Aponte’s Latin Flava

Found them on Facebook, and from their posts and proximity, and having lived in Puerto Rico for seven months, decided to give some familiar flavors a try.
One of the big mistakes I made when I thought about ‘Latin’ food is that it was all like ‘Mexican’ food. (kind of like a lot of small burgh bumpkins hear Spanish and call it ‘Mexican’) I expected hot and spicy, which is generally most definitely not the case. In fact, a lot of Latin foods tend to be a bit bland. Flavorful, but bland… definitely not crammed full of Habaneros to peel layers off your tongue. Or in the case of the REALLY bland burgh palates, Jalapenos (which don’t even register heat to me).
So after living in Puerto Rico, and discovering this lack of picante, I learned about different aspects and flavors of Latin cuisines. I learned to appreciate the plantains, the yuca, the beauty of rotisserie chicken, and the deliciousness of the many, MANY ways to prepare a dead pig, the finesse of the bean — red, black, white — and the many ways to make rice.
Aponte’s is very typical of Latin, and specifically Puerto Rican cuisine found in a lunch cart. Flavorful, satisfying and reasonable, and very simple.
Located in a small metal box on the corner of 7^th and Penn downtown, across from the park next to Theater For Squares, your host whips up a nice and reasonable lunch for the day. One day it may be the pulled pork sandwich featured. When I first opened it, all it was was the bun filled with a very juicy pulled pork. BUT, after one bite, that bun and pulled pork was all I needed to satisfy my lunch craving. Although I also had to try one of the Yuca. The pork was very tasty and done just right, with very yummy flavors. The Yuca was also very good. A Yuca is a root, similar in texture to a potato, and can be fried up like french fried, like potato chips, or made into a mashed like substance. The Yuca at Aponte’s is mashed, stuffed with a seasoned ground beef filling, rolled in bread crumbs and fried.
On my next visit, the Facebook post announced a special like Congris (yellow rice with meat and beans) but by the time I arrived shortly after noon, he had sold out of the beans. So I basically got yellow rice with some sausage, and he threw in a Yuca and some fried plantains.
The Yuca wasn’t as tasty the second time, but if he’s making it all from scratch, it’s going to be different time to time. The yellow rice was basic, but tasty, and the fried plantains were delightful.
A Plantain is a giant firm banana relative, that can be served many ways. Flattened and deep fried into a tostone (toes-​TONE-​eh), fried in oil with garlic and onions and mashed into a mashed potato form and topped with meat and gravy or shrimp — a dish called Mofongo. But as a side ‘dessert’, fried sweet plantains are like warm sweet bananas. Delicioso!
Aponte’s also has Empanadas (Em-​pan-​NYAHHHH-​duhs) stuffed with a couple of different choices, from chicken to beef.
And all in all, lunch can run between $ 3 for a Yuca, to $ 7.99 for the special meal of the day.
His biggest problem is the city ‘size’ restriction on his food cart, and inability to make more when he runs out. But… that’s the city, not him.
I would definitely recommend a visit if you’re up for something different. Pop by the corner of 7^th and Penn and look for the giant sardine can on it’s side, next to the Puerto Rican flag sign.
And you can earn extra points if you say ‘Buen Provecho’ to the person in front of you. That’s ‘Bwayne-​Pro-​VAY-​cho’. When I lived in PR, everyone said it. Total strangers would pass me in Wendy’s, with a crappy chicken sandwich in my hand, and say ‘Buen Provecho’…basically, the same as Bön Appetit. But not necessarily reserved for a gourmet meal.
Go grab a bit or Latin Flava… and Buen Provecho.