Famosa Latino Cuisine

Today Bob and I met Jenny for lunch at Famosa restaurant in Hilliard. She had told us about it, and that we had to try it. So we did just that.

Famosa Latino Cuisine offers an incredibly diverse menu. They claim to serve “Mexicana, Guatemalteca, Salvadorena, Peruana, Venezolana, Columbiana, Cubana, Puerto Riquena, Dominicana and Argentina” foods. Oh, you can get a taco or an enchilada here, but why would you want to? The menu is so extensive that it is almost overwhelming! Go for something new and different. That’s what I did. I asked our server Daniel, what he would recommend. He actually ended up helping both Jenny and me decide on what to order.

But first we began with an appetizer to share. Jenny chose the “El Caribeno/Picadera Mix”. Wow. This appetizer was huge! I would love to show you a picture of it, however we dug into it before the camera was out of the case. Uh oh. This will not be allowed to happen again! Let me tell you about it anyway. It had longaniza (sausage) very good, Dominican salami that was just incredible, Dominican fried cheese that was insanely delicious, chicken wings that were yummy, pork that had such good flavor and tostones (fried plantains) and lettuce, avocado and sour cream. No way could we eat all of this and our dinners, too. But we sure gave it one heck of a try!

Then the dinners came rolling in … on platters! Correction: these were feasts!

On Daniel’s recommendation I chose “Bandeja Paisa, a Columbian dish. It was awesome! There was a fried ripe plantain (heaven), a Dominican sausage that surprised & delighted me, a piece of deeply flavored steak, fried pork and white rice with an egg on top. Oh! There was a cup of Columbian beans, too. What a feast! Every single thing on that plate was delicious! Even the two avocado slices that garnished the plate!

Bob had zeroed in on what he wanted way before Jenny or I had even come close. He went with “Costilla de Res al Carbon”. Of course he did! Why not with a description like this? “Ribs rubbed with our Famosa salsa and seasonings, served with fries and green salad.” He did change the fries for beans and rice.

Jenny had Mofongo de Carne. This was a dish of mashed green plantains stuffed with beef and served with lettuce and tomatoes. It was uniquely served in a big goblet. It looked totally cool. And the flavor was delicious. The mofongo also can be ordered with chicken, chicharron (I honestly have no idea what that is), shrimp or the above mentioned beef.

Of course the three of us traded dishes and tasted everything on the table. It was all so incredibly delicious. I’m thinking that my dinner was the best, but then I think about those ribs on Bob’s plate. Hmm. This may require more research on my part.

But wait! There’s more!

Even after all the proclamations of how stuffed we were, we requested the dessert menu. We were thinking we would get one dessert and three spoons. HA! Who do we think we were kidding? Here’s how it went down …

I went super traditional with flan. And I was not disappointed. This was flan as flan should be. Creamy, caramely (is that a word), and just like silk. We all agreed with a collective sigh.

Bob wisely chose the “Churros con Helado”; caramel filled churros with ice cream. OMG! And that’s all I’m going to say about that!

Jenny went way out of her comfort zone and got “Torta Imperial”; classic Guatemalan sweet bread, served with strawberries. So, so good. And so pretty!

All of the desserts were delicious. That being said, hands down we chose the churros as the best. Those things were crazy good. I think the term Bob used for Jenny and me was something like “sharks circling the waters” as we hovered over his plate with our forks. Like it or not he was sharing!

Famosa Latino Cuisine is definitely a place to check out. They have live music and DJ on Saturdays. They have dance weekends, do catering & buffets and rent space for events.

I hope this entices you to give them a try! I think next time I go back I’ll start with the churros and work my way backwards!!!

Famosa Latino Cuisine
5445 Roberts Road
Hilliard, Ohio 43026
Ph# 614-767-5445
Fax: 614-767-5446