We went for the first time to Colombian Cafe Bakery & BBQ on Rt 33 in Manalapan in the space that was Spargo Grille for many years. It was good and we will be back.
We split a beef empanada which was good with the two provided sauces.
Next was the avocado salad, served with chopped tomato, roasted corn, bacon, and cilantro-lime vinaigrette. It was a good combination of flavors and everything was fresh and tasty.
Finally came what I thought was the best. Bandeja Paisa which has rice, beans, steak, chicharron, chorizo, maduros, fried egg, a small arepa and a slice of avocado. The chicharron was fantastic as was the chorizo. It all made for a great dinner.
The bakery case looked nice but we were too full to try this time. They are open all day so I want to try breakfast next. It’s only 5 minutes from my house so I hope everything else is as good.
The owner, Maria, was very helpful and answered all of our questions and made suggestions. There is not much of a website but here is the menu.
What are Yuka fries? Doesn’t sound to appealing, unless they are yucca fries, then I definitely don’t want them. I’ll more than make up for it by eating more of everything else. What time can I come over?
Did some takeout for the first time. One skirt steak bandjea paisa and one skirt steak plain and one arepa with shrimp. The skirt steak dinners were very good and tasty and all the sides with the bandeja paisa were yummy. The arepa was okay. The take out experience was not great. When calling in order, was told they would call me when the food was ready. As I live 10-15 min away, this didn’t make sense, so they told me to come in 20 minutes. Nearly 60 minutes later the food was ready. Upon entry, one employee had her mask around her neck, and the other two did not have their noses covered. And, there were two customers (apparently known to the owners) eating inside with no masks. Told myself that if the food didn’t justify it, I wouldn’t be back, but the food was good, so we’ll see.
Not to excuse the lack of care but I’ve had the same experience at the car dealership this weekend (guy at our desk wearing his mask underneath his nose, took it completely off when we went outside) and the hair salon (woman twirling around asking about her outfit wearing no mask at all). Going to be a rocky reopening, for sure.
Yucca!