Arepera Rue De Bullion 4050 Montreal , , , Quebec Restaurant Review

Arepera

Venezuelan authenticity

Photo by Elizabeth Ranger

Working at Renard makes it kind of hard to ignore the disparity between the legitimately special food I get to eat at work, and the shite that goes on in my fridge. While I would love to slow-cook vats of carefully peeled vegetation and braise beef cheeks and spin corn-griddled crepes from my pinky whilst wearing an apron and some shit-kickin’ kitchen boots to match, let’s face it, we’re busy people.

Busy enough even, to let someone else work the miracles, albeit totally attainable ones and realistic ones too. What the heck is she talking about? Arepas, my friends. At least, ones at Arepera du Plateau, which has the resounding consensus of online-Venezuelan’s everywhere as having the kiss of authenticity.

The crowd I witnessed this weekend doesn’t lie… it’s a colourful and busypants place, casting out aroma-tendrils of smoky beans and toasted corn, and populated by basically everyone from casual alterna-brunchers to the aforementioned down-home true arepa lovers who came, inhaled, and left in minutes.

Cloudy and me, well, we lingered, getting our fingers into everything and then licking them clean, giddy with housemade sauces – one red (spicy!) and one green (that tasted spookily like my poor man’s ripoff of Peruvian Huacatay sauce- ie, super yummy, slather-on-everything-type-fluid).

Photo by Elizabeth Ranger

Keeping to it’s roots, the fried-to-order crunchy starter-thing on the menu at Arepera was NOT FRIES OR CHIPS BUT yes YUCA! (4$). heehee. Thicker cut, totally fresh, molar-threatening and delish, especially with that green sauce to dunk away with on the side. A papelón con limón (sugar cane juice with lemon), and a Lolo (? - okay my ears cut out when our server described this one, but it tasted like guava and supposedly is traditional Venezuelan) juice kicked off the liquid side of things (3$ each). Both excellent, and not too sweet… but still really sweet. Fruitsplosion, and perfect foil for…………

Read the rest of the restaurant review on Bubble tea for dinner

About the author - Elizabeth cooks and makes desserts at Renard Artisan Bistro on the Plateau. Her obsessions are pastry, pastry, sugar, Asian food, travel and geeky philosophical meanderings. She also works as a freelance illustrator, and has a BFA in Studio Arts and Religion from Concordia. She's been living in Montreal for 6 years.