may not look like you. Yes, you will be disappointed at times. Perhaps embarrassed. Defi nitely a little ner- vous. But that’s the price of making your own discoveries, carving out your own path, and taking back control of your own discoveries. Because if there’s one thing I’ve learned after these weekly excursions down Havana Street, it’s that any door has the potential to lead to a transcendent experience that will stick with you forever. All you have to do is have the will to open it. If not, well…there’s always Olive Garden. Email the author at [email protected]. Needless to say, Korean BBQ is best enjoyed with a group! ANTONY BRUNO
