Mojito Near Disney Springs: Cuba's Rum Classics

For a mojito near Disney Springs, head to Sofrito Latin Cafe on Palm Parkway in Orlando, where it comes frozen or on the rocks. It's five minutes from Disney Springs, and the Mojito shares its menu section with two other drinks marked (Cuba): the Cuba Libre and a frozen Daiquiri. All three are rum drinks served only to guests 21 and over.

Key Takeaways

Sofrito Latin Cafe, five minutes from Disney Springs, pours three rum cocktails marked (Cuba): the Mojito, the Cuba Libre and the Daiquiri.

Sofrito Latin Cafe's Cocktails menu section lists three drinks marked (Cuba): the Mojito, the Cuba Libre and the Daiquiri, all for guests 21 and over.
The Mojito's menu line names silver rum, fresh mint, lime and soda water, offered frozen or on the rocks, and it prints no sugar or measurements.
The International Bartenders Association's classic mojito uses white Cuban rum, lime juice, mint, white cane sugar and soda water, built over ice.
The Cuba Libre is printed as silver rum, coke and lime over ice, and the Daiquiri as silver rum with a flavored puree, served frozen, with no fruit named.
Wikipedia describes the classic daiquiri as rum, lime and sugar, shaken and served up, while the Daiquiri at Sofrito Latin Cafe follows the later frozen puree style.

Three Cuban Rum Classics on the Drink Menu

Three of the cocktails Sofrito Latin Cafe pours carry a (Cuba) mark on the drink menu: the Mojito, the Cuba Libre and the Daiquiri. All three have the Alcohol tag, and guests must be 21 and over to order any of them. Each line names silver rum as the spirit, and none of them names a rum brand. You'll find them in the Cocktails section of the Sofrito Latin Cafe drink menu, listed next to cocktails marked for other countries.

The Cuban Mojito as Printed, Beside the Classic Recipe

Sofrito Latin Cafe's Mojito menu line names silver rum, fresh mint, lime and soda water, and it offers the drink frozen or on the rocks. The Mojito reads, word for word: "Silver rum, fresh mint, lime, & soda water. Frozen or on the rocks (Cuba)". That's the whole printed description, with no sugar and no measurements listed.

Two references set out the classic version. Wikipedia's mojito entry calls the drink a traditional Cuban punch that often uses five ingredients: white rum, sugar (traditionally sugar cane juice), lime juice, soda water and mint. It names Havana as the usual birthplace, says the exact origin is debated, and offers two possible roots for the name: mojo, a Cuban seasoning, and mojadito, Spanish for "lightly wet."

The International Bartenders Association (IBA) spells out the classic mojito in measured terms: 45 ml of white Cuban rum, 20 ml of fresh lime juice, 6 mint sprigs and 2 teaspoons of white cane sugar, topped with soda water. It's mixed and built over ice, then garnished with mint and a slice of lime. Those are the association's specs, and the menu at Sofrito Latin Cafe doesn't print any amounts.

Detail	IBA classic	Menu line
Rum	White Cuban rum	Silver rum
Citrus	Fresh lime juice	Lime
Mint	Mint sprigs	Fresh mint
Sugar	White cane sugar	Not printed
Soda	Soda water	Soda water
Ice	Built over ice	Frozen or on the rocks
Amounts	Listed	Not printed

The biggest practical difference is the ice. The IBA builds the drink over ice, which matches the on the rocks option most closely. The frozen option is the one the cited recipe doesn't describe. Sugar is the other open point: it isn't in the printed line, and the menu doesn't say either way how sweet the drink is. Ask when you order if that matters to you.

The drink's history is less settled than its recipe. In The Oxford Companion to Spirits and Cocktails, Jeff Berry calls the mojito a Cuban invention of the early twentieth century. The first published recipe appears as Mojo de Ron in Juan A. Lasa's 1929 Libro de Cocktail, made with rum, lime juice, sugar, cracked ice, seltzer and mint. The name Mojito turns up in print in 1931, in the drinks booklet from Sloppy Joe's bar in Havana.

Older stories exist, but they're harder to prove. Cuban folklore traces the drink to a 1586 mix called El Draque, made with mint, sugar, lime and aguardiente, and Berry writes that nothing in the historical record supports it. A drink called the Draquecito is attested in the middle of the nineteenth century. The firm paper trail for the mojito itself starts in 1929, and anything earlier is still debated.

Cuba Libre and the Frozen Daiquiri, as Printed

Sofrito Latin Cafe's Cuba Libre is silver rum, coke and lime over ice, and its Daiquiri is silver rum with a flavored puree, served frozen. The Cuba Libre reads exactly: "Silver rum, coke, lime. Over ice (Cuba)". The menu prints the word "coke" and doesn't name a cola brand.

Wikipedia's rum and Coke entry describes the Cuba Libre as a highball of cola, rum and, in many recipes, lime juice on ice. The name means "Free Cuba." The entry says the cocktail came from Cuba in the early 1900s, though its exact origins aren't certain, and that it caught on after bottled Coca-Cola was first imported into Cuba around 1900. A drink called a Cuba Libre was known in 1898, but that earlier mix was water and brown sugar, from before Coke reached the island. Some sources treat lime as the detail that separates a Cuba Libre from a plain rum and Coke. Lime is traditionally included and often left out, and the line at Sofrito Latin Cafe prints it.

The Daiquiri reads: "Silver rum, flavored puree. Frozen (Cuba)". No fruit or flavor is named in that line.

The classic drink looks quite different. According to Wikipedia's daiquiri entry, its main ingredients are rum, citrus juice (typically lime) and sugar or another sweetener. Historians widely credit Jennings Cox, an American mining engineer who was in Cuba around the Spanish-American War of 1898. The drink takes its name from Daiquirí, a beach and an iron mine near Santiago de Cuba, and it was later refined in Havana. The classic version is shaken and served up, without ice in the glass. Frozen daiquiris came later as a blender or puree style, often fruit flavored.

That puts the Daiquiri at Sofrito Latin Cafe in the later frozen style. If you want the classic shaken sour served up, the printed Daiquiri line doesn't describe one.

A Cuban Cocktail Near Disney Springs

Sofrito Latin Cafe is on Palm Parkway in Orlando, five minutes from Disney Springs, and serves its Cuban rum cocktails to guests 21 and over. That makes it an easy stop for Cuban cocktails in Orlando if you're staying in the hotels around Palm Parkway. Plan a designated driver or a ride back to your hotel if you're drinking.

If you're staying for a meal, start with our guide to Cuban lunch and dinner near Disney Springs. For anyone under 21 or skipping alcohol, here's what to know about Cuban coffee.

The Short Version

Sofrito Latin Cafe, five minutes from Disney Springs, pours three rum cocktails marked (Cuba): a Mojito, a Cuba Libre and a frozen Daiquiri. The Mojito comes frozen or on the rocks, and all three are for guests 21 and over.

FAQ

Sofrito Latin Cafe pours a mojito five minutes from Disney Springs, on Palm Parkway in Orlando, for guests 21 and over.

Can I get the mojito frozen or on the rocks?

You can have it either way. The Mojito's menu line ends with "Frozen or on the rocks (Cuba)", so you choose the style when you order. On the rocks is the closer match to the International Bartenders Association classic, which is built over ice. The frozen version is a style that classic recipe doesn't describe, and either way it's for guests 21 and over.

What flavor is the daiquiri?

The printed line calls it "flavored puree" and doesn't name a fruit. The full Daiquiri line reads "Silver rum, flavored puree. Frozen (Cuba)", which gives the spirit, the puree and the frozen serving style without saying what the flavor is. Like the other two Cuban rum cocktails, it carries the Alcohol tag and is for guests 21 and over.

Does the Cuba Libre include lime?

Yes, the Cuba Libre at Sofrito Latin Cafe lists lime. Its printed line reads "Silver rum, coke, lime. Over ice (Cuba)". Wikipedia's rum and Coke entry says lime is traditionally included and often left out, and some sources treat it as the detail that separates a Cuba Libre from a plain rum and Coke. On this menu, lime is part of the printed description.

Are there other cocktails on the drink menu?

Yes, the Cocktails menu section holds drinks from other countries too. The Mojito, the Cuba Libre and the Daiquiri are the only three there with the (Cuba) mark, and each one is for guests 21 and over. The same section also lists a Caipirinha marked (Brazil), a Piña Colada marked (Puerto Rico), and a Pisco Sour and a Chilcano, both marked (Peru).

Visit Sofrito Latin Cafe on Palm Parkway

Sofrito Latin Cafe's address, phone and hours are below, for anyone heading over from Disney Springs or a hotel on Palm Parkway.

Sofrito Latin Cafe

8607 Palm Pkwy, Orlando, FL 32836

(407) 778-4205

Hours: 8am to 9pm Sun to Thu, 8am to 10pm Fri to Sat

References

"Mojito," Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mojito
"Mojito," International Bartenders Association. https://iba-world.com/iba-cocktail/mojito/
"Mojito," entry by Jeff Berry, The Oxford Companion to Spirits and Cocktails, Oxford University Press. The Oxford Companion to Spirits and Cocktails
"Rum and Coke," Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rum_and_Coke
"Daiquiri," Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daiquiri