Is National Cuban Sandwich Day a Hoax?
Written by Ludwin Herrera
If you’ve been surfing the web (who hasn't?), you’ve probably noticed that there is a national day in honor of many things. For example, there is a day dedicated to dogs, man’s best friend. It's okay if you don't like dogs, because there’s also a national day in honor of our feline companions. There are actually many international days as well. International Women's Day on March 8th is yet another instance, but I digress. Let’s get back to our national days. Many of these national days are surely created for a good cause; to give us a moment to stop and consider, "Yeah, I like dogs. Wagging their tails, delighted to see us when we return home." There are also national days for food, but there is one in particular that was born out of a hoax.
Although there is nothing wrong with the idea of giving that delectable sandwich its own day, the fake day is referred to as National Cuban Sandwich Day. I personally enjoy the Cuban sandwich, which is a native of Tampa and is made with ham, roasted pork, pickles, and mustard on Cuban bread. The bread is soft and toasted lightly, and it makes my mouth water as I write this.
Although there is nothing wrong with the idea of giving that delectable sandwich its own day, the fake day is referred to as National Cuban Sandwich Day. I personally enjoy the Cuban sandwich, which is a native of Tampa and is made with ham, roasted pork, pickles, and mustard on Cuban bread. The bread is soft and toasted lightly, and it makes my mouth water as I write this.
Christopher Spata, a journalist for the Tampa Bay Times who specializes in culture, is the man behind National Cuban Sandwich Day. His bio on the Tampa Bay Times website states that he likes pursuing "stories about the local culture" and "people pursuing unusual goals." In 2016, he noticed that on social media there was always a national food day and thought, "Well, why don’t I make one up and see if it will take off?" So, he used the fake name, S. G. Spata, and sent fictitious press releases to food writers and restaurants around the country.
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Even a Facebook page for the delicious sandwich was started by him. Even though it was already National Sponge Cake Day, he decided to hold the event on August 23. He said that he considered sponge cake to be "a food of less importance." Much to his astonishment, it spread like a wildfire and soon took on a life of its own. The internet ran with it, but his editor told him he had to come clean and let people know it was just a hoax. Now for the hard part of a hoax: telling the truth. He went ahead and wrote back to the recipients of the original fake press releases, explaining what he had done. He expected angry responses and ridicule, but much to his surprise, people were actually not bothered by it. They liked the idea so much that the restaurants and food writers decided to go ahead and make August 23rd National Cuban Sandwich Day. This demonstrates that in today’s world of electronic media, a person can use both traditional media and social media to create a new national day. If you look on Facebook today, there are a few other groups that recognize National Cuban Sandwich Day. The group website that Spata helped create details the organizations that influenced it and the origins of the sandwich. If you want to learn more about National Cuban Sandwich Day, you can visit the Days of the Year website at: www.daysoftheyear.com. Or, you can just click on the following link: National Cuban Sandwich Day (August 23rd) – Days Of The Year
In light of this, August 23rd has been designated as Buttered Corn Day, Hug Your Sweetheart Day, Internaut Day, National Cheap Flight Day, National Ride the Wind Day, National Sponge Cake Day, and Valentino Day as of 2016. Of course, we can’t forget National Cuban Sandwich Day either. Although it was born out of a hoax, it has helped many discover this delicious sandwich, and if you haven’t already, you will after reading this. So if you’re wondering what to eat, go out and buy a Cuban sandwich; after all, it also has its own national day.