Venezuelan arepas with grilled steak (Photo by Stephen Clatterbuck)
Would you like to experience a luscious, flavorful bone — one so delicious you wouldn’t want even a dining companion to taste it? Then try Bocata Latin Grill’s arepas: They aren’t on the bone, but they’re meaty, stuffed corn cakes I’d rather, like a dog with its prize, savor without sharing. I shouldn’t spill info about this spot, lest it run out of chicken salad with avocado.
Eduin A. Serrudo-Moran possesses an amiable youthfulness that belies his gravitas. He’s more Venezuelan food ambassador than owner-server taking my order from behind a cheery counter in a decrepit strip mall.
On Bocata’s menu, find Venezuela’s national dish, pabellón, or “flag,” consisting of tomato-laden shredded beef, black beans and rice, and sweet plantains, topped with a fried egg, its colors loosely resembling Venezuela’s banner. This “flag” plate exists at nearby Dominican restaurants, too; if you see “la bandera," always order it. Bocata’s Venezuelan fare is the offspring of Latin American and Caribbean cuisines: rice, beans, simmered and grilled meats. And while plantains rule, corn is king — those arepas! Empanadas are also made with ground corn flour, or masa, rather than wheat, a delight when washed down with fresh passionfruit juice or brown sugar cane juice with lime.
On Sunday, there are specials: paella with crisp green plantains, and Sancocho, chicken soup bobbing with corn, short rib and pumpkin, as comforting as Abuela’s home-cooked creations. Request the kicky hot sauce, but be warned: It isn’t always available, and that, along with the disposable plates and silverware, are two minuscule downsides. It’s a small, from-scratch operation, and things run out. So, please, don’t go! You might love the food as much as I do.
3 3/4 out of 4 forks
4725 Walmsley Blvd.
804-716-8116
Hours: Tuesday to Thursday: 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Friday: 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Saturday 10:30 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Sunday: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Prices: $4.74 to $18.95
Handicapped-accessible
