We went on a cruise recently and were seated at dinner with two couples from Cuba originally. One of the men spoke English quite well, the other man spoke English somewhat less fluently and their wives hardly spoke English at all. I asked when they came to America and they said in 1973.
They were delightful people and quite proud of their children. One couple's daughter is in college and planning to become an attorney so apparently the children are bilingual, but I was trying to figure out why the wives do not speak English. I guess they live in an area of Miami where they do not need to learn English.
A quick aside, they think Cuba will descend into civil war when Castro dies.
Probably because for some people it is nearly impossible to grasp a new language during adulthood. I have seen this a lot growing up in Toronto; before the days of government agencies bending over backwards to accommodate them the kids would act as translators. As a general rule it worked out well for everyone involved.
As for this whole "order in English" the controversy is silly. I'm sure the proprietor deals with non-English speakers the way all restauranteurs do, which usually involves pointing at the menu and assorted hand gestures.
Years ago I dated a German boy. His father trained pilots for the Air Force. My boyfriend, sister, and father all spoke English fluently. His mother could not speak English fluently, but she would try and what she did not understand the family would help translate.
I work with a group of Cuban Americans in the Chicago suburbs.
They were born here to people who came here as young adults. Their parents all speak English at least passingly but one of my friend's said that in the community learning English is considered giving in to the americans.
When my friends were children some of the schools they went to offered ESL to the parents of kids. Their parents took advantage of it.
They all grew up here. There is a Cuban population here.
Very common situation. I don't know why wives remain content with their native language but I do believe that the majority (those with any ambitions) do want their children to learn and communicate in English.