Arepera is a small, colourful restaurant home to the Venezuelan specialty, arepas. Arepera on Duluth Street offers over 30 different types of arepas, and caters to all diets - be it non-vegetarian, vegetarian or vegan.
I had been wanting to try Arepera for weeks now, tempted by its never ending selection and student-friendly budget. The restaurant has a hammock hanging from the roof, artistically shading the ripe plantains and home made juices below. Upon entering the restaurant, I was greeted by a lively atmosphere and warm welcome, which made me even more excited to try out their food. I made sure not to have any big meals throughout the day, knowing that I would want to try as much as I could on the menu; and that I did.
Passion fruit juice
To begin with, we ordered chips de yucca con guasacaca (cassava chips with avocado sauce), queso y plátano (cheese and plantains), and a homemade passion fruit juice. Deciding between the arepas was a whole other task, though. To make things even more difficult, Arepera just added new selections to their menu; I was craving the salmon ahumado con queso y aguacate (smoked salmon with cheese and avocado) but it was so popular that it was unfortunately sold out. Instead, we ordered the 4×4: pernil, pollo guisado, carne guisada y jamon (4 meats and cheese) and legumbres con queso feta (grilled vegetables and feta cheese) instead. At this point the waitress kindly smiled at us and backed away, but we definitely weren’t done ordering. We had to try out their pabellón! Pabellón is a dish of rice, black beans, feta cheese, plantains and a choice of meat - like shredded stewed beef, shark (!!!), or chicken. We decided to take our waitresses’ suggestion and try the pabellón con pernil (pabellón with baked pork), with complimentary avocado sauce and hot sauce ready on the table. Try adding some sauces to your dish to make your culinary experience reach a whole other level.
The chips de yucca con guasacaca were devoured in no time. They are incredibly crispy, perfectly salted and the guasacaca sauce adds an extra layer of perfection to it. Between the 4×4 and the legumbres con queso feta arepas, I liked the vegetable option better just because I felt a bit lost with the mix of so much meat. Next time, I’ll just try a choice of one kind of meat instead of trying to combine them all. The pabellón is definitely a great comfort food for cold winter days, but maybe a bit too heavy as the season is slowly shifting into spring - the fried plantains and allowed for a sweet break from the hearty combination of rice, beans and baked pork.
Arepera is a small restaurant, and tends to get very busy on the weekends. I suggest you get there early, or even go on a weeknight. They close relatively early, so you’ll still have time to get some ‘studying’ done (or, if you order as much as I did, you won’t; you may just fall asleep in a blissful food coma).
Queso y Platano
Continuing along the lines of South American cuisine, Arepera’s owner, Max de la Concha, recently opened a restaurant called Ceviches. True to its name, the restaurant specializes in ceviches - while also offering affordable tapas style dishes. It is located on 152 Napoleon, at the corner of De Bullion and is definitely worth trying out.
Arepera
4050 Rue de Bullion
(514) 508-7267
Hours of Operation:
Tuesday-Wednesday: 12:00 am - 21:00 pm
Thursday-Saturday: 12:00 am - 22:00 pm
Sunday: 12:00 am – 21:00 pm
WRITTEN BY CARLA MAVADDAT
IMAGES BY CARLA MAVADDAT
