So for those of you who do not know, part of my job is dealing with my company’s operations in Argentina and Venezuela. My increased interaction with these countries has led me to an interest in the cultures of these places, and naturally their cuisine. It was out of that curiosity that I stumbled upon my next foodventure, Budare, Arepa Express. Budare is a small café in Katy, located on Grand Parkway just south of I-10 in a rather unassuming strip center.
This place was a complete shot in the dark, I had never heard about an arepa, let alone tasted a lick of Venezuelan food. To put it in its simplest terms, Budare is an altered Quizno’s with little changed in it, and let’s be honest here I don’t think they need to change a thing. The simple setting works well for their food and the owners truly care about their food making it all that much better. The menu is rather lengthy, full of options no matter what your preference in flavor is.
The food here is relatively cheap, the price of an arepa here includes a drink and a bag of chips, yes I know Lays aren’t what you think of when authentic Venezuelan cuisine, but it worked for a lunch. Being the ignorant creature that I am I had to ask the owners what they would recommend for my first experience with an arepa. Without hesitation I was told that I would want the number 11, and as I learned at the Korean restaurant, you don’t question people on their recommendations.
For my sides I chose Lays Classic (can’t really go wrong with the original), and a Texas classic as my beverage, Big Red, nothing like a little red cream soda to round out a meal.
The number 11, or the Pabellón (upon further research the term is for the “quintessential” Venezuelan dish), is arepa bread filled with shredded beef, black beans, cheese, and fried plantains. The arepa is kind of like a layered meal, first you get the salty cheese, followed by sweet plantains, then the rich black beans, and finally the shredded beef. They had me at fried plantains honestly; these starchy little pieces of joy are one of my favorite foods in the world. For those of you who are unfamiliar with them, they are similar to a banana, but are firmer and not quite as sweet, they make appearances in numerous Caribbean and South American cuisines and probably a few others I am yet to stumble across.
Then came the layer of black beans, sometimes these can be bland filler, but the Budare beans were rich and delicious.
The beef was tender and full of flavor, shredded into strands of awesome. Basically, this thing was amazing but I can say it will not be what I order the next time I step foot in that restaurant.
Not because I didn’t enjoy it mind you, but because I saw the light. After I had ordered I saw the sign that changed my point of view on Venezuelan foods, a sandwich in which bread was replaced by plantains. Need I say more?
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