Welcome to the inaugural Cigar Lounge Spotlight at The Manual, where every Friday I’ll aim to bring you some of the best cigar lounges in the country. Yours truly travels a lot for a living, and during that time, I’ve ensconced myself in local cigar lounges in the cities I visit when the opportunity arises. While many of my dispatches here will include cigar lounges I’ve visited during my time as a longtime sportswriter — and in my current capacity as a travel and lifestyle writer — this space will also feature lounges I’d love to visit one day, perhaps on my next trip.
Such is the case with The Flama Cabana at Havana Cabana Key West Hotel in Key West, Florida. There’s no better way to kick off this series than with a cigar lounge in the Southernmost Point of the United States, a mere 90 miles from cigar heaven, Cuba.
Havana Cabana Key West is among hotels around the world jumping on a recent trend, catering to cigar lovers by creating unforgettable experiences and spaces that will draw you back for more. The hotel boasts that what makes the experience particularly compelling for travelers is how Flama Cabana’s cigar program fits into Havana Cabana’s larger sense of place. And that is, creating an evening that feels distinctly transportive without ever leaving Key West. In many ways, it’s a taste of Cuba without the passport stamp; humidity be dammed.
For starters, Flama Cabana is a waterfront lounge, with an expansive balcony offering pristine views. The balcony anchors the indoor-outdoor bar. I’m told you can smoke on the balcony and on the bar side next to the balcony.
Flama Cabana is “designed to evoke the seductive charm of mid-century Havana,” where you can enjoy “Gulf views and sunset hours with live Cuban music, Cuban-inspired tapas, rum-forward cocktails, and a fully stocked humidor.”
Cigar menu, anyone?
Ah, the humidor.
Flama Cabana’s cigar program is rooted in Key West’s long-standing cigar heritage. I visited Key West a few years ago for a wedding, and it pains me that I missed my chance to visit Flama Cabana. But everywhere I walked and frequented, the rich, earthy aromas filled the air, prompting yours truly to pull out his travel cigar humidor and light up a stogie.
Flama Cabana’s humidor features a range of blends, sizes, and flavor profiles, including cigars from locally owned Rodriguez Cigars, which is the oldest cigar company in Key West, with deep roots in Cuba.
Thanks to Rodriguez Cigars, Flama Cabana can offer a cigar menu. That menu includes:
Reserva Privada: A mild-to-medium bodied cigar with a four-year-aged Ecuadorian Connecticut wrapper, Nicaraguan binder and filler, and a smooth, creamy profile with notes of nuttiness and soft nougat.
Series 84: A medium-bodied option for guests who want more depth.
Series 84 Maduro: A medium-to-full-bodied selection for guests who want a richer experience, with darker, more pronounced flavors.
Annie Cerbone, the General Manager at Havana Cabana Key West Hotel, has an easy sell if you’re thinking about making the trek.
“Ninety miles from Cuba, Havana Cabana Key West is about as close as you can get to Havana without leaving the country. That proximity sets the scene — from hand-rolled cigars and rum-forward cocktails to mojitos, live music, and sultry evenings beneath the palms,” Cerbone tells The Manual. “Smoking a cigar here is about settling into the moment: taking in the waterfront, lingering over a drink, and letting the laid-back rhythm of Key West take over. It’s a distinctly Key West take on cigar culture, shaped by the island’s deep connection to its neighbor across the Straits.”
Personally, I love a bar or restaurant that capitalizes on its location. Flama Cabana does exactly that with its Sunset Hour menu that runs from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. EST.
For someone who grew up in downtown Los Angeles’ concrete jungle, there’s something innately romantic about warm, leafy, nonchalant Key West. For me, it’s the proximity to Cuba, which I’ve been fortunate enough to have visited not once but twice. Key West is also where the legendary writer Ernest Hemingway lived for nearly a decade, if good literature is your thing. Hemingway ferried there by boat from Havana in the late 1920s. There are countless reasons to fly into Miami and make the picturesque drive down to Key West.
Flama Cabana should be one of them.
