The dessert was even better, an eggy sponge with plump, boozy cherries, a lemon curd-filled sugar cigar and vanilla ice-cream.
GAESA grew to run a domestic air service (using old Soviet transport planes!), tourist attractions (swim with dolphins!) and of course the important sugar, cigars and tourist industries.
With New Yorkers potentially on the line for 137 new or increased taxes and fees touching all manner of vices, diversions and services — including beer, wine, cigars, sugared drinks, music downloads, fishing licenses and haircuts — it may be hard to find anybody unaffected by the governor's sweeping proposals.
Sugar refining, cigar making, meat processing, ceramic making, and shoe and furniture making are centred in the city, which lies on the country's Central Highway and is served by railroads and airlines.
Pairing it with the peaty, heavy, and extremely sweet Quarter Cask adds a little sugar to the cigar and provides an extra smoky punch.
The cigar, sugar, and oil industries also were strong in the city.
Major industries include tobacco blending and cigar making, sugar refining, and mat weaving; lumber, furniture, leather products, clothing, and beverages are also produced; antimony is mined in the vicinity.
With his signature hat and cigar Bert Sugar, boxing historian, and Lou di Bella, a boxing promoter sat at a nearby table as Russell, Leo, and Wahlberg greeted guests.
"We have sugar, we have cigars, but none of them earn as much as tourism," said Jorge Rodríguez, a 30-year-old medical technician.
Known for its world-famous cigars, sugar sand beaches and a particular missile crisis, Cuba captured the world's attention and recently has been fodder for a lot of conversation.
The city has numerous and varied industries, including sugar refineries, dairies, sawmills, and cigar and cigarette factories.
