a food win!

So those who follow the blog will know how I always bemoan the dearth of ethnic choices here.  The seafood is great and there are plenty of Italian places (a number even owned by Italians but beyond that - things get dicey...

But tonight we had a huge food win with a total hole in the wall place on 26th Street - located in something that aspires to being a strip mall, a building with four small storefronts.  This place would be at home in any village in South America- no sign above it. The sign at the street is a plastic banner with no light on it so you could easily drive by if you didn't know where you were going. 

Approaching the front door the kitchen door looks out on the parking area and is right next to the front door to the dining area.  The kitchen's fluorescent light is the brightest illumination in the whole lot as the other spaces seem closed for the night or maybe for good.... the place doesn't scream prosperity but we knew from doing our homework it has been around a number of years...

so in we went - and immediately fell in love.  The welcome was genuinely warm and the place was small (three booths and maybe five tables) and cozy and just so darn appealing in a sort of divey kind of way. Before we got any food I told Phil that I was so hoping it would be good because the place was exactly the kind I was always looking for!

And we won big tonight because it was good- better than good! So we will definitely return.  The chef came out to check on the food and the server was friendly and helpful when Phil asked about choosing between two dishes.... it was all good - so let's get on with the show!

We ordered starters of Anticuchos (beef heart) and calamari.  The Anticuchos were better than the ones we had at Tanta (the Gaston Arcurio outpost in Chicago) that we had with Shari & Kevin. 

then we shared a mixed ceviche -

then I ordered the Corvino Rellenos (stuffed with crab and smothered in a shrimp and mushroom cream sauce!) and Phil ordered the paella mariscos - a toss up decided by the server's recommendation of it over the chaufa (which is our favorite at Tanta)

the to go menu for dinners

here is the menu we ordered from when dining in house-

Everything was served fresh and hot or fresh and chilled as appropriate and they were such gracious hosts we considered the evening a HUGE success! So YEA! El Waricke- we will definitely go back! Next time we already have several things we want to try- including the Chaufa and the Aquadito de Pollo and a couple more preparations of the fish- so all the more reason to return sooner rather than later...

to market, to market

so on our first full morning in Cartagena we met the guy we had arranged to guide us for a city tour and for a tour of the local market and street food vendors. The guide's name is Brayan and he is showing us around his hometown and at the same time orienting his young cousin Christian to the job of being a guide (Christian graduated from high school at the end of November - just two weeks earlier!)

our first stop is the local market where Brayan knows lots of people and Christian watches out for us from the back of our small entourage...

the market doesn't have divided areas for each type of product or produce but is sort of a jumble of everything - except for one area of sign painting (more on that later)

above and below - you probably don't want to know--- LOL

holiday decorations and candles -

if your party is going to be a successful party there needs to be a lot of people in attendance and so you put up posters all over town announcing it- and these guys in the market paint the signs for the party announcements!

many household items for sale - some fabricated on the spot-

the photo above was by far the widest "alley" in the market - many were wet (especially in the food areas) and muddy... but all were interesting because this is not a tourist market - it is for locals and we saw no other gringos when we were there...

Next up some photos of the hotel (lovely decor and fabulously fun toucans in residence) and the other parts of town we saw... sweets and fruits from vendors - La Popa and the fortress... so stay tuned!