teote

i fell in love with this dish after the first bite. it had such a bold, savoury, smokey flavour that was addictive. the porkbellywas super tender and added a rich fatty flavour to the dish.

you can’t miss the place with it’s bright blue front. it stands out and calls your name. you enter to a modest looking place with little seating. you walk up to the counter and place your order. i ordered teote plate with your choice of el diablo, smokey pollo, pabellón, chorizo or pernil, served with beans, rice, salad, fried plantains & buttered arepa. i asked him which one i should order and without hesitation he said the el diablo , which is the carlton farms porkbellyin a red chili maple sauce, topped with pickled onions, verde sauce and queso.
i had heard so much about this place i knew i was going to love it. what i didn’t expect was that the food was going to sing in my mouth.

their areapas, which they call venezuelan-style corn cakes are just that, they are kind of like a corn shortcake or scone, although they are gluten-free. i like them a lot, but i like the meat at teote even more. the el diablo (top of page) quickly became my favorite. porkbellythat rendered perfectly and surrounded by a sweet/hot maple/red chili sauce and topped with pickled onion, cojito cheese and cilantro. it's succulent, sweet and hot all at the same time with the arepa providing a contrast bothwith its sweetness and its crumbly texture. and all that for under $7! the pernil (2nd from top) is also pork, but from shoulder, notbellyand is cooked until tender and moist. it's not as spicy as the el diablo, but still packs a lot of flavor. it's topped with a cabbage salad along with a green sauce, the cojito and cilantro.