As my dining companion Candace so aptly nailed it: “It’s like ethnic chili.” Or the best Sloppy Joe you can imagine. It’s a stick-to-your-ribs blend of ground beef and pork with dark beer and chicharrones. It’s a soup you want whether you’re fighting a fever or feeling totally hardy.Ĭhile Negro is pure yum.
This hearty vegetable soup has chunks of chicken, corn on the cob, potatoes and avocado in it. The chupa ($5 for a small) is always on the menu. I was only going to take a couple of sips, but I downed it in no time with a great big smile. It has the body of coconut water, a burst of citrus and a slight creaminess. If you’ve jumped on the current bandwagon over coconut water, wait till you taste this instead. The former is the sunny tropics in a glass, while the latter is positively addicting. But don’t pass up the signature Passion Fruit or Coconut Lemonade.
There’s beer on tap, sangria, and wine to help put the fire out. Alongside were a rainbow of dipping sauces ($1 each), including Venezuelan guacamole made with Worcestershire sauce and honey a sweet-spicy ketchup a sweet-tangy tamarind one and pica’ pun, made with fiery habanero and mustard that’s pretty hard to stop eating even as your tongue starts a tingling. We nibbled on an assortment of sides ($3.99 each) that included crisp yuca fries, tajadas (sweet, soft plaintains with queso fresco) and tostones (fried green plaintains). Among the staples are pulled pork with tomatoes, avocado and aioli shredded beef with sweet plaintains, black beans and queso fresco and guiso - a stew of beef, chicken and pork.
#Pica pica san francisco ca plus#
Eight are offered regularly, plus daily specials. Take your pick of arepa ($7.99), a grilled white corn flour cake cachapa ($8.99), a pancake made of sweet yellow corn or a maize’wich ($7.99), which has the shape of an arepa and the sweet corn flavor of the cachapa. While there are salads, soups and sides, the heart of the menu revolves around breads - all made from corn flour. “Pica pica” means “a little bit of this, a little bit of that” and that’s exactly what you’ll want when you see the tempting offerings available as you scan the wall menu, then order at the counter. A year ago, they opened their first San Francisco outpost in the Mission District, which is the one I visited when I was invited in to try the menu recently. Pica Pica Maize Kitchen, which serves up lusty Venezuelan food, is an ideal place for celiacs, as the menu is entirely gluten-free.īut more than that, it’s a must-stop place for anyone who just loves the soulful flavors of corn, yuca, plaintains, avocado, black beans, chiles and long-cooked, tender meats.Īdriana Lopez Vermut opened the first Pica Pica Maize three years ago in Napa’s Oxbow Public Market, with her father, Leopoldo Lopez Gil, who owns several restaurants in Caracas.
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