Every day – roughly between twelve and two thirty – part of Bolivia closes down. It's lunchtime. For everyone. Within minutes local restaurants are packed, and waiters are ready to serve all customers as fast as possible. We daily join the crowds to have a taste of Bolivia's simplest yet most plentiful meal: el almuerzo. It is the perfect way to get a feel for Bolivia's traditional food.
What is almuerzo, or a set meal in Bolivia?
Lunch is the main meal in Bolivia and often shops, offices and tourist attractions close during lunch hours. In general, Bolivians are quick eaters and use the rest of their lunchtime for a quick nap at home or a stroll in a park. The exception to this rule is Sunday, when families like getting together and going out for an elaborate lunch – often à la carte – that may take the whole afternoon.
A typical almuerzo – set meal – has two courses, basically centred on Bolivia's staple food of potatoes, corn and rice, which is served with meat or chicken. The two courses consist of a large bowl of soup, often with pasta and a piece of meat or chicken, and the main course.
Bolivian food could use more variety, especially in terms of vegetables, but in general lunches are healthy meals. The basic, nutritious ingredients come without thick sauces or condiments that only too often destroy the taste and low calories of a meal.
Bolivian food – healthy soups and main courses
I can especially recommend these two hearty soups:
- Sopa de maní – a delicious soup made with peanuts [maní = peanuts] and filled with pasta.
- Chairo – a soup much eaten in La Paz. It is a traditional soup that comes with chuño [deep-fried potato], moto [white corn], charque [jerked meat] and kilkiña [a flavour enhancer].
Most of the time you can choose between two main courses. If you don't understand the Spanish terms for the meals, ask if you can have a look in the pots and pans in the kitchen, or indicate a neighbour's plate that looks appetising – perfect ways of ordering food in a country where you don't speak the language.
A typical Bolivian lunch has a piece of meat or chicken that generally comes with rice and a salad. Rice may be replaced by pasta or potatoes. Asadito is a common term to indicate a good piece of beef that comes with an almuerzo.
A typical taste enhancer that Bolivians eat with their meal is llaguá, a hot sauce made of tomato, chilli peppers called locotos, and herbs. Try a little bit before pouring it all over your meal! On restaurant tables you will find oil and salt, sometimes vinegar, but regular black or white pepper appears not to be used as a condiment.
Typical Bolivian dishes served in restaurants
Some restaurants not only have the choice of two set lunches, but also serve extra dishes, such as chicken broaster or a fish – in La Paz especially trucha [trout] is popular. These dishes have other prices than the almuerzo.
The more luxurious restaurants may also serve a very small salad before the soup, as well as a glass of cold cinnamon tea, which comes with lots of sugar and with or without a piece of peach. In some restaurants dessert is served, but don't get your hopes up. It generally consists of no more than a piece of fruit or a glass filled with chemically-coloured jelly, on which the Bolivians seem to thrive.
The quality of almuerzos varies largely and is often related to the price. While an average meal costs around 10 bolivianos, expect to pay somewhere between 15 and 30 bolivianos for a fish.
Restaurants with safe and healthy food in Bolivia
Even when not used to eating a hot meal for lunch you may find it easy to adapt to the Bolivian pattern, especially since everything else is closed anyway. Budget travellers in particular will find that during lunchtime you’ll get the most plentiful as well healthy meals at the lowest price. When in doubt it is a good idea to follow the crowds; where there are many people, food is generally reliable. Besides lunch, Bolivia's kitchen has some excellent snacks and typical Bolivian drinks.
Karin-Marijke Vis - Karin-Marijke Vis is a bilingual writer (Dutch-English) who has been traveling in Asia and South America since 2003.
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