Salvo Patria Is Bogotá’s Most Electrifying Restaurant | Eater
"High in Bogotá’s Chapinero Alto, this converted townhouse functions as part neighborhood coffee shop and community hub and part boundary-pushing restaurant and bar, regularly packed with young locals at communal tables. Founded as a simple cafe in 2011 by Juan Manuel Ortiz and expanded in 2013 with chef Alejandro Gutiérrez, the place is driven by a philosophy of balance among restaurant, purveyors, and customers and a mission to research and elevate indigenous ingredients and traditional recipes with modern techniques. The rotating menu showcases Colombian flavors in unexpected preparations — examples include pastel de choclo with hogao alongside perfectly grilled octopus, melt-in-your-mouth roasted lamb neck from a wood-burning oven served with peto, and the much-lauded milhoja layered with arequipe and ice cream — while servers routinely narrate the origins of key ingredients (roasted cauliflower from Guasca; trout from the Fonce River; guayaba from Paloquemao; bocadillos from Vélez; cacao from Nariño). Coffee is central, offered via multiple brew methods (Chemex, siphon, French press, V60, espresso) using beans from regions like Nariño and Tolima, and meals end with a playful tiny plastic toy animal tucked with the bill as a nod to childhood grab-bag traditions. The atmosphere mixes modern, homey interiors and an open kitchen with a wood-burning fireplace, creating an intimate, noisy, and convivial setting that has become emblematic of Bogotá’s culinary renaissance." - Pablo Medina Uribe
