Sunday, June 26, 2011

Pike Pizza in Arlington

For lunch, I had Bolivian soup, with Mocochinchi to drink.


I would be more specific, but I don't remember what my soup was called. I first tried to order a tripe dish, but was told it's only available Mondays and Wednesdays; then I tried to order a different dish (but decided against it when the waitress mentioned it was a soup) before settling on this particular dish (which is also, oddly, a soup). It contained large chunks of pork, tons of hominy, some chuño,and small, green-colored pepper slices. The broth was a bit oily, but very richly flavored and filling, kind of like pho broth. The hominy and pork were really nice together, and the chuño (aka blackened, "preserved" potatoes) was not nearly as funky as the stuff I had in Bolivia- it tasted more or less like a normal potato, with a slightly chewier texture.

To drink, I had mocochinchi, which is sort of like a Bolivian agua fresca. Apparently, it's made by soaking dried peaches in very hot water, then adding copious quantities of sugar. It was pretty awesome, with a slight cinnamon note, and came with its very own dehydrated peach:


It looked like a shrunken head, but was extremely tasty.

I'd definitely go back to this place- Bolivian food is always hearty and comforting, and the atmosphere was very cheerful. Jon ordered a salteña (which is, I think, where the "pizza" comes from in their name- they do not serve any pizza) and a lomo montado sort of dish (fried meat, covered with fried eggs, on top of rice, with some pico and sometimes fries), both of which were extremely tasty.

Looking forward to more Bolivian around town- this part of Virginia has a huge number of Bolivian immigrants, and is sometimes known as "Arlibamba" for the large percentage who hail from Cochabamba. Also hoping for cheap airfares to Bolivia someday- it's a fabulous place to visit.

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