Almuerzo del Dia – Part 1

Since we had no transport to get us from our first Finca to anywhere, we were dependant on the once a day Chiva. That took us from Tienda La Chiriguaca to El Retiro. It passed by anytime from 8am onwards and returned at 2pm on the dot.

So before we gut the Chiva back home, we always ate Almuerzo del dia in the Plaza. Everywhere I have eaten the menu of the day anywhere in Latin America, it has been the same. Soup, followed by rice, beans and a meat of some description and a drink, normally a juice or a canned one. It’s cheap, filling and depending in which country you are in, either good or bad. Bolivia for example is normally very bad. Where as in Mexico you are normally guaranteed to get something pretty damn good for your few pesos.

El Pilón Guarceño, in the Plaza Principal of El Retiro is my IN place at the moment. Not only because the soups are pretty tasty, and the meals are simple and nicely proportioned. Not because it is 4800 pesos (Less than £1.50p). But because the place is quite odd. But odd in a good way. One side of the inside is a shrine to everything coca-cola, and I mean everything. They have bottles, glasses, cups and cans on show from over 30 countries. There is a massive selection of all the gifts you can win or buy. My last visit there, I saw 8 clocks on the wall. None of them seem to be working.

The other side of the room has a small collection of different objects. There is the religious part. Lots of paintings of Saints and the Virgin. An odd selection of typewriters, and other bits of household objects dating from a more tranquil time in Colombia’s long violent history. It’s really an odd place, but I have grown to like it a lot.

For me Colombia or Locombia does these places well. Odd rarities that are really bizarre, tacky and generally weird. Like the bar that was made of melted beer bottles. Such a shame that place closed down. I had my first Aguadiente there, over 10 years ago.

On a larger scale you have Andres, Carne de Res (see here). This is the epitaph of everything loco that Colombia is.

The menu del dia at El Pilón Guarceño always consist of a soup. This has ranged from sopa de pasta, sopa de yucca, sopa de guineo (very small green platano’s), and meatball soup. All have the same chicken stock base. With the fat glistening on the surface, and it also leaves a little ring around the side as you eat the soup.

The main meal always has beans, rice, a small salad and you can mix it up by having either grilled beef, grilled pork or minced beef. Now sometimes they throw in a slice of platano or/and a fried egg. You can also change the beans for chips if you desire.

There is also a Trucha menu del dia. This is exactly the same. Except you get trout instead of meat, and it costs 6,000 pesos (£2).

I normally do not have the juice and have a pilsen instead. Which the last two times I forgot to ask for, but the girl brought it to me anyhows. I love service like that. Kinda reminiscent to your favourite bar, when the barman automatically puts your regular drink on the bar even before you have reached it.

Since we are in Medellin twice a week now with my Spanish classes. We are eating around the University. Some good, some bad. The worst so far was in an Argentinean place, where we had a very watery Minestrone with only a few veg. Some dried up rolled pork loin. Nice pudding though. The best has been at a Costeña joint, but more on that in a later blog.

Tinto y Buñuelos … The Breakfast of Champions.

After a 90 minute walk uphill then downhill or a 20 minute bumpy ride on an antiquated Chiva. We were always ready for a filling breakfast. Which in El Retiro there are not too many options.

Thankfully from early on we found the best place to drink “un tinto” and eat buñuelo.

A tinto in Colombia is slightly different from Argentina or Spain, where it is red wine. In Colombia, if you ask for un tinto, you get a cup of black coffee.

Buñuelos are balls of salty cheese and flour, fried till they are golden brown and best served hot. So many times I have eaten them cold, and believe me nothing beats a buñuelo straight from the fryer. I have to admit, it’s probably not the best thing to have first thing in the morning, but hey my arteries aren’t clogged up yet. Soon, but not yet. But for 3,000 pesos (£1) for 2 tintos and 4 buñuelos whose really complaining.

Now, this is a particularly good breakfast and it fits the time and place, but it is by no means the best breakfast I have ever eaten. In no particular order the best brekkies in the world I have eaten are :

1. Chinese Breakfast at a small coffee shop in Singapore with the best culinary ambassador Singapore has to offer. Mr Tay.

2. The Full Monty at the Breakfast Club in Islington. Oh how I miss you.

3. Huevos Rancheros, eaten anywhere in Mexico.

4. Nasi Lemak, eaten with some milky coffee in Penang, Malaysia.

5. Churros and Chocolate in Spain.

6. Eggs Benedict, made by myself.

7. Pho Bo, beef noodle soup had at any small shop in Hanoi. I think the cold weather made them so good.

8. Pho Ga, the chicken version of the above.

9. Taco’s eaten at a street stall in Villahermosa.

10. Dim Sum in Hong Kong. Technically not a breakfast dish, but we always had them for a late breakfast, so who cares.

11. Boiled eggs and toasted soldiers when I was a kid.

As I said the above are in no particular order, but if I had to choose one, then Singapore wins hands down. (Click Here) It’s just fantastic. It’s so good it’s actually worth just going to Singapore for it. Although by the time I’d get there from here, I’d probably have starved to death.

I’d like to know what your fave brekkies are.

The Best Bandeja Paisa – The Search Continues

Bandeja Paisa, is Antioquias typical dish. It’s a monster of a meal. It makes an all you can eat buffet look like its on a diet.
Unfortunately, I cannot eat a whole one now, so I have to go for the girlie option and have the kiddie portion. This still leaves me feeling like John Hurt in that dinner scene from Alien. It’s a dish where after eating it, and if you can finish it, you will need a good few hours of siesta time. It’s really suited for weekends or holidays, where you can sleep it off for a few hours.
The basic components of a Bandeja Paisa are rice, black pudding, chorizo, platano, fried egg, minced beef, potatoes, beans and chicharron. (Fried pig skin) and another piece of meat, and for the healthy part a small salad. In some places you will either get all of the above or at least 90% of it.
When I first came to Colombia over 10 years ago, I used to eat a whole portion of this, but as I have said, I can now only manage a mini portion. I think travelling in Asia too much has reduced my stomach greatly. Not a bad thing.
To say the portion sizes in Colombia are a little on the hefty side is an understatement. I know of many people who share a plate of food between two, and are stuffed afterwards.
I have eaten Bandeja Paisa in many places now, but the one I like the best is at Rancherito, a chain of restaurants that sells typical food of Antioquia. Lot’s of grilled meats, beans, chorizos. (The Colombia chorizo is quite unlike the Spanish version. It’s not spicy at all, and is very, very fatty.) morcilla, arepas etc etc. You can find them in most parts of Antioquia, but most of them are close to Medellin.
The quality of the food is always good, and it was normally the first place I would eat at after arriving into Colombia. After more than 12 hours travelling there is nothing like some good morcilla and chorizo to get you into the holiday mood.
For the real hardy people you can have calentado, which is a breakfast dish. But basically it is the Bandeja reheated for breakfast. After eating that, you’d have enough energy for anything for the day. A breakfast of champions.

Was the House Upset ?

Well we have moved from our small rural finca to a slightly smaller but yet closer to civilisation finca. The new one is just outside El Retiro on a paved road. So the new small car will not get trashed on the off road conditions to our old place.

I was sad to leave, as the peacefulness there was incredible. But it was so peaceful and so far out of it, that the whole time we were there we got nothing done. Not good. So hopefully here, we should get something’s done. All to be revealed soon(ish). Maybe.

The new finca is in a closed lot. We have 59 neighbours, a few security guards to keep the unwanted out. So we are in a private countryside estate. Very pinchada or posh. Some of the fincas, ours included are small, old and basic. Some of the others are pretty grand, with lush gardens. Thankfully the majority of these farms are only visited on the weekends, when their owners escape the noise of Medellin for some countryside peace. So during the week we have peace and quiet. We’ll see how noisy it gets at the weekend. Not much me thinks, as the nearest farm is still a few hundred metres away.

This finca does not have name, just a number. So we have called it Finca Dalat, as the area reminds us of Dalat in Vietnam so much. We loved Dalat, so hopefully we will love it here.

The day before we left Finca Cañaveral, it was hit by a hailstorm. The little buggers were the size of my thumbnail. The devastation they caused was amazing. All of the veg I had planted was wiped out. The fruit trees took quite a battering, even the banana trees were pretty beat up.

Now the question I have been wondering is this. Why did the hailstorm only hit our farm? And do you think as I do, that the finca was sad to see us go, as we have put life back into the old place. Even if that was by only tidying up the place and the gardens.

I like to think this, as sometimes when I woke up in the early hours, I could hear the house speaking in its quiet hushed tones. The quiet creaks would always send me back to a peaceful and deep sleep.

So, I am not upset with the finca even if it did have a little baby tantrum that we were leaving, and destroy all the veg I was going to uproot and take with me. It just means I have to replant and start again.

As is life in Colombia. It’s all about being game for anything, and not letting anything get you down. Otherwise you won’t last….

Fine Dining – Garage Style …

A friend of a friend of a friend told us about Ristorante Valenti. It’s the way word gets around in Medellin.

From what I could gather the food was very good, but you ate in a garage of someone’s house. This I am used to, as in Asia a lot of peoples houses double up as their business. So to eat in a garage was no surprise to me, but to Colombians to eat good food in a garage was a little bit too much.

I’d also seen an interview with the chef, although I, at the moment cannot read it all, as my Spanish is not good enough yet. So no idea what it says.

So on a wet, cold Thursday night, we ventured into Envigado, a slightly affluent area of Medellin. When we found the restaurant (only by the house number, as no signs). We walked into a garage. In fact a double garage. There is a little bar, where a few people were drinking and chatting and lots of tables. All dressed up ready for business.

We had made a reservation, but we didn’t really need to, as only one other table was occupied by a group of six. As the night progressed, this seemed to be a group restaurant, a reason was needed, rather than just going to eat good food. Medellin isn’t into that yet.

There is no menu, no choice. You just decide wether you want a starter, main course, desert, or all 3. The starter is 12,000 pesos. The main course is 24,000 and the deserts are 3,000. So kinda normal prices for a lot of upscale restaurants in Medellin. They don’t actually tell you what you are getting. As it’s a surprise.

We chose the main course and a desert each, as since working in Café Boheme, I’d acquired a very sweet tooth.

What came was a quadruple selection of delights. Two ricotta cheese parcels with a blue cheese sauce. A chicken thigh on a bed of tomato sauce. A large prawn cooked in garlic butter. And an artichoke salad. All situated in the corners of the plate. I’m really not a fan of square plates. That went out in the 80’s, but Medellin is in its infancy for good food at the moment. So for your average Paisa this is cool stuff. For me the presentation was kinda messy. I wish the chef was more secure in his cooking, and only gave us 2 ir 3 of the four. It felt cluttered.

Everything was well cooked and seasoned. I’d forgotten how much I miss salads here. So far I haven’t brought any lettuce leaves here, as with the humidity it will wilt by the time it hits the fridge, and they are all the soft head variety. I have a preference for bitter leaves, and they are impossible to find here. Well once my seeds arrive they won’t be.

The chicken and tomato sauce was the low point of the 4. There was nothing wrong with it at all, but it was just chicken on a tomato sauce. No wow factor there. A bit boring that. The prawn and rav’s were nice. Well cooked and tasted pretty good. But not on the same plate please.

I am seeing a lot of fish and cheese dishes being paired up here. Why?

The desert was served in a large shot glass. It was a chocolate orange-coated fig, with a coconut and chocolate sauce, and loads of dusting. Small, but a nice end to a nice meal. Being English, we do rather like heavy puddings, but as in Rome.

I’d love to go back again to see if the Chef has more good food up his sleeve. I’d be very disappointed to get the same combination again.

All in all, by Medellin standards it was a breath of fresh air in a city lacking in different food options.

If you are in Medellin, try and enjoy …

Restaurante Valenti

Transversal 31 sur

No. 32D-20

Envigado

Medellin

Lunches in the Sun

Finally we have had a week of no rain. Summer is here at last. For the last few weeks it has rained a lot either in the morning or the afternoon. But thankfully this week we have been blessed with days of beautiful clear blue skies. This has been an excuse to eat alfresco. Bliss. Being in London over the Winter, I had forgotten what it was like to eat with the sun on your back. Ahhhh..

However this week of sun, has meant frequent trips to the garden to do some well needed watering of the veg I planted a few weeks ago. Hard life huh? The rocket, caverlo nero, parsley and radishes have all sprouted. Now just a waiting game till they are ready.

I ordered last week a wide selection of seeds from Seeds of Italy (The USA Branch). So hopefully they will be with me in a week or two. Then I can get planting…. How I miss salads. For some reason Latin America is not known for its good salad leaves.

I also started to cure a piece of pork belly last week. Just a simple recipe of salt, sugar, crushed peppercorns and a few herbs thrown in. I left it for 7 days, bit of a mistake as it was quite salty in the end. But apart from that it turned out ok. The next one I will leave it for 5 days and hopefully it should be ok.

The day I started curing it, I was dreaming of eating Petit Salê. My favourite peasant style French dish. Basically salted pork with lentils.

Firstly boil the piece of bacon with lots of stock veg and herbs for about an hour and a half or until the pork and fat are tender. Stain everything and return some of the stock back to the pan and add the lentils. Normally I would use Lentils from Le Puy, but this is Colombia and they only sell two types here. Brown lentils for soup and an imported type from Canada called Pardina. They seem to hold their shape better and work ok here. The lentils should be cooked in about 20 minutes. During this time slice the pork and add it back to the lentils to warm through. Serve the pork on top of the lentils for some fine French fare. A nice baguette would go well with this, but as we are in the middle of nowhere, so some Moroccan bread we tried out went just as well. A nice crisp white would have been great as well. Hey ho.

I used some more of the cured bacon in another classic French dish. Boeuf Bourguignon, which went well with some mashed potatoes and a hearty red.

I must however remember to slap the boy in the butchers who told me the cut “Posta” was brilliant for slow cooking. After 3 hours it was just beginning to become tender. Unfortunately we were pretty hungry by this time so we couldn’t wait till it was melt in the mouth tender.

I keep forgetting that slow cooking in Colombia means 45 minutes in a pressure cooker. They really love these machines. The devils work I say.

Hopefully if the sun holds out over the weekend I can feel the barbecue being lit. Then you know Summer is definitely here. J

In Situ – El Jardin Botanico

The Botanical Gardens in the centre of Medellin is a welcome respite from the chaos and madness that the city is. The greenness of the place immediately relaxes you. The noise of the flowing traffic outside melts away the further you walk deeper through the gardens.

Our visit here was the first, and I so wish we had come here before. Anything on a bright sunny day to escape the pollution and heat of Medellin.

It kind of took me back to Kew Gardens, which always had the same effect on me. Although we paid for the year’s membership and we never used it that much. A waste.

Deep inside the Gardens, is Situ. Our mission for today. A spying mission. A chance to see how the well to do people of Medellin spend their money, and also a chance to finally eat some decent food. Well, that is an unfair attack on the cuisine of Medellin and its surroundings. Some of the typical Paisa food we have eaten has been very good. But to be honest, I am getting sick of beans and rice. So let’s say, it was nice to be able to eat some different food.

The restaurant is open on both sides. One facing the gardens, the other facing a small pool full of fish. It was larger than I had expected, and it was full. As we had no reservation we were shown to a table in by the pool. Which gradually became more and more baked in sun. We kept moving our table inwards, at one point we were almost connected to a party of four. Who would have welcomed us to join them if the waiters had not closed the shutters in time.

The menu of Situ, as I said before is unlike your typical Paisa food. Phew. Some of it is there, but with a more modern twist and thankfully smaller portions, and a higher price tag. Why is that?

We were tempted to do a full 3 course meal. Well we were on a spying mission after all. But luckily an apparent wine deal saved us. A half bottle of white, which they were trying to promote, came with some cheeses and bread. Why not we said. The wine was from a small unknown Chilean winery and was very good. The cheeses on the other hand were a bit of a disappointment. What came were 6 small balls of cream cheese rolled in either cracked black peppercorns, dried herbs or macadamia nuts, with some thinly sliced bread(ish) and 2 strawberries. One of which was not ripe. Oh god was this a sign of things to come. It’s amazing that someone actually came up with this idea. But what is more amazing is that they went through with it. But we are in Medellin after all. A city where people still eat beans and rice on average 3 times a week, and what they call mozzarella is a yellow block of stringy cheese. But more of that later.

Thankfully the rest of the meal was a delight. So I have put the cheese incident behind us and best forgotten. But had to get it off my chest.

My salmon was cooked to perfection. When the waiter asked me how I wanted it, I almost replied, “How it’s supposed to be cooked.” Thankfully I bit my tongue. The lemon mayonnaise had a little tartness to it, which went well with the salmon and the mash. Don’t ask why I had a rolled platano and a huge basil leaf on my plate. Well they do love to garnish.

Lina’s juicy pork chop was coated in a lovely tangy tamarind sauce, with some papa criolla wrapped in a fried platano. Let’s not mention the rosemary sprig. Like I say they love to garnish.

It was a good meal, the conversation flowed along with the wine. Maybe we should have ordered a full bottle. But it has been over a month since a drop had passed my lips. So probably best not to have tempted fate.

We shared a pudding of a chocolate and passion fruit cake. I was sublime, and I love squirty cream. I’m sure the waiter took offence when I took the large mint sprig off and tossed it onto the table. I must make this my crusade. “No garnishes that are larger than the food you are serving.”

All in all it was a great afternoon, with some great food, great wine and good service. The one thing Medellin has in tonnes is good service. I’d be amazed if I ever get bad service here.

Until the next spying mission. Let’s hope it’s as good as this one.

Life in the Countryside...

Well we’ve been here in Finca Cañaveral for a couple of weeks now. Most of that has been cleaning, dusting and throwing a lot of stuff away. As I found out today that the owners hadn’t been here for about a year, and I’m not sure they cleaned that much before anyhows.

The owners are some parents of friends, and as I mentioned before they don’t come here much nowadays. So as we were looking for somewhere to rent and they wanted to rent it out. Perfect match. Well we are only paying the wages of the Mayordormo. Antonio, a local guy who comes every Friday and Saturday and does odd jobs around the place.

As I said, the first week was practically just cleaning, dusting, sweeping and throwing a lot of stuff out. What a mess. I had never seen so much dust in one place in my life. When we moved the rug downstairs, it had mould on the underside. Antonio informed us it hadn’t been moved for 11 years. Yuck …

The general mess of the place aside. Finca Cañaveral has real charm and a personality all of its own. It is quite different from other Fincas in the area. It was built with little money and using all manner of things for tables, decoration etc. It’s really quite cool.

We are about a 90 minute walk from the small Pueblito of El Retiro, which is about 45 minutes outside of Medellin. It is very very peaceful and is the complete opposite of London. We may occasionally hear a car or motorbike pass by, but other than that it’s only the birds and a river we hear. I’d actually forgotten what it was like to be woken up by birds singing. Bliss.

There is a small vegetable plot, which I have increased its growing space by a little. I’d almost forgotten what physical work was like. There are some ripening corn plants, a few spring cabbages ready for the pot. The 2 cauliflowers there just never quite made it. But will keep them there for a while until we buy some chickens and then will feed those to them.

I had never really eaten loganberries till I came to Colombia. It’s just as well I like them, as we have about a dozen or so plants which are giving us enough for a couple of litres of juice every few days. Plus I am doing experiments with them to make jam. Ice creams next.

This week we brought some seeds to plant. Onions, carrots, celery, parsley, radishes and some herbs. All I am waiting for now is a few hours without heavy rain.

We are getting into normal life here, as brought a small portable oven and a fridge. The one that was here was just used once a week when the owners came just for the weekend. We upgraded. Now to fill it.

We brought some hand made fresh cheese, some Arepas (corn flat unleavened breads), and some very fresh eggs. They had been wiped, but sometimes the chicken shit stays. Hahahaha. Bright yellow yolks, and they taste good.

Also good news all our boxes arrived from Blighty. Yes we have a duvet now. Can sleep warm at nights without socks. Haven’t checked all through each box, but they seem as heavy as when we shipped them. Cost us nearly a grand to ship them, and £10 to collect. The customs here had a quick scan through one or two boxes, as the US Customs had done the same. It’s a lot easier to import stuff than to export it. Hope we never have to go through that procedure.

I am really becoming attached to the peacefulness of the place that an offer of going down to Medellin was quickly rejected. Although I have to go down once in a while as we cannot get internet connection here.

Transport to and from this area is limited to say the least. Roughly about twice a day from a small tienda, which is about a 20 minute walk downhill. It’s in a Chiva, a large open sided bus that serves the small villages in rural areas of Colombia. Great fun to ride and you do get to meet all the locals. As news travels fast in this neck of the woods, I’m sure everyone knows about me by now. When we go down, we catch the Chiva at anytime from 8am onwards, but it leaves El Retiro at dead on 2pm. There are more buses at weekends and holidays, but without a car or moto, it’s a long walk down and back up. Or quicker if we can snag a lift of a kind hearted neighbour. Which we have down many times now.

Until next time ….

Nazca in Bogotá

Peru is well known as one of the gastronomical capitals in Las Americas. Unfortunately when I was in Peru, we really were travelling on the cheap and ate some really bad and cheap food in some bad restaurants. A real shame.

When we were in Bogotá we visited Lina’s cousin, and he recommended we go to a Peruvian restaurant called Nazca for some brunch.

My recollection of Nazca in Peru left sour notes in my mouth, as we were nearly robbed in that unfortunate town. Only famous because of the ancient culture who resided there many many years ago. It’s not a town I will return to.

Fortunately this Nazca in La Zona Gourmet of North Bogotá is a place where I would return in an instant.

The décor is slick and modern, upstairs in the front are some very comfortable sofas where you can and we did spend a few hours chatting and eating some delicious food. Downstairs you can sit either in the garden or inside. All quite formal, we preferred the sofas.

As we were new to the restaurant and in the hands of a regular diner we let Alonso order for us. He came up trumps.

We were treated to four sharing plates, each with four samplers on. Two of which were fish, one fried and one cold plate, and one hot meat plate which had a great piece of ox heart. I love offal. Of course we had a desert plate. All were fantastic, except I cannot bring myself to eat fish with Parmesan cheese. Not very Peruvian I know.

The fish was really fresh and the sauces they were coated in were a perfect match. Unfortunately I cannot remember all what we had as after 5 quiet strong Pisco Sours my memory is kinda patchy. The Peruvian’s like their Pisco blended with egg whites, lemon juice and topped off with some sugar syrup. Which is in stark contrast to the Chilean way of only mixing it with lemon juice and sugar to taste. I have to admit the Peruvian way is more delicate and a lot tastier. That is why 5 went down so easily.

All in all it was a fun afternoon with some great conversation, good food in good surroundings. What more can you ask for in life.

Nazca

Calle 74, No. 5-28

Bogotá

www.restaurantenazca.com

Andres, Carne de Res

I had heard of this restaurant from my wife’s cousin amongst others. It’s a real Bogotá institution. Every person who has spent anytime there has eaten there at least once. Some it is a weekly experience.

We were taken there as a treat after a day of hard day of sight seeing at The Salt Cathedral. Inside these salt mines they have carved out many large outstanding halls. It kinda reminded me of the …………. In Lord of the Rings. It’s pretty impressive, but still kinda weird. They can hold mass for over 3000 people, and a lot of people get married there.

So after this bizarre place we were taken to Andres, Carnes de Res. This restaurant can hold well over 300 people in one sitting. I so pity the chefs there. When we arrived, it was pretty empty. But still had more people then most restaurants I know in London have when they are busy.

It’s decorated to such an extent with small kitsch objects that strangely it actually works. Certain sections even have street names. The menu is vast and takes a while to go through. It’s contained in a machine that you have to roll it up and down.

I took a stroll around and had ganders at the kitchen. All wood burning stoves. Boy it was hot just standing on the other side. Never mind being behind those stoves for a busy shift on a Friday or Saturday night. All the little knick-knacks that make up the decoration you can buy in the small shop at the other end of the restaurant. Most of it would look out of place anywhere but here.

As I had been eating too much food recently I decided on Sanchoco. Basically chicken soup. Chicken portions (mainly leg) cooked and served in its own broth with a few vegetables and potatoes thrown in for luck. This one was a house speciality and it contained some pork leg and pork ribs. It was delish, and the best one I had ever had. Most of the time the broth is made up with a stock cube, and the chicken is either over cooked or dreadfully undercooked.

Everyone else had large cuts of beef. In fact they were so big that one plate would have fed two or three people in London.

Even though I only had chicken soup, I was stuffed. But thankfully I had not had the meat option. Just to prove how bizarre the place is the bill came in a shoe cleaners box with a magnifying glass for the people who cannot believe how expensive the bill is. Thankfully we were not paying. Gracias Ricardo for a fantastic day.

When we left which was about 6pm, it was really starting to fill up, and it stays open till 3am. I said goodbye to the chefs, and hoped they had an easy shift.

Till the next time Andres, Carne de Res ………….