Bocadillo. Lechona. Refajo. Salpicón. Never heard any of these terms? Neither had I until I went on a Medellín local food tour to discover what to eat and drink in Colombia.
When traveling to a new country, I try to do some research on the local cuisine beforehand and always seek out recommendations from locals upon arrival. Trying out traditional foods from authentic places recommended by the local people is a great way to experience the true flavor of a place. In addition, you can learn a lot about the history, culture, and traditions that shaped the gastronomy of a region while getting satiated.
Related: Comprehensive Guide to Medellín’s Free Walking Tour
After going on the Medellín Free Walking Tour with Real City Tours, I decided to try out their Local Food Tour. This 3-hour tour takes place in the upper-middle-class neighborhood of Laureles. I had been wanting to check out this neighborhood anyway, so the Local Food Tour seemed like the perfect excuse!
Table of Contents
Stop 1: Mango Biche
I met up with our tour guide, Diana, and the rest of the group at the Estadio Metro Station. From there, we walked just a few yards away to the first stop on our gastronomic adventure — a street cart selling sliced mango. Diana explained that a good portion of the population of Medellín makes a living by selling items on the street. This particular vendor has been able to put her children through high school and university by selling mango biche, which is green mango slices with a squeeze of lemon and a dash of salt.
Stop 2: Aguardiente (Guaro)
We also sampled a shot of Colombia’s most beloved alcoholic drink, Aguardiente, or guaro for short. This distilled liquor literally translates to “firewater” and definitely has an acquired taste (it tastes like black licorice). So the salty-sweet mango biche served as a great chaser for us newbies!
Related: Colombian Aguardiente: 9 Surprising Facts About this Infamous Liquor
Stop 3: Bocadillo
We walked a bit through the neighborhood streets of Laureles, stopping outside one house in particular. Here, Diana pointed out the plantain, papaya, and mango trees growing in the small front yard, as well as coffee and cacao plants growing nearby. During this stop, Diana pulled a few small rectangular packages out of her bag. The packaging turned out to be a plantain leaf and inside was a bocadillo — a candy much like a gummy drop made from just guava paste and panela (sugar cane syrup).
Stop 4: Empanadas & Buñuelos
Our next stop was at a local fast-food type of restaurant. We sat at a table outside on the sidewalk and sampled two of Colombia’s most well-known street foods — empanadas and buñuelos. Colombian empanadas are made with cornflour and are fried, not baked like empanadas in other regions of Latin America. They are most commonly filled with a beef and potato mixture, but you can also find chicken or vegetarian versions. Buñuelos are addictive little balls of fried deliciousness. They are made from a mix of cornmeal and cheese and taste like a savory doughnut hole.
Stop 5: Refajo, Patacones, and Lechona
We were already getting pretty full and we hadn’t even reached the midway point in the tour yet! Next, we stopped at a local favorite, Doña Lechona. The cartoon pig in the logo made me think this was a chain restaurant but Diana explained that it is actually a family-run establishment.
Here we sampled a few different Colombian specialties. First was a refajo, which is a refreshing drink made by mixing La Colombiana (a soda that is similar to orange Fanta) with Aguila, a light Colombian beer. It tasted better than it sounds!
The second dish we had here were patacónes. These are plantain slices that have been fried not once, but twice. Colombians REALLY like their fried food! The patacónes were served with guacamole and another sauce called hogao, which is a sweet mixture of tomato and onion.
The last dish was lechona, the restaurant’s namesake, and the main course on the food tour. Lechona is made by slow-roasting an entire pig for about 10 hours. The tender meat is then served with a mixture of rice and lentils or peas that have been cooked inside the pig. It was kind of like Colombia’s version of paella. Vegetarians beware — each plate is served with a (yummy) piece of crunchy pig skin on top!
Stop 6: Hand-Roasted Coffee
After the main course, we lightened things up a bit and stopped at a local coffee roastery. Here we were shown the different steps that go into preparing coffee beans for roasting and how they roast the coffee manually in a small roaster. And, of course, we got to sample the coffee as well!
Stop 7: Salpicón
The last stop of the tour was of course for dessert! Here we tried the Colombian specialty called salpicón. This sweet dish is made with vanilla ice cream, topped with fruit salad mixed in cream, and…CHEESE! I have to admit that this combination didn’t work for me but to each their own!
The Medellín Local Food Tour with Real City Tours was a great introduction to some of the traditional food and drink that shouldn’t be missed when visiting Colombia!
Which stop looks most appetizing to you?!
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