In a rollicking, enthusiastic, and nuanced tribute to Puerto Rican culture, Bad Bunny’s historic Super Bowl halftime show was an affirmation of joy in turbulent times. The visually stunning history lesson-meets-redefinition of American patriotism brought Puerto Rico to California’s Levi’s Stadium, and highlighted an iconic New Yorker in the process.
Those in the know likely recognized the smiling blonde in blue who handed Benito a shot from a brown storefront as he sang “NUEVAYoL,” from his recent Grammy-winning “Album of the Year” Debi Tirar Mas Fotos. For those who aren’t, though, that’s Maria Antonia Cay, a.k.a Toñita, owner of one of the city’s last Puerto Rican social clubs and an icon in her own right. Press pause on the performance, and you can even make out the address, 244 Grand St., on the set (which also included a bodega and barbershop).
Pass by that address on a summer day and you may see a salsa band or a block party; step inside and you’ll find Boricas of all ages (and a few folks outside the diaspora), playing dominos or pool, dancing and drinking cheap beers, conversing in Spanish and English, or enjoying a free plate of food cooked up by Cay in her apartment above. The bar, which borrows its proprietor’s nickname, is covered with Christmas lights, walls of photos and posters, and Puerto Rican flags. Cay will likely be behind the bar, her hair immaculate and hands festooned with rings.
Cay, who is in her 80s, opened Toñita’s–though the space is officially Caribbean Social Club–in 1973 as a home for the neighborhood’s local baseball team, their families, and supporters. Over time, the club became a hub for Puerto Ricans and members of other Latino communities in Los Sures, a neighborhood in South Williamsburg. Cay opened the club to the wider community after obtaining a liquor license in 2000. She’s typically at the bar from 3 p.m. to 3 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays.
“I don’t get tired,” Cay told Interview Magazine in 2024. “No, I feel good. I feel happy because I see the people happy. They have a good time, so it’s like I’m having a good time, too. I don’t know all of them, but they know me.”
Toñita’s years spent creating space for her community have not gone unnoticed in both pedestrian and privileged circles. Maluma and Madonna did a joint photo shoot at the club for Rolling Stone‘s 2021 “Musicians on Musicians” cover story. Per Billboard, J Balvin, Rauw Alejandro, Nicky Jam, and Guaynaa have all hung out at the bar, and Bad Bunny, her Super Bowl steward, first visited Toñita’s in 2022 on the recommendation of Puerto Rican rapper Residente.
Benito’s surprise appearance, of course, drew a crowd, and only affirmed Toñita’s status as an iconic cultural outpost. Their relationship continued over the ensuing years: Bad Bunny name-dropped Cay in “NuevaYol,” and stopped to give her a kiss during a parranda on The Tonight Show. A photo of Toñita and Bad Bunny from his 2022 visit hung on the wall of the Super Bowl set. “It was immensely joyful, and I’m happy. I hope it can happen again,” Cay told Billboard last summer.
Of course, the Caribbean Social Club hasn’t persisted without issue. In 2023, the club received 10 noise complaints and five misdemeanor charges for violating its alcohol license. Cay, who owns the building, was found not to have kept financial records. “They’re not fines that would put Toñita’s existence at risk…but Toñita’s community understood it as a threat,” Latino USA reported at the time. “A symbolic attack on Toñita’s club and her desire to keep doing things the way she always has. Serving cheap beer, having dance parties, and yes, being loud.”
Several years later, Cay and her namesake club are still going strong, fighting erasure and gentrification in Williamsburg while making sure everyone is having a good time. “I’m staying here with my people as long as I can. This isn’t for me to make money or a fortune. It’s to maintain a space for all of us to be together,” Cay told the New York Times.
Though it was categorically amazing, that Bad Bunny paid homage to the space and its matriarch on a national stage is not simply a recognition of Cay. By bringing Toñita to the Super Bowl, Bad Bunny toasted all anchors of Puerto Rican communities whose life’s work is creating a home for people in the diaspora.
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