Anyone who knows me knows I’m a big fan of grocery stores and grocery shopping. It’s the only kind of shopping I enjoy, in fact. I regularly stop at multiple stores to pick things up: Aldi (my favorite), Publix, Costco, occasionally Trader Joe’s, Fresh Market, and Target if I’m near them.
We recently had a Bravo Supermarket open near us, which is aimed at the Latinx community and specializes in groceries and prepared foods from Mexico, Central and South America, and the Caribbean. (https://www.bravosupermarkets.com/)
The prices are fantastic, and as you would expect, they carry all kinds of stuff Publix doesn’t. I got my wife an assortment of coconut waters, since they have over a dozen different brands and varieties: some with pulp and some without pulp, some roasted, some “young” coconut, etc.
The hot foods counter is set up like a cafeteria line, where you can get a styrofoam box stuffed to bursting with the rice of your choice (white, yellow with pigeon peas, or a specialty rice) with an entree and a side, for $7 and change. I’ve been twice so far. Last week, I brought home roast pork over yellow rice with tostones (crispy-fried plantains) for my wife and stewed goat over fried rice with maduros (sweet plantains) for myself. Today being a Friday, I remembered they had rabo (oxtail) as a special of the day, and I always love oxtail. I got mine over moros rice (white rice stewed with black beans and onions) with maduros.
It was really good oxtail, but nothing beats when I get it at the Jamaican restaurant Golden Krust, one of my favorites. I’ll have to go back soon and review it.
The prepared foods counter also has quesitos, empanadas, pastellitos, Jamaican beef patties, some desserts, and they will make you Cuban coffee, too. Their quesitos (pastries stuffed with sweetened cream cheese) are very tasty, but much doughier and chewier than I’m used to. The quesitos from the Cuban restaurants back home in Miami were usually made of a flakier, crispier, almost croissant-like dough that often shattered when you bit into them. Both are good, though.
The Saboscrivner 