Try Ecuador's national dish at this cozy eatery
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Los Galápagos at 378 S. Grener Ave. is tucked inside a neighborhood. Photos: Alissa Widman Neese/Axios
A trip to Los Galápagos, a tiny restaurant in Lincoln Village, gave me my first taste of authentic Ecuadorian cuisine.
Dining the news: I had a great guide who helped me tour the menu — my sibling's partner, who hails from Ecuador.
What I ate: We shared a variety of dishes to start, including an empanada, a chicken-filled pastry ($3); fried yuca, a starchy vegetable ($5); and hornado, a mountain meal heaping with rice, vegetables and tender roasted pork ($19).
Best bites: Encebollado, often considered the country's national dish ($22). It's a tuna fish soup that's popular on the coast — brimming with tangy tomato, onion and lime flavor, plus cilantro and yuca.
- Pro tip: The name means "made with onion," so expect a lot of them.
- We topped it with crushed plantain chips ($5) and cancha, a fried corn.
- I even threw in some rice from the hornado and it tasted great soaked in the broth.
The bottom line: My guide sighed mid-meal, smiled and said "this feels like home." A ringing endorsement, I'd say.
The vibes: The cozy restaurant also offers a small grocery store.
📍 Stop by: 378 S. Grener Ave. 10am-5am Monday. Closed Tuesday. 10am-8pm Wednesday-Sunday.
🌎 Worthy of your time: This trip was part of our Eating Around the World series. See the other international foods we've mapped so far.
