"Tampopo"

What are some of your favorite foods related to your own cultural background?

Given that I'm Mexican, I love tacos, have an affection for horchata, cherish burritos, adore frijoles, am infatuated with nachos, praise mole, take advice from arroz con leche, chow down on pan dulces, and chug Coke with cane sugar, this is what I eat. It is all very yummy...



What are your fondest memories of food?

Interestingly enough, my fondest food memory is eating at The Pantry in Downtown LA. T'was a bright and sunny morning. The cars were hustling and the buses were bustling...I could remember at a young age standing outside this old classic pantry café behind a very long line, the morning sun beaming down on my face as I was surrounded by a swarm of young girls - my sisters. The heat made me impatient, alongside my sisters who were the embodiment of chaos, but alas the line finally subsided and we all eventually entered the most glorious café restaurant ever. You would expect flashy décor, flawless floors, and flashy waiters and waitresses, but that's not what I saw. I saw noire styled décor, creased concrete walls, bustling waiters and waitresses, and a chaotic kitchen - all within an air conditioned environment. We were seated down and were complemented with water and coleslaw, which, by far, remains to be the most infamous platter of coleslaw ever chowed on. As if that was not enough, we were given battered bread, with wonderful assortments of jelly and butter. And this was only the appetizer. The main course was but moments away, and when it came, it surely brought joy as I stuffed my face with the most fulsome pancake I had ever eaten - and I still have yet to meet a competitor to rival my opinion. It is always there, at The Pantry, where the food is always hearty and the moments are merely cherishing, that I truly enjoy the notion of eating.