Artemisa, Cuba - Each bell sounds according to the metal it is made of. Maybe that's why La Campana China, the popular restaurant in Bauta , is once again attracting so many customers in its new stage . Because it is fused with will. Its varied menu of 45 dishes, taste, good service and really affordable prices, place it at the forefront of a competition that often lead the so-called "paladares".

They do not offer only pork and chicken, like many others, but also shrimp, beef, rice, broths and pasta, in a wide range of proposals. It is difficult to choose in the menu , sometimes between delicacies such as Chop Suey, Cordon Bleu or Tip Pan.

According to the famous chef Gastón Acurio, who has opened 34 restaurants dedicated to different specialties of Peruvian food, in 11 countries around the world, "the sad poet writes poems and makes you cry. The sad painter paints pictures and gets you excited. The sad musician composes songs and makes you sing. The sad cook ... he is forbidden to cook. "

The cook must live happily from his creations, to know what he will achieve when he mixes each ingredient. Ariel Domínguez, the administrator of La Campana China, took the services of Marvel Borges, chef of provincial reference, who precisely the day of our visit showed his skills in a culinary event.

"We surpassed the offer of pork steak, ropa vieja , chicken and the traditional fried rice. We have managed to sustain a varied menu. We received shrimp in coordination with the fishing entity of Batabanó, and we relied heavily on the Urban Farm of Caimito and Acopio Enterprise in Bauta, for seasonings, vegetables and meats, "explains Domínguez.

"Day by day we seek to approach excellence. Even the province is planning a buffet table proposal, and they plan to locate it here. We also have plans: we want to have treseros, as well as place fans and marble benches in the lobby.

"The private restaurants had become the thermometer of gastronomy in Bauta, as in other places. But I believe that La Campana China recovered that condition in our municipality. "

They survived a kitchen fire, enough to leave them without offering service for a month, and then resurfaced from the ashes like a Phoenix bird . "The kitchen and living room were restored, we made the decorative arrangements, we recovered the bar and this week the air conditioning of our pizzeria will be ready".

Arturo Govín and Rodnel Rodríguez, members of the Association of Bartenders of Cuba, are responsible for the cocktail bar, another of the attractions of the restaurant.

Of course, the director emphasizes the role of the chef in the training of the staff, to the point that the day of the visit his absence was not too noticeable. The ones preparing bittersweet sauces and appetizing meats has one privilege : to match their passion and their profession, as artists able of working the senses of taste, smell, sight ...

In that establishment, they talk through their dishes, create emotions, sell happiness at unusual prices to the current supply and demand. They are not exaggerations: they charge a Hawaiian or mixed pizza the size of so called ¨family pizza¨, at half the price of the other particular restaurants.

This is confirmed by a family from Guanajay who came to celebrate the 27th birthday of Dailén Rodríguez. They praised the quietness of the place and the preparation of the dishes. "Keep it that way," added Yunisleidis Méndez, from Bauta. They cook very well. The hygiene of the place and the attention stand out. The waitresses are very good. "

Jessica Ferreiro attracted each client. She was armed with a natural smile, kindness, disposition. It would have been enough for him. When it served the pork, the special grilled chicken, the Uruguayan steak or the shrimp cocktail, success was guaranteed.

Apparently, the Chinese writer Lin Yutang had reason enough to say that "our lives are not in the hands of the gods, but our chefs."

TRANSLATION BY LMMS