Kristen H.
Yelp
This place is truly amazing! The food is out-of-this-world period, but it is the best Colombian food I've tasted. I used to live in Miami, and this food tasted like home...even better than home! The flavor, the technique, the variety, the love that goes into this food is just completely unforgettable. It's like eating at someone's grandmother's house, but better. The prices and portions cannot be beat either.
I had the arepa con carne mechada or shedded beef in creole tomato-based sauce with cilantro. The flavor was just ridiculous--tangy, garlicky, zesty, pure perfection over a crispy yet tender yellow arepa. An arepa is griddled corn cake made from pre-cooked corn, so it has zero grittiness, just crispy exterior and tender interior. Arepas of this size are for breakfast. I got my husband the paisa version with rice, eggs, and yummy pork belly cracklings.
Well, as we marvelled over our food, we got distracted by a ridiculous seafood rice at the counter. It was freaking exploding with tender, juicy-looking seafood. We caved and got what was supposedly a side portion, but it was meal-sized in my book. Picture it, mussels, lobster, real crab leg meat, clams, shrimp, scallops, calamari, octopus, all cooked to tender perfection in an expertly-seasoned, fluffy rice. This stuff was last meal status, and it was our last meal in Boston, and certainly one of the BEST! Stop by on your way to the airport, if you're a visitor. If you live in Boston, go tonight! Seriously, today you MUST try this! Super short walk from the Maverick train stop, by the way.
Clean, nice service, amazing flavors, great variety of prepared hot foods (stuffed chicken looked ridiculous), great prices, the stuff of dreams is at this
neighborhood gem. The salpicon, or Colombian fruit salad, looked great too. It shall be crowned with a scoop of ice cream upon serving. Be sure to clear your table and put your plates on the far end of the counter if you eat in. Order first and pay as you leave. They'll bring the dish to you.