Josephine’s Story:

“In 1949-50, I was a border in a convent school in Gravelbourg, Saskatchewan.  We were always hungry.  We had no treats except on Saturday, when we were allowed to buy a Cuban Lunch. The Nun in charge would sell them to us for 10c. 

Jospehine in 1954 after nursing graduation.

Liz Carriere’s Story:

Terry Williams’s Story:

-Southern Saskatchewan

 “Mum ; Can I have a dime?” “What do you want a dime for? Do you think dimes grow on trees sonny Jim? “ It was a name she reserved for me when she was joking around and I knew that dime would soon be burning a hole in my pocket. I was nearing in on my ninth birthday and going to make the best of my summer holidays.

“Well, I want to buy a Cuban Lunch and I already have 12 cents from taking back some empty bottles to the hotel , so I could get a small coke and a Cuban Lunch.” A little bit of whining and hopping from one foot to the other and she scuffled through her old beige purse and smiling she said “all right off you go . Mind you stay out of trouble and don’t forget your manners. Make sure you’re back for lunch. And what did I say about brushing that hair ?” It was a red mass of unruly curls and it actually hurt my head to brush it. “Maybe now I can get some work done” ,she was saying to herself , as I was heading out the door, hair still unbrushed slipping the brush into my back pocket as I went. CBC radio playing on top of the fridge. ….At the tone-the time will be— 10 a/m—beep -beep- beep. I slammed the screen door behind me and was off running down our hill to the road. Ours seemed to be the only hill in our small Saskatchewan village called Frontier. We lived right beside the C.P.R. tracks as my dad worked for the railways.

Down main street I pulled on the old wooden screen door with the metal angled- Drink Coca Cola- sign across the front of the door of the Country Club Cafe on main street.

The hinges protested and squealed the same as they had done for all the years that we had been living in this small prairie village. Hans ambled his way toward me , smiling ,from the back of their cafe as the door clanger still ringing when the door slammed shut and made it shake and wobble on its metal hanger. His name was Hans but to this 8 year old boy he was Mr. Radbruch . “Could I get a Cuban Lunch and a small coke please ?” He smiled, “ Do you want the coke for in here or to take out ?” To take out the coke cost 12 cents but you got the two cents back when you brought the bottle back. You could then use the two cents to buy some gum . What a great life. I shoved my 22 cents across the counter and he let me fish in the water filled coke cooler and grab a small coke. A damp towel sat on the counter to wipe off the bottle. He pushed the small chocolate wonder across to me.

The Cuban Lunch!

It was my favourite chocolate bar. I wanted to wait for just the right time and place to open it. It was inside a clear plastic wrapper that had Cuban Lunch in bold red letters across the front . You could see the contents of a square block of chocolate that was really thick and had peanuts molded into the chocolate. The bar sat in a red wafer like paper that had molded ribbed corners and the chocolate molded to match the paper. The chocolate was sweet but not too sweet. The wrapper crinkled as I carefully opened half of it ; holding the other half between my fingers. I bit into the treat and felt the taste hit my tongue, as I laid on my back , near the edge of the railroad tracks, looking up at the top of the huge silvery , Saskatchewan Wheat Pool grain elevator that seemed as high as the moon. Big puffy cummulous clouds that drifted by in the blue sky made the elevator appear to be tipping over. The aroma of waist high clover hung strong in the July heat . The chocolate melted in my mouth and washed the peanuts down my throat . Waves of wheat in the hot Saskatchewan breeze looked like the whole field was the ocean. moving lazily and changing course as the wind changed directions.

Grasshoppers clicking madly in the heat as they sprang and flew from one clover to the next .

The chirping persisted and woke me from my day dream. The grasshopper sound is the ring tone on my iPhone and I am brought back to 2018, as I reach to answer my phone still savouring the taste of the new and revived version of the Cuban Lunch Chocolate Bar.

Thanks to Crystal Westergard , for reviving the small chocolate treasure and all the candy shops, including The Candy Vault in Salmon Arm, that are carrying them, there are a lot of baby boomers able to relive some old memories of their past . Like time stood still . When life was so simple that every day was just an adventure to enjoy.

Yeah, this is sure stirring up some ghosts for me…

Tom White’s Story:

A Child of Canada Pacific Rail

We lived in Senlac, Saskatchewan (population 137) in a section house as my Dad was a Forman for the CPR.
Every Saturday evening a passenger train stopped for a short time and a Porter came to the back of the train with candies including Cuban Lunch, this boy’s favourite. They were 10 cents each which was my weekly allowance and I looked forward to Saturday night so that I could buy a Cuban Lunch.
The Cuban Lunch was the shape of a medium size muffin, open on top, in their special red paper which you still use.

Thank you for bringing back such wonderful memories!

The Polestarpost

Blog Post

The Cuban Lunch

-Taken with permission from the polestarpost blog post

This story is about my not-so-little brother. Although he is 4.5 years younger than I am, at 6’ 3”, he towers over the rest of my family and over me by almost a full foot. He is very strong and, I am told, has the stature of our great grandfather. As an adult, what I appreciate about him most is his strength of character and spirit, and can honestly say we make a formidable team when we align to take on life’s most difficult challenges.

The Cuban Lunch

 It was noteworthy for me to see those lovely rectangular bars of chocolate and Spanish peanuts because I hadn’t seen them in years and was instantly flooded with a memory from my childhood. When my brother and I were children, Cuban Lunches were an affordable chocolate bar, often found in bins around our local CO-OP grocery store and usually available for pennies each. Much to my surprise, the one I purchased for the photo in this post was a whopping $2.99!  Our grandma often kept a stash of select chocolate bars in her house, including the Cuban Lunch. She was Ukrainian, having emigrated with her family from Kiev when she was 5 years old. It was important to her to show the people around her how much she loved them by feeding them continuously. After visiting her, she would often gift us a chocolate bar to share for the way home.