Raúl Cardaba, the popular content creator from Madrid known as the "Frutero Tiktokero," succumbed to the Cuban mamey smoothie in a video that quickly sparked an avalanche of reactions from Cubans and Latin Americans on social media.
Cardaba, who runs the Frutería Vitaminas with her family on Aristóteles Street, 1, in Madrid, prepared the drink simply: she extracted the pulp from the mamey sapote, blended it with milk, and added a bit of ice, without incorporating sugar or any other ingredients.
The result left him speechless. "Not a drop of sugar, just a mamey, a little milk, and this might be the best smoothie in the world," he declared in surprise before the camera.
Before trying the final result, he had already given his verdict: "It might be the best shake I've ever had in my life."
At the end of the video, the fruit vendor from Madrid gave a score of 9.5 out of 10 and described the texture of the fruit as "like avocado, very creamy," something he did not expect to find when opening the mamey zapote to prepare the drink.
The video amassed thousands of "likes" and comments in just a few days, with hundreds of Cubans explaining the island's traditional recipe: mamey pulp, condensed milk, crushed ice, and, according to some, a pinch of salt or a splash of vanilla.
"A can of condensed milk, a cup of whole milk, ice, and a pinch of salt—blend it all until it’s creamy. That’s Cuba in a shake," wrote one of the most supported followers in the comments.
Another user summarized the origin of the drink: "The mamey shake originated in Cuba, where the blend of mamey sapote pulp with milk, ice, and sugar became a very popular tradition in its cuisine. Although the mamey tree is native to Mesoamerica and the Caribbean, its traditional preparation as a shake was cemented and popularized in the bodegas, cafés, and homes of the island."
Dominican users also claimed the drink as their own, calling it "batida de zapote," while Ecuadorians pointed out that the preparation is a shared heritage among several Latin American countries. One comment humorously summed it up: "Both sides are fighting over the origin of the fruit and who owns the recipe. Gentlemen, it belongs to everyone!"
Cardaba has been popularizing little-known tropical fruits in Spain since 2024 through his social media, where he has amassed hundreds of thousands of followers. His first major milestone was the mamoncillo — also known as anoncillo in Cuba — a fruit he claims to be the first to market in Spain, which skyrocketed his popularity. One of his videos about guanábana has surpassed four million views.
The Vitaminas Fruit Store had become a landmark for the Cuban community living in Madrid: in April 2025, a Cuban chef was thrilled to find mamey, guava, and sour sop there, fruits she hadn't tasted in five years.
At the end of the video, Cardaba made a proposal to his followers: "It makes me think that Cuba should have this smoothie because there might be lost smoothies around the world that we are missing out on, and it could be an incredible series," and he asked them to suggest in the comments which country he should represent with the next smoothie.
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