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Not quite ready to party, we made our way to the El Morro Fort, or Castillo San Felipe de Morro. We stopped for a refreshing mojito on Calle de San Sebastian according to the elderly woman behind the bar, it was the place for parties come nightfall. We passed pigeons crowded at the Plaza de Armas, and saw stray cats sunbathing in the square outside the cathedral.
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Windows were thrown open to encourage a breeze, offering a glimpse into the residential life of the city. At ground level, there are the same tacky souvenir shops you find the world over, but once we raised our eyes skyward, we were rewarded with colourful colonial style buildings in all their (sometimes faded) glory.Įach street seemed brighter than the next – buildings of pink, orange, and green – with heavy wooden doors set into the painted stone. I was enamoured from the very first bite.įuelled up with mofongo and coffee, we stepped back out onto the cobbled streets of Old San Juan. Mofongo is the island’s signature dish, a fried plantain mash, often served – as we would find out in the coming days – with either chicken or pork, and sometimes slathered with a garlic sauce. Instead, my husband and I had our first taste of the mighty mofongo.
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We began our unscripted day by sitting down at the counter in Manolin, a diner-style restaurant, for brunch: we had hoped for breakfast, but were too late. I had never seen anywhere so colourful, and the self-guided tour went out the window in favour of my favourite way of exploring somewhere new: aimless wandering. Instead, after just a few steps into the World Heritage Site that is the Old Town of Puerto Rico’s capital, I was mesmerized. She is at work on a book about eating ethically for Beacon Press.It was all arranged: we would visit the tourist office, collect the map for the self-guided historical walking tour of Old San Juan, and follow the instructions. More chefs are focusing on local ingredients, and new importers are bringing in natural wines that have enlivened a scene previously focused on Spanish and Californian bottles.Īlicia Kennedy is a San Juan, Puerto Rico-based writer. Luckily, many chefs are willing to put in that work.Īfter Hurricane Maria in 2017 and the COVID-19 pandemic, new restaurants and bars are opening in San Juan, and the city has fully come back to life - perhaps better than ever. Taking care with cuisine under these conditions requires persistence and knowledge. workers, which makes many imports quite expensive. Part of the Jones Act of 1920 requires all trade to be done on U.S.-owned boats staffed by U.S. Serving local produce requires commitment and the development of relationships with farmers, and the same goes for seafood and fishermen. The archipelago has been under the control of the United States since 1898, and that colonial control has had long impacts on agriculture and culinary culture. This ever-growing dining and bar scene has thrived despite ongoing crises both natural and political. But to come to Puerto Rico for only Puerto Rican food would be a disservice to the imagination, the bar scene is constantly expanding with new venues for cocktails that rival the stalwart La Factoria, and the city’s cafes are perpetually invigorated by the growing nation.
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They are at the kiosks of Piñones and in the glossy restaurants of the city’s best chefs. In San Juan, Puerto Rico, the fried alcapurrias and banana leaf-wrapped pasteles of comida criolla, the local blend of Indigenous Taíno, African, and Spanish ingredients and flavors, are everywhere.