The following is a guest post by Jennifer Castaño.
Arepa is a staple food for Colombians; it’s like what bread is to the French and tortillas are to the Mexicans. It’s both traditional and versatile as it can be prepared for breakfast, lunch, dinner or snack.
Plain arepas are very common in Colombia but so are an assortment of filled and topped ones. One restaurant that specializes in arepas is J&C Delicias. It opened in 1980 in a home garage by a family in Laureles that loved cooking.
As time passed, the place quickly grew due to an influx of customers. Today, J&C Delicias has over a dozen locations throughout the city of Medellín, including major commercial malls like El Tesoro,Santafe, Oviedo, Rio Sur, Centro Comercial City Plaza and the international airport.
It claims to serve “las más exquisitas arepas con todo!” or “the most exquisite arepas with everything!”
A highlight in its broad menu includes the ubiquitous arepa with a variety of topping combinations:
- Pollo desmenuzado con tocineta & queso (shredded chicken with bacon & cheese)
- Pollo desmenuzado con champiñones (shredded chicken with mushrooms)
- Arepa Oriental con camarones (vegetables, stir-fry, broccoli, zucchini, mushrooms, onions & peppers with teriyaki sauce)
- Arepa Alborada (arepa with medallions- baked, smoked and seasoned with spices and sweet fruit sauce, ham, mozzarella cheese and chunks of pineapple)
One is only limited by his or her imagination when it comes to preparing these “pizza style arepas;” aside from choosing from the menu, you can also mix your own toppings.
Prices range between $7 and $12 and are served in either medium or “traditional” sizes. Pickles, onions and condiments are available at every table.
Though they specialize in pizza, J&C also have a variety of other options on the menu like pastas, burgers, salads and sandwiches.
Arepa is by far one of the most traditional “Paisa meals.” It makes an excellent base for an assortment of toppings, so your best bet when visiting J&C is to order an arepa and just let your imagination go wild.
