“Do not come to Cuba for fine dining.” “Meals in Cuba are not a gastronomic delight.” “Many a mediocre meal in state-owned restaurants.” So begin the “Food” sections in several best-selling guidebooks on Cuba. And for many flavorless years, they were right. Under socialist rationing, eating out on the Pearl of the Antilles was…well, what […]
It’s Holy Week in Quito, and that means Alberto Alava is looking serious. The dark, mustachioed chef has his cap tilted back, concentrating intently on his work. That work includes peeling a multitude of different grains (including fava beans and chochos, a thick-skinned legume typical of the Andes), soaking strips of salt cod in milk, […]
“¡Oye, maestro, más chancho rapidito!” The cook’s face gleams with sweat as he barks the order to the runner hauling slabs of raw pork to the grill. Spicy smoke rises from the coals, blackening the awning. The line cooks scramble to dish up plates of salad to await the chancho al palo (pork on a […]
Think you know potatoes? Wander into any market in Peru and try to count the different types of potato on offer. There are small black ones, yellow lumpy ones, long thin striped ones, some that look like pine cones, some that look like a bunch of black grapes. And every single one has its own […]
There are many things to love about Brazilian cuisine. The mix of African, Indigenous, and Portuguese cultures is reflected in the wide variety of flavors in Brazilian food. Though it is said there is no one cuisine of Brazil, there are several dishes that travelers should be able to find wherever they are in Brazil. […]
Walking the tree-lined streets of Buenos Aires, you may notice a certain unmistakable smoky scent. A scent that barely registers in your conscious brain but immediately sets your stomach on high alert. You may notice your belly suddenly growling for meat, as though you hadn’t fed it for days. Your mouth goes a little dry […]
With its varied regional cuisines and incredibly diverse array of platos típicos, Peru is a foodie’s paradise. El Comercio, the country’s chief newspaper, reports that nearly 40 percent of visitors to the South American nation come for the food alone, so that there’s no shortage of gastronomic festivals or tours for those hoping to sample […]
