South America

Celebrate the Foods and Culture of Brazil at Central Market with Passaporte Brazil

For two weeks of every year, Central Market holds what in essence is an international festival in its stores by paying homage to the food and cultures of the another country. Three years ago, I attended my first "Passport" event when they celebrated the foods of Argentina. The following year, it was ... More >>

Here, Eat This

A beginner's guide to Argentine cuisine.

Pope Francis I: Five Questions We Want Answered About The New Guy

We've got white smoke; we've got cheering crowds, habemas papem, as they say. Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio got the gig and, even though his name ends in a vowel and looks like it should be preceded by a nickname, he's not Italian. For the third time in a row, the College of Cardinals has elected ... More >>

Houston's Citgo Sends Off Hugo Chavez With A Fond Farewell

Venezuela's Huge Chavez has been one of the more polarizing political figures on the world stage, beloved by many, hated by just as many if not more. Citgo is a huge energy company based in Houston, incorporated under U.S. laws....but owned by Venezuela. Which put the company in somewhat of a toug ... More >>

Coffee Beans Could Be Extinct In 60 Years; Then What?

If you believe the news from over the weekend that coffee beans are in danger of extinction, you're probably hoarding all the Arabica you can find today and envisioning a future in which coffee -- already liquid gold for many of us caffeine addicts -- can be used as delicious, fragrant currency. No ... More >>

SXSW Releases First Batch of 2013 Performers

Here go hell come, SXSW has just released the first batch of names for the 2013 festival. I know, only a week after Fun Fun Fun Fest and a month since ACL. Did you see the FPSF blog from earlier today? Yeah, time is moving too fast. The big names on the list so far include the Zombies, Alt-J, Akro ... More >>

Tango and Steak Night Tuesdays at MKT Bar Downtown

It's a Tuesday night, and as I enter the MKT Bar at Phoenicia Specialty Foods Downtown, there's this kind of hazy, underground, industrial vibe going on. Strains of poignant, dramatic tango music are coming across the loudspeaker, and dancers slide and sway across the concrete floor, some with the t ... More >>

Hatch Chile Menu Specials at Chuy's

While many local establishments' Hatch chile celebrations are winding down, Chuy's is just getting started. Their annual Hatch Chile Festival began August 20 and will continue through September 9, which means there's plenty of time to try their limited-time-only Hatch chile menu.

Latin Bites: Peppers and Pisco in Perfect Harmony

Latin Bites has come a long way. First a catering business, then to its miniature space in the Warehouse District on Nance and now to its greatly expanded location on Woodway. The new venue is open, airy and bright. You can saddle up to the pisco bar -- the only one in Houston -- or to the cebiche ... More >>

iFest: Top 5 Argentine-American Musicians

The Houston International Festival enters its second weekend tomorrow, with featured musical acts WAR, Joe Louis Walker, Seun Kuti & Egypt 80, Texas Tornados, Del Castillo, Steel Pulse and lots more. Although iFest's performers come from all over the world, all around the main stages will be the sig ... More >>

More Than 40 Food Vendors Will Feed Your Face at iFest

I love iFest so much, I typically go on both weekends of the festival each year. This time around, I'll be missing the second weekend of the International Festival in favor of appearing in a bright blue bridesmaid's dress at a mansion in Las Vegas (HOLLA), but you lucky people will still be able to ... More >>

The 2012 Houston International Festival - Chevron Argentina Living Museum

Wine of the Week: An Under-$10 Malbec from (Yup, You Guessed It) Argentina

When my wife Tracie P and I pulled the synthetic cork out of a bottle of Terrazas de los Andes Altos del Plata Malbec on Saturday evening at a family function, we joked that we could write the tasting note without even sampling the contents: "Bright jammy fruit, with an intense blueberry note, aggre ... More >>

Chef Chat, Part 3: Roberto Castre of Latin Bites Cafe - New Cebiches and More

Photos by Mai PhamCebiche de conchas (scallops), a new item from the Cebiche Bar at Latin Bites Cafe​Chef Roberto Castre of Latin Bites Cafe knows what it means to work hard. The last two days, he shared the details of how he worked up the ranks after graduating from culinary school in Peru, a ... More >>

Waste Land

Bartender Chat: Stephen Caronna Of Piola

​The first time I went to Piola, I thought "damn, this place is bright." It had been a crappy, rainy Monday. I was hungry and in a nasty mood, but the place actually cheered me up. It was happy hour, and I ended up getting pretty happy. I ordered a few French 75s for $5 each and the Rio de Jan ... More >>

Wine of the Week: An Argentine Chardonnay that Surprised Me

Photo by Jeremy Parzen.Argentina isn't what I generally reach for when I go wine shopping, but I was pleasantly surprised when my Spec's salesperson turned me on to this Patagonia Chardonnay.​Most of the wine that comes from South America tends to be made in the California style: big flavor, b ... More >>

Houston Brazilian Festival: Discover Brazil

Dinner with Friends

Try a topsy-turvy Brazilian burger.

The Brazilian Burger: Bedlam on a Bun

Photo by Troy FieldsPotato sticks, corn and peas are vital ingredients in any X-Tudo burger.​In this week's cafe review, we spotlight Friends Pizzeria, a little Brazilian restaurant that -- despite its name -- specializes in Brazilian burgers and hot dogs just as much as it does in pizza. And ... More >>

The Caipirinha: Straight Outta Rio

​When he texts from Brazil, my brother Robert usually mentions the caipirinha he is enjoying at the moment. I didn't know if it was actually a great cocktail, or just one of those "Ha ha, I'm on the beach at Ipanema and you're not!" sort of things. I was wary; my research indicated cachaça- ... More >>

Peru Gets Back Stolen Artifact Seized At Bush Intercontinental

Nabbed in Houston.​A book from the 1700s that a traveler tried to smuggle through Bush Intercontinental has been formally returned to the country of Peru, federal officials said today. The manuscript had been stolen from the Recoleta Library in Arequipa, Peru, they said. A man with a record ... More >>

Patrick Regan and Ximena del Pilar Echeverry Arias: Husband-Wife Team Arrested for Running Guns from Houston to Colombia

Dad, get me out of this one​A Houston-area couple has been charged with smuggling arms to Colombia, and a whole lot of weaponry was seized. Federal agents arrested Patrick Regan, 40, and his wife Ximena del Pilar Echeverry Aria, 25, who was a Colombian native, on Tuesday, prosecutors announce ... More >>

Join Team Chile, Help Fight AIDS

The hip-hop world is a less than sensible place - lots of times, you're even required to clarify when bad means bad and when bad means good - so once a week we're going to get with a rapper and ask them to explain things. Something you always wanted to ask a rapper? Email introducingliston@gmail.com ... More >>

Wine of the Week: Intipalka 2009 Ica Valley Tannat

​It wasn't so much the origin of this wine that interested me- it's the last of three samples from Peru reviewed for Wine of the Week. But the varietal, Tannat, is something that I've never tried before on its own. Tannat is a red grape that was originally grown in the Madiran appellation in ... More >>

Los Amigos Invisibles

Tango Buenos Aires: The Fire and Passion of Tango

Wine of the Week: Colonia Las Liebres 2008 Bonarda

​One way to drown the sorrows of a horrible Monday Night Football game featuring the disappointing Texans, is to open up a sample bottle of Bonarda direct from Argentina, and pretend that I'm no longer in Houston, but in the cellar of a mysterious and romantic winery down South America way. O ... More >>

Os Mutantes: The Best Band You've Probably Never Heard Of

Pink Floit via Flickr​Os Mutantes were one of the most influential rock groups to emerge during the late '60s in Brazil. The band - initially a trio with Rita Lee, Arnaldo Baptista and his brother Sergio Dias) fell under the graces of the founders of the Tropicalismo movement, Brazil's respons ... More >>

Wine of the Week: Frontera Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot Blend 2009

​In honor of the previously-trapped miners in Chile, I found this cheap magnum of Chilean wine. It seemed the appropriate wine to toast their newfound freedom. Unlike the massive rescue efforts, this wine wasn't incredibly complex. But like the Chilean miners, it had plenty of surprising chara ... More >>

A Taste of Peru at Spec's and Charivari

pierre pouliquinAlpaca sez, "Try Peruvian wine!"​Perhaps it's because we've never been there, but images of alpacas, Pisco and Machu Picchu account for much of our knowledge of Peru. We're hoping that changes this month with a grand showing of Peruvian products and samplings at Spec's Smith St ... More >>

Wine of the Week: Casa Silva 2009 Reserva Sauvignon Blanc

RobW_​Goodness gracious, this is a ballsy Sauvignon Blanc from the Colchagua Valley in Chile. It doesn't look like much in the glass, timidly light and unassuming in color and viscosity; barely discernable from ever-so-slightly yellow-green tinted water. However, the nose is incredibly strong, ... More >>

Ingredient of the Week: Mayacopa Beans

​What is it? So we've already covered heirloom tomatoes, right? Well, apparently there are such things as heirloom beans, and the Mayacopa variety is one of them. For one little legume, there are certainly many spellings and names - Mayacoba, Maya Copa, yellow beans, Mayocoba, Mayo Coba, C ... More >>

Wine of the Week: Navarro Correas Coleccion Privada Malbec

​I like the tango, I love chimichurri, and beef is my buddy, so it's only natural that a Malbec from Argentina is also high on my favorites list. It's no secret that I've never met a Malbec that I didn't like, and this gift from a friend is no exception. The Navarro Correas is nicely balanced, ... More >>

8 Foods You Didn't Know Are Radioactive

​"Tonight, find out why you could be putting your whole family at risk by serving foods high in radioactivity. That's right, radioactivity. Find out more about this shocking, potentially lethal news here on KEOW tonight at 10 o'clock." Let's just go ahead and beat the 10 o'clock news to the p ... More >>

Recipe: Ceviche Mixto

​Nowadays, there are hundreds of variations of ceviche, even in Peru itself, where ceviche bars are incredibly popular. Despite all the new fusion foods available, this version, my Abuelita's, is still a favorite. Abuelita, who is from Callo, Peru, learned how to make ceviche from her mother, ... More >>

Bobby Heugel's Weekly Cocktail: The Pisco Sour

​Peruvians and Chileans drink pisco sours like Texans drink margaritas. For decades, Peru and Chile have viciously fought over the origins of pisco, a grape-based spirit similar to grappa, and the equally famous cocktail the pisco sour. Arguing so fiercely over spirits and cocktails may sound ... More >>

Pocket Change

Ham and cheese empanadas at Argentina Cafe

Recipe: Chimichurri

​This recipe for chimichurri, the traditional Central and South American condiment and marinade, is simple and really easy to make, so there is no excuse to use the stuff from the jar. In Peru, as well as other countries, chimichurri is served with churrasco steak, which is one of Abuelita's ... More >>

Venezuelan Street Food - Catered

​We were recently fortunate enough to sample some homemade Venezuelan empanadas that were muy deliciosos. Made by Rosalba Verde, a native of Venezuela, the flaky pastry dough came in several versions -- stuffed full of chorizo and potato, ground beef, or chicken breast mixed with green olives, ... More >>

Miss Coco Peru Takes on Texas Tour

Award-winning actor/director/drag queen Clinton Leupp tackles the Lone Star state

Capsule Art Reviews: BIG LECTRIC FAN TO KEEP ME COOL WHILE I SLEEP," "Carlos Runcie-Tanaka: Fragmento," "Second Seating"

Call of the Wild Lecture

Web exclusive!

History and Memory

Margarita de la Vega Hurtado looks at Augusto Pinochet's political coup in Chile

Fuegovivo and Saga Food & Wine

“Apertura Colombia”

Colombian photographers tell graphic stories at the Station Museum of Contemporary Art

Nelson Pereira dos Santos Film Series

Rice Media Center presents a retrospective of the Brazilian filmmaker’s work

That's Intensive

My Pork Belly Future

Mi Pueblito is a restaurant for Colombians who miss home, but gringos will still enjoy its fare -- especially the chewy pork bits

Gooooaaaal!

Emporio Brazilian Café scores with home cooking