Dominican Street Food
When the late night hits and you crave a snack, nothing too heavy though. A perfect option is grabbing some street food. There's lots of different options, but I’ll cover my top 5 favorites.
In Dominican Republic, whether it be early in the morning, throughout the daytime, or later in the night, street food is always just a corner away. Delicious street food is available at all times of the day, but depending on where you are the options of operation vary. I like to find a vendor with good quality food, then stick with it, and be a loyal customer lol. Getting street food is an event itself, there’s always music playing in the area and the liveliness of everyone outside interacting, the reasons why there's never a dull moment.
Chimi - This here is a Dominican style hamburger, although they come in a pretty good size. They go for about 150 - 200 pesos ($3.00usd). We normally order one each and it’s satisfying. One might ask what makes it a Chimi and not just a regular hamburger being cooked on a grill? For starters the meat is pre-seasoned, and instead of adding lettuce, they grill cabbage with red or green bell peppers. Every Chimi spot has their own way of doing things, but for the most part this is the standard way. Personally, I don’t like too many toppings or sauces on my Chimi, so I’m always standing beside whoever is putting on the toppings letting them know, when it's enough. If you don't mind a lot of condiments, then you're in for a treat, because they pack it on. The toppings usually consist of grilled cabbage, bell peppers, sliced cheese(s), red onions, tomatoes, cheese sauce, mayonnaise, ketchup. Chimi spots are all over, usually they don't open until the evening. Just follow the smoke and it will lead to the grill. Cooked fresh on a grill while you wait.
Bollito de yuca - Now this here was calling to me (in my mind), I saw it in a warmer and asked to try. I thought it was made out of dough, but it's actually made from cassava (yuca). The name “bollito” which means a small ball in Spanish. Bollito de yuca is fried, made and placed in a warmer ready for order. Bollito de yuca is made in a sizeable round ball shape, it has a golden brown outside, and it’s soft on the inside with cheese in the middle. It has a unique taste that I wouldn't expect from cassava, some I’ve tried had a very light taste of sweetness, and other not. This treat is a side dish or snack with a low cost around 35 pesos (75 cent), so people normally order quite a few at a time.
Quipes - This one is a good one, especially when they are made fresh. It is made from wheat, and normally there is a cheese filler in the middle, but there is also beef or chicken in the middle. A Quipe is a dark brown in color, narrow in shape, soft on the inside. Sold in the same locations as Bollito de yuca, and for around the same price of 35 pesos (75 cents). In my opinion, you can never go wrong with Quipes. Around Christmas time Quipes are very popular around the dinner table, being made by the 100’s lol.
Empanadas - There's many different types of good empanadas from all over Latin America, I’ve tried quite a few. I’m not being bias here, but I prefer the Dominican empanadas as a favorite. I actually tried it years ago in Panama from a Dominican street vendor, so I been familiar with their empanadas for some time now. Dominican Empanadas are light pastry with a filling inside. Empanadas are similar to meat pies, samosas or beef patties. The Dominican empanadas are made fresh while you wait. They are quite the size and made with a light pastry filled with whatever you choose. The options usually are chicken, beef, cheese and corn. It’s the same price to have one ingredient or a mixture. Here I see a lot of people putting ketchup on top of their empanadas, myself I prefer to keep it plain or at most add some hot sauce. Empanadas can be found from morning throughout the night being sold by different street vendors. What I love about getting an empanada, is that they always have options for natural freshly made fruit juices. Different amazing flavors, some that I was familiar with and some I’ve never heard of. Empanadas are about $1 each, and the juice is roughly the same. Like most people, I like to take my empanada to go, find somewhere to sit in the shade and enjoy it.
Fritura - Probably my favorite street food along with Chimi. I'm not big on fried chicken either, but this one hits the spot. Seasoned with the Dominican oregano, garlic, salt and more this is a must try. Fritura is a popular local styled fried chicken, it’s not dripping with oil either. There are also other spots for good regular fried chicken, it’s just that Fritura ranks above all lol. Of Course it depends on the location, but from my observation a Fritura is open from the lunch hours till the evening. Usually Frituras are indoors, but there are some that operate outdoors. In the Fritura theres all pieces to choose from, even the chickens feet get cooked and served lol. Alongside the meal comes fried green plantains also known as “Tostones” or fries. A homemade sauce called “Wasakaka” is optional to have poured over the chicken. Wasakaka is made up of sour oranges, lime, salt, pepper, parsley and olive oil, it complements the crispy fried chicken well. The prices are very reasonable, for under $5 is enough to satisfy 2 adults.