Cubans Criticize Quality and Prices at Sancti Spíritus Coppelia

The Coppelia ice cream parlor in Sancti Spíritus reopened on June 3 after years of near-total inactivity. However, customers who visited with high hopes were met with disappointingly small portions, icy ice cream, and prices many consider exorbitant given the quality received.

"I felt like I wasted 250 pesos," one customer lamented to the news outlet 14ymedio after sampling two scoops of vanilla ice cream. The portions, he described, were barely "two large spoonfuls," and the ice cream was so laden with ice crystals that its flavor vanished before he left the establishment.

The reopening was made possible by a partnership between a local small business and the Base Complex Mar y Cielo, which is under the provincial Gastronomy department. The official press hailed the return "in celebration of Army General Raúl Castro's 95th birthday," portraying it as "a new chapter" for the iconic ice cream shop, which was originally opened in 1986 during the July 26 celebrations in the province.

The menu lists mango, strawberry, vanilla, and vanilla flavors priced at 125 pesos each, though chocolate—also on the menu—was unavailable at the time of the visit. A minimum order of two scoops without any toppings costs 250 pesos. Meanwhile, a four-liter tub is priced at 5,500 pesos, and a half-liter bottle of water costs 240 pesos.

High Prices and Poor Quality

The stark contrast with the previous reopening in December 2023 is notable: back then, each scoop was priced at 20 pesos, and the ice cream was supplied by the Río Zaza Dairy Products Company. Currently, the ice cream comes from a private small business based in Ciego de Ávila, whose name has not been disclosed by the official press.

"For someone who's not even a big fan of ice cream, it was too little. Each scoop was roughly the size of a large spoon. It's excessively expensive for that portion size," commented another customer.

Issues Beyond Pricing

The crystallized texture of the ice cream suggests issues with the cold chain, possibly during production, storage, or transport from Ciego de Ávila. "It wasn't melted, but it had clearly lost its chill at some point. It tasted like vanilla, but with so many lumps that it was far from creamy," a customer reported. The new management has installed solar panels and batteries to maintain refrigeration during the province's frequent power outages, yet the texture indicates the problem occurs before the ice cream reaches the parlor.

The history of the Sancti Spíritus Coppelia is emblematic of the island's structural crisis: in 2017, the ice cream would arrive melted even before an expensive renovation of the premises; by 2023, water shortages and dairy industry limitations reduced the supply to quantities sufficient for just five days of sales each month.

Additional shortcomings marred the experience: portions were served in fragile earthenware bowls that "felt like they might break with a mere touch," a visitor quipped. In the restroom, lacking toilet paper, a used notebook was placed atop the toilet tank, and two uncovered electrical boxes were exposed on the walls. Furthermore, the absence of network coverage prevented payments via transfer, forcing customers to use cash.

Operating from Tuesday to Sunday between ten in the morning and ten at night with only a single room accommodating about 70 patrons, the venue was nearly empty mid-morning. "I was served quickly, and the place was quiet. But I left without even remembering the taste of the vanilla. The only thing I remembered was the 250 pesos," one visitor summed up.