Cachapas y Mas
Venezuelan restaurant · Inwood ·
Venezuelan street food: cachapas, patacones, arepas, tequeños
Venezuelan street food: cachapas, patacones, arepas, tequeños
"On Fridays and Saturdays, the Inwood location of Cachapas Y Mas is open until 4am. This means that when everybody else in NYC is asleep, you could be eating crispy arepas, and cachapas stuffed to the brim with shredded beef and cheese. Most definitely get the sweet plantain yoyo with chorizo, but there's actually nothing we wouldn't recommend at this counter-service Venezuelan spot on Dyckman, so bring a few friends, grab a table, and round out your order with some tequeños and patacones." - willa moore, will hartman, neha talreja, bryan kim, sonal shah
"If you’ve never had a patacon, it’s a Venezuelan sandwich that swaps in fried plantains for bread. And the best one you’ll find in NYC is from Cachapas Y Mas, which is conveniently open until 2am every day and is always playing Latin music videos from the ’80s and ’90s. Throw in a cachapa—which is stuffed with moist, shredded beef and cheese—as well as some tequenos, arepas, and maracuchas for the table." - willa moore, nikko duren, matt tervooren, the curious uptowner
"The family’s Venezuelan restaurant, Cachapas y Mas, operates multiple New York locations and is known for cachapas and patacónes; it grew out of Larry Villalobos’s 2005 leap from taxi driving to food service when he bought a food truck called El Dugout Fast Food and later opened a storefront in Inwood and a location in Ridgewood. I learned the business has long been a family affair—Jackeline Osorio helped shape recipes, the younger Villalobos has worked there since age 12, and the spots were even subcontracted to make meals for incoming migrants—while the family continues to expand (they’re opening a Cachapas y Mas in Lawrence, Massachusetts). Empanadas were briefly removed from the Cachapas y Mas menu when Jesus Villalobos felt the recipe wasn’t right, but after reworking them the empanadas are back and everyone in the family agrees on the recipe." - Emma Orlow
"For Venezuelan comfort foods like crispy arepas, plump patacones, and gooey tequenos, Cachapas Y Mas is your best bet in NYC. This family-run mini-chain has two locations — one in Ridgewood and the other in Inwood — and, at both, you’ll be greeted by a smiling ear of corn who appears to be grooving to the ’80s and ’90s Latin music videos playing on a nearby TV. (Only the Inwood location is open until 2am every single day, however.) There are few dishes we don’t recommend from Cachapas Y Mas, but, as you might have gathered from the name, the cachapas here are keythanks. Order them stuffed to the brim with moist, shredded beef and cheese, and get a patacon and a few tequenos for the table. Food Rundown Cachapas If you don’t order cachapas here, you’re doing it wrong. Eat at least one plain sweet corn cake while you wonder how they pack so much gooey fried cheese in each bite — or, for something more substantial, order your cachapa stuffed with your choice of pernil, chorizo, shredded beef, or whatever other protein makes you feel most comfortable. The wisest among us will do both of these things. photo credit: Cachapas y Mas Tequenos It’s essential that you eat at least three tequenos here. The breaded and deep fried snacks should be commonplace at all venues that serve finger foods, and the queso blanco inside could probably stretch around your head a couple of times over. Dip your tequenos in a side of pink secret sauce, and pop a Lactaid for this excellent cause. photo credit: Cachapas y Mas Patacones These crunchy, double-fried green plantain sandwiches are loaded with meat and stuffed with lettuce, tomato, and creamy white sauce. Each patacon is about the side of your palm, and you definitely want to try the version at Cachapas Y Mas for a quick lunch or dinner at least once in your life. photo credit: Cachapas y Mas" - Nikko Duren
"One of the best places to get a patacón is Cachapas y Mas, a colorfully decorated Venezuelan café in Inwood whose mascot is an ear of corn with a cheerful face peeking out of its husk. The patacón — two rounds of fried green plantain that act as the 'bread' — is offered with popular fillings like roast pork, shredded beef, and ham and cheese, but my favorite uses a bouncy, garlicky chorizo cut lengthwise ($8). Yoyos are also available, a similar sandwich made with ripe sweet plantain, and the café focuses on fresh, traditional Venezuelan staples in a warm, casual, family-owned setting." - Robert Sietsema
