Tacos and margaritas, the best duo since cereal and milk. But instead of your regular chicken or steak tacos how about Lamb Barbacao Tacos? This delicious creation located on 155 bleecker at Pig Bleecker is by far the best taco I’ve had. I say that because anybody who has had lamb before knows the meat is far different from chicken or steak. Not as tough as a steak the lamb is tender with flavor. This Lamb Barbacao Tacos included Smoked Lamb Neck, with a savory salsa verde, and pickled jalapeno. In other words it packs a punch!

While walking through my neighborhood of the lower east side/ east village I happened to walk by a bar. Not the type of bar with a happy hour I mean a Noodle Bar. It’s called Momofuku Noodle Bar located at 171 first avenue. I decided to stop in on that cold day for some ramen or soup to warm me up. Instead I stumbled upon a shrimp bun which caught my attention and the attention of the line of people waiting to order it . Im not a huge fan of sushi or seafood but I decided to take a chance and join the line. But when i received my hot and steamy plate i saw a bun but no shrimp. But as i looked more closely the shrimp was in a square shape and fried. While the bun was soft and fluffy. These two components of the crunchy  shrimp and soft buns is a unique combination. Not one that i was a fan of. I took about 3 more bites and decided i couldn’t finish it. The flavors and texture weren’t a good combination to me. I felt as if if the buns should have been toasted to compliment the fried shrimp. But I do recommend this place to anyone who loves ramen or seafood.

While walking in the center of Cali and I  had never tried chontaduro, peach palms, so I decided to get a bag of 1,000 COP. I was told to add honey and salt because the taste is better and it was. The best way to describe the taste is it resembles sweet potato, but it is more fibrous and also much smaller. I have to admit I did not enjoy it as much, but still it was good and also it gave me a lot of energy afterwards. In Cali, chontaduro is known to be an aphrodisiac and is thought to give the man more stamina. Of course none of this is scientifically proven, but a lot of people from Colombia believe this to be true.

A lot of people have heard of raspados, piraguas, or shaved iced, in Colombia they have something called a cholado. The cholado consists of shave iced, flavored syrup such as: passionfruit and raspberry, a fruit salad (bananas papayas, passionfruit, lulo, strawberries and apple) topped off with more fruit syrup, shaved coconut, condensed milk, chocolate (in some places), apple slices, and wafer cookies, lastly the one I would always get would come with a big ball of ice cream on top. This is my favorite dessert I tried during my trip because it refreshing, tart and sweet, and with an assortment of fruits so you would not feel like you were eating a dessert. Cholados are something served in Cali, Colombia year round because it is always warm/ hot, so if you are ever visiting I would totally recommend eating this “healthy” treat. Down below is a picture and also a link to a quick video from CaliTV. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_eMRA2u6Tjc

This generation of foodies have been luckier then the previous generations. By that i mean the unique and different creations that have been coming out. For instance the Acai Bowl have been a popular food trend lately. More difficult than trying to pronounce it, is where did it come from? The Acai na tigela is a Brazilian cuisine made of mashed Acai palm fruit with your other choices of fruits. I visited Happy Bowls located on 61 4th ave which is famous for their Acai bowls or Happy bowls as they call it. I decided to go with the Beach Bowl. The beach bowl is served in a pineapple with bananas, acas, coconut shavings, strawberries, blueberries and apples. on my first bite i felt as if I was transported to a beach. The flavor and taste of the acai along with the other fruits were refreshing and cooling. I wasn’t too sure of how the Acai would taste due to the appearance but I was pleasantly surprised at how refreshing it tasted with almost a hint of chocolate as an aftertaste. Although I would recommend this as a dish for the summer or spring the Acai bowl is good for all seasons!

The first time I had a buñuelo is in Colombia, even though this is a fried doughnut can be consumed in many parts of the world. Depending on where you get the buñuelo the size and fillings vary. The best one I tried was in Medellin, Colombia where paisas (people from Medellin) are known for their bakeries. I picked a random bakery in Medellin and had 2 buñuelos both filled one with chocolate and the other with arequipe. The best part was they were still warm and soft and they paired well with my guanabana (soursop) smoothie. The size of the  buñuelos in Medellin are the same as those from La Abundancia bakery, but the ones in Cali are slightly smaller and more dense. Buñuelos are typically consumed with coffee during breakfast but can be purchased at any time of the day. This is a traditional Colombian dessert, but even more so during the Christmas season.

During my 1 month vacation I tried a dessert called an oblea, depending on the price and preference cost between 3,000 Colombian pesos up to 5,500 Colombian pesos which is the equivalent to $1 USD up to $1.83 USD. My favorite oblea was from Palmetto Plaza Mall and it consisted of wafer, a layer of arequipe (dulce de leche), a layer of strawberry jam, shredded cheese and coconut flakes,a fluffy layer of whipped cream, and lastly topped off with another wafer. It the perfect contrast between crunchy and creamy as well as sweet and salty, it is one of the best desserts I had in Colombia and was one I would buy every change I had.

When I stayed in Cali, Colombia for a month I tried a popular drink, champús,that is only served in Cali and in no other region of Colombia..It consists of corn, panela, cloves, orange leaves, lulo (naranjilla) juice, pineapple chunks, and water. It was very refreshing and the taste does not resemble anything I have tasted before. The best way to describe the flavor would be tart with a touch of sweetness and goes great with a cheese filled corn arepa. This is a great midday snack and was one of the drinks I enjoyed the most. The total cost for champus and an arepa is 3,000 Colombian pesos which is $1 USD.  

As absurd and embarassing as this sounds, I’ve never had a dumpling. I know what you’ll say have I been living under a rock or whats wrong with me. But I personally never found them to look or smell appealing. I was convinced by a friend to try these dumplings that would change my mind forever. He was right that it would change my mind. We tried the chicken and vegetable dumpling (mandu). I almost bailed out again because the appearance and smell but he forced me to try it and i did not regret it. The texture of the dumpling was soft and smooth without much flavor but the actual chicken or vegetables that were in the dumpling were packed with flavor. The chicken dumpling was very spicy but delicious with them using different types of spices from what i was use to. Also the vegetable dumpling barely tasted like vegetables at all. Which is good for me because it had creamy like texture. The results of this dumpling tasting now means that i often take weekly trips to china town to find these dumplings!

Usually when people are in the mood for donuts their first go to place is Dunkin Donuts. But if you’re looking to switch things up Just Baked! has a treat for you from Italy. Just Baked! located at 88 W Broadway is a new and upcoming bakery which serves Bomboloni. Bomboloni is an Italian donut which is light and fluffy but filled with a creamy delicious filling. I was hesitant to try it at first due to the color but the worker ensured me it taste better than what it looked and it was made fresh everyday. I did not regret the decision because it was amazing. After trying a bomboloni It will be almost impossible for me to try a plain old american donut again.