Cui Cui: an American Bar with a Puerto Rican accent that celebrates classic cocktails in Old San Juan

What would an American Bar, the century-old bar concept that brought U.S. cocktail culture to Europe, look like in 21st-century Puerto Rico?

That was the question behind the concept of Cui Cui in Old San Juan, the new food and drink venture from Roberto Berdecía, Leslie Cofresí and Pablo Rodríguez, the co-owners of La Factoría, the San Juan bar that appeared on the World's 50 Best Bars list from 2015 to 2019 and is on the North America's 50 Best Bars.

The concept opened Dec. 26, employing 15 people. Its aim: to transform the cocktail experience in Puerto Rico once again.

The concept: The American Bar

American Bars spread through Europe and Latin America in the late 19th and early 20th centuries as bars dedicated to cocktails, a U.S. invention. They caught on especially in hotels during Prohibition, Cofresí explained in an interview with Platea.

The oldest and most storied is the American Bar at the Savoy Hotel in London, which opened in the 1890s and is said to be where author Ernest Hemingway ordered a Montgomery, a cocktail made with gin, dry vermouth and lemon peel. Among the other bars that inspired the Cui Cui concept are Boadas in Barcelona, with more than 90 years of history, and Harry's Bar in Paris, open since 1911.

"In recent years there has been a revival of these very classic places, updated for today. When we were creating Cui Cui, we wanted to ask: if a bar like that had survived in Puerto Rico, what would it look like now? This is what we imagined, and what we're putting in front of people to try. It's a bit of that classic-bar feel you get in big cities like New York or London," Cofresí said.

Cofresí explained that these bars were also known for their service. "The bartenders dressed a certain way; there was always an element of elegance to these places," he noted. "Everything is table service, everything follows a service etiquette," Berdecía said.

The typical white coat of the American Bar, in Cui Cui, became a white guayabera by Puerto Rican designer Yari Pérez, another local touch on the U.S. concept.

The name: Why Cui Cui?

🎶 Cui Cui, acompañar tus sentimiento'…

"Cui Cui is inspired in part by the Roberto Roena song. It's a kind of mocking laugh. It's a statement on our part. We've spent so many years at La Factoría, known as a high-volume party bar, but Roberto Berdecía and I actually come from working cocktails at a very high level, and this was an opportunity to remind people that we can do this level of cocktail work, beyond the party," Cofresí said.

The mixologist acknowledged that "it was hard to land on a name" and that they went through several versions before settling on one that is short, playful and references another fundamental element of Puerto Rican culture: music.

The experience

It's best to reserve a table in advance to secure your spot, since this is a small, intimate place where seating is required; it holds 35 to 40 guests.

"The atmosphere is designed to feel a bit refined, but comfortable at the same time. Our goal is to create an elegant setting for drinking cocktails, especially classic cocktails," Cofresí explained.

• The main room has the bar and several tables, low lighting, green walls and jazz music, with the occasional salsa or guaguancó. A second space holds more tables, followed by the kitchen.

• Two paintings by Puerto Rican artist Carlos Irizarry, in tribute to Picasso, hang in each of the rooms. And a work by painter and calligrapher Lorenzo Homar about the 1979 Pan American Games in San Juan is the first thing you see when you walk in.

Accessibility. Cui Cui is located where El Boquerón restaurant used to be, on the ground floor of Calle San Sebastián, across from Plaza San José. It does not have its own parking.

• The nearest paid parking is the Ballajá Parking Garage, below Plaza del Quinto Centenario.

The food at Cui Cui

The menu was designed by Luis Castillo, executive chef of Cui Cui and La Factoría. The dishes are a combination of what you would find at a French Bistro with a Puerto Rican touch and range from fresh oysters, tuna tartare and carpaccio to burgers, chicken empanada and steak & frites.

Castillo wanted to combine classic bar dishes with modern trends, incorporating the use of pickled ingredients that were so common at bars in the past. He drew inspiration from "many bar trends around the world" and said that "all of them (the dishes) are perfect for a good menu."

Among the more unusual ones are the Oyster Po'boys, a twist on the classic New Orleans Shrimp Po'boys. It is made with a brioche bun that Castillo bakes himself, fried oysters, Japanese cabbage, pickled cherry tomato and cornichon (French-style pickles).

Oysters

Served in 3, 6 or 12, the oysters come with an apple escabeche, mignonette perfume and a touch of local hot sauce.

Piquillo Relleno

Three piquillo peppers, a Spanish classic, stuffed with short ribs braised for four hours, gremolata and truffle-gratinéed cheese over mashed potatoes.

Nido de Atún

This is no ordinary tuna tartare: it adds the crunchy texture of a potato nest, the softness of a poached egg and a bed of ricotta whipped with orange that give it a special touch.

Deckle Carpaccio

Served with bonito mayonnaise, sourdough breadcrumbs, mustard seeds, pecorino, garlic chips and arugula.

Bizcocho de Zanahoria

Served with a cream cheese foam and vanilla ice cream, over caramelized walnuts.

Photos: Cindy Burgos Alvarado during a visit on Jan. 26, 2026.

The chef's favorite. The Steak & Frites "is my favorite," though the choice was a difficult one, Castillo admitted.

Desserts. They are made by pastry chef Paulette Vázquez, from the restaurant Lala, in a collaboration with Cui Cui. There are two desserts: "a bizcocho de zanahoria with a foam of cream cheese and a vanilla ice cream and some caramelized walnuts, it's very good," Castillo said.

• The other is a tiramisú with a galleta María made at Cui Cui. "It comes with a foam of mascarpone cheese. It's also very good," according to Castillo. It is served in a glass.

Prices. Cocktails range from $14 to $20, while food ranges from $16 to $54.

Service. All staff at Cui Cui wear a white guayabera and are ready to explain what goes into each cocktail and each dish. Chef Castillo comes out of the kitchen to give details about the origin of the oysters or the combinations on the menu.

The cocktails

The Puerto Rican cocktail par excellence. While Cui Cui offers a wide variety of original and classic cocktails, it wants to stand out for Puerto Rico's national drink: the piña colada. "We are committed to making the best piña coladas," Berdecía said.

"We wanted to create a version inspired by the classic piña colada. We make it using one of those old school blenders, like the ones from 1950s milkshake bars, with pebble ice and we use a coconut ice cream as the base instead of cream," Cofresí explained.

• It is served with Bacardí 8 (rum aged eight years or more), Artesano blanco, pineapple and coconut. The ice cream gives it that creamy touch without being cloying and, without question, it is a cocktail worth trying because it is not frozen, like other piña coladas.

PR Highball

"It's our version of what a whiskey highball would be, but Puerto Rican. Obviously, with Puerto Rican rum (Barrilito 3-star). We make a soda with arroz pega'o and matcha (tea)," Cofresí explained. It is a refreshing, light drink. The arroz pega'o flavor gives it an unexpected touch.

Periquito Pimm Pim

"Our version of a Pimm's Cup, a classic, refreshing London summer cocktail. Pimm's is a liqueur. We make the Pimm's, which is a fortified wine with red fruits, and the cocktail is inspired by what a spritz is," Cofresí said. It is effervescent and contains gin and coconut.

Apple Tini

"It's not the Apple Martini we know (from the early days of American Bars). We tried to reinterpret it so it's something crisp," Berdecía explained. Mixing vodka, apple and citrus, it is served with an apple caviar that you can taste before drinking or drop into the drink, a way of making it fun.

Martini 1888

It is a reinterpretation of one of the oldest martinis. It combines gin, vermouth and Booker's bitters, a balance between sweet and bitter.

Platea Favorite

Banana Daiquiri

Along with the piña colada, the Banana Daiquiri ranked at the top for Platea. Made with rum, banana and citrus, this daiquiri is fruity and refreshing without being cloying.

For the adventurous

Vesper

Among its martinis, Cui Cui offers James Bond's drink of choice: the Vesper. It is a martini that the iconic character first described in the novel Casino Royale (1953), and it combines gin, vodka and the aperitif wine.

Photos: Cindy Burgos Alvarado during a visit on Jan. 26, 2026.

How is Cui Cui different from La Factoría?

The key is in the style of service, with Cui Cui offering a more specialized and detailed concept, Berdecía described. "You go to Cui Cui on a date, to sit quietly; you go to Factoría to have a good time, to hang out," he summarized.

Cofresí explained: "They are two distinct spectrums of experience. La Factoría is a high-volume experience, a party, different settings, different rooms, but a lot of energy. And Cui Cui is designed to be the opposite. To be a place to relax, to drink slowly, to talk, to have a more elegant, more laid-back and more classic experience."

This content was translated with the assistance of Artificial Intelligence (AI).