A fine-dining chef in Oakland making pillowy arepas reflective of his Colombian roots, a rare Dominican restaurant where the chef pays tribute to his mom, and a Peruvian lamb stew in San Francisco from a prolific local chef—this small but mighty group is a reflection of the depth of Hispanic restaurants in the Bay Area and the varied dishes you can find there.
For Hispanic Heritage Month, which runs from September 15 to October 15, we’re spotlighting four dishes at four Bay Area restaurants that played a big role at family get-togethers and special occasions for the chefs and owners behind them.
Read on to learn more about the stories behind these Hispanic restaurants in the Bay Area, and make a booking on OpenTable.
Arepas rellenas de vegetal at ¡Chao Pescao! (Civic Center, San Francisco)
When he ripped out his old cafe and reopened it in 2021 as ¡Chao Pescao!, restaurateur Rene Denis wanted to put his heritage front and center. “We totally redid the restaurant and nailed down the recipes from my grandparents,” Denis says.
He grew up in New Jersey with a Colombian mom and Cuban dad in a large Colombian immigrant community. That meant that on weekend mornings when there wasn’t a soccer game, the whole family would come over for arepas. His abuela (grandmother) would shape the masa by hand and griddle the cakes on her electric stovetop, using a grate to create a pretty crosshatched pattern.
At ¡Chao Pescao!, you can get the arepas inspired by Denis’s grandmother griddled as a side, or deep-fried and stuffed. Denis is partial to the stuffed vegetarian version stacked with a crispy slab of queso fresco, thinly sliced avocado, and a swipe of aioli. More than once, Denis has been called over to a table, “and people are crying,” Denis says. “They’ll say, ‘no, no, it’s okay, it just tastes exactly like my mother’s or grandmother’s.’”
Seco de cordero at Altamirano (NoPa, San Francisco)
Prolific chef Carlos Altamirano has already made a name for himself opening some of the Bay Area’s hottest Peruvian restaurants, including La Costanera in Half Moon Bay. Altamirano, which opened in NoPa in September, is poised for similar success, and it’s where you’ll find the chef making some of his childhood favorites.
Altamirano grew up in Ica, in southern Peru, and the restaurant’s seco de cordero (lamb stew) is the dish that reminds him most of home. “My mom used to make it on special occasions,” Altamirano says. “Having lamb in Peru is expensive, so we only had it for Christmas, birthdays, and get-togethers with the family.”
Just like his mom, he marinates the lamb shank in garlic and cumin for four to six hours, then braises it for a couple more until fork tender. His mom would spoon the sauce over a puree of Peruvian giant corn, but Altamirano swaps in Brentwood sweet corn for a fresh twist. He tops it with an escabeche of tomatoes, onions, and cilantro. And in case you were wondering, yes, his mom has tried it, and she approves.
Braised angus oxtail ‘encendido’ at alaMar Dominican Kitchen (Uptown Oakland)
Top Chef star Nelson German has been flying the flag for Dominican food in the Bay Area for a decade, first when he opened alaMar in Oakland in 2014 and cocktail lounge Sobre Mesa nearby in 2020.
But it wasn’t until a 2023 revamp of alaMar that he embraced his heritage at his restaurant full on. “alaMar reflects my heritage 100% now, more than ever,” says German, who grew up in NYC’s Washington Heights neighborhood, which has a large Dominican American community.
Now he gets to showcase a host of Dominican staples, but he’s still most partial to the braised oxtail that’s been on the menu since day one and is a tribute to his mom. “She would make it for special occasions, when she [was] in an extra-happy mood,” German says, adding that he’d be treated to the dish if he got a good grade, his dad got a promotion, or the Yankees won the World Series.
German braises the meat for four hours in a sofrito packed with cilantro, peppers, and olives. Eat it right off the bone along with rice, beans, and plantains to sop up the generous gravy.
Arepa with seasonal produce at Mägo (Piedmont Avenue, Oakland)
Chef Mark Liberman worked for years at French fine-dining spots led by stars like Daniel Boulud and Joël Robuchon, but when it came time to open his own restaurant in 2019, he began exploring his Colombian heritage and flavors from South America.
Mägo remains one of the rare fine-dining restaurants in Oakland, which the San Francisco Chronicle recently singled out for its unique tasting menu. That menu changes every day, but you’ll always find an arepa on it. “That’s something I grew up eating for most of my childhood, and I make it for my kids now, ” says Liberman, whose mom is Colombian. “It’s very nostalgic for me.”
True to Cartagena and the coast where his family’s from, Liberman deep fries the arepa until it’s puffy like a little pillow and then tops it with seasonal treats, from summer melon to fall figs. “Some people come into the restaurant, especially Colombians, and say it’s not a traditional arepa,” Liberman says. “But the country is huge, and this is how my family likes to make them.” More often, though, people say they could eat ten, Liberman says.
Becky Duffett is a food writer living and eating in San Francisco. She was the deputy editor at Eater SF and has written for The New York Times, The San Francisco Chronicle, and Bon Appétit, among other places. Follow her on Instagram at @beckyduffett.
