Great Food from Points South
I could hardly believe that I was eating machas a la Parmesana just like those I had in Chile. Well, the clams were different. They weren’t reddish razor clams (machas), but the Parmesan cream sauce was the sa
me.
And the matambre, a sliced stuffed beef roll, was better than one I had in Buenos Aires. Perfect to eat with Argentina’s signature wine, Malbec.
Over there was Peru’s seco de carne, made with goat. And Bolivia’s peanut soup. And tender pork and plantain fritters from Cuba. And Brazil’s vatapa, which is shrimp in coconut sauce sprinkled with nuts.
I hadn’t expected to find such dishes in Los Angeles. Sad that it was only for a day, a Sunday afternoon at San Antonio Winery in downtown Los Angeles.
The event was “Taste of the Americas,” a food and wine festival with live music, salsa dancing, a long buffet of Latin foods and endless pours of wines from Argentina, Chile and Mexico, along with Maddalena wines from Monterey and Paso Robles.
I tasted as much as I could, but skipped Mexico’s chicken enchiladas, chiles rellenos, menudo and beans and rice, because I can get that sort of food any day.
Instead, I tried Nicaragua’s version of arroz a la Valenciana (paella) and chicharron con yuca, crunchy pork rinds to eat with bland sticks of yuca and cabbage salad.
El Salvador offered cheese-stuffed arepas and sagu verdadero, a delicious punch made of red wine, tapioca pearls and sliced star fruit.
Paraguay showed off a seven-meat, potato and corn stew not far from Brazil’s feijoada, a hearty combination of meat and 
black beans.
For dessert, there was the famous papaya of La Serena, Chile, sliced onto squares of lemon mousse. And an assortment of cookies including dulce de leche-filled alfajores.
This was the second in a series of world food festivals taking place at the winery this summer. The first was devoted to regional Italian foods. The next will be “Taste of the Mediterranean” Sept. 21 from 1 to 5 p.m.
That festival will feature foods from the French Riviera, Tunisia, Egypt, Greece, Gibraltar, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Cyprus, Corsica and Djerba Island, along with wines from five countries.
To make a reservation, contact the winery at (323) 223-1401. The price is $58. The location is 737 Lamar Street, Los Angeles, CA 90031. For more information, go to www.sanantoniowinery.com
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