Aahana Swrup
The espionage and assassination-heavy narrative of ‘Killing Eve’ travels far and wide through its characters, who often undertake missions— for the MI6, the Twelve’s elusive crime organization, or otherwise— that take them from one foreign country to another. In Season 4’s fourth episode, ‘It’s Agony and I’m Ravenous,’ an unlikely duo—Carolyn Martens and Villanelle— finds themselves in Havana, adding another country to the show’s international relevance. Therefore, as the two embark on a covert outing that takes them to the specular dining halls of the El Hombre De Dos Caras restaurant, intrigue is bound to arise regarding the location’s relation to reality.
El Hombre De Dos Caras: Fictional Restaurant, Real Location
Villanelle and Carolyn find themselves visiting Havana’s local classy restaurant, El Hombre De Dos Caras, after extracting information from a captive regarding the whereabouts of a long-investigated member of the Twelve organization. Therefore, the restaurant retains a natural link to the overarching plot within the show, receiving the designation of an establishment frequented by a high-level criminal. The restaurant itself— as presented in the show within Cuban borders— does not exist. Nevertheless, Sessions Arts Club in Clerkenwell, London— the filming location for the on-screen Cuban restaurant— offers an identical setting for fans to explore.
Situated on a Clerkenwell townhouse’s top floor, Sessions Arts Club, under the expert guidance of Chef Florence Knight, surprisingly provides a perfect stand-in for a Cuban background. The restaurant sports a charming aesthetic of pastels and strategic distressing, which presents the ideal backdrop for Villanelle and Carolyn’s laid-back dispositions. Havana catches both characters in an unprecedented moment, with Villanelle arriving at Carolyn’s doorsteps to murder her but somehow ending up running an operation with the former MI6 agent. Consequently, fans witness an uncommon scene as the two women—who barely exchanged words before despite their primary roles in the show— engage in lively conversation and a bonding game of truth and dare.
As the situation unfolds in the middle of a high-stakes operation, Sessions Arts Club’s elegant yet effortless vibe infuses its on-screen counterpart, El Hombre De Dos Caras, with the perfect amount of danger and fun. As such, while the latter restaurant remains confined to the show’s fictional narrative, Clerkenwell’s celebrated establishment grounds the location by bestowing a sense of cohesive realism upon it.
Furthermore, the fictional restaurant’s unique name, “El Hombre De Dos Caras,” which translates to The Two-Faced Man in English, hints at the menacingly deceiving nature of the two women who occupy the narrative center stage within the restaurant’s walls. Whether the same is an intentional detail or not— it adds a level of significance to the restaurant, enhancing its short-lived relevance to the plot. Ultimately, the Cuban restaurant remains fictional but shares its visual location with London’s real-life Sessions Arts Club.
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