Rice & Beans: Food of ‘El Pueblo’
By Nancy J. Brandwein
Posted by West Side Spirit on October 23, 2009 · View Comments
I spent much of the late 1980s at marches chanting, “El pueblo unido jamas sera vencido.” Whether in solidarity with Nicaragua or El Salvador, the marches would culminate with parties at union halls where we spooned up rice and beans, saying, “Arroz con frijoles, por favor,” in our best Spanish accents.
Yellow rice and beans, once united, shall also never be defeated, at least when it comes to simple, satisfying sustenance. And you can get excellent yellow rice and red beans ($4.49) at Sophie’s Cuban Cuisine, along with toasty, carmelized maduras, which are fried sweet plantains ($1.99). Like the best yellow rice, Sophie’s is orange, and I have no idea what gives it this characteristic color—whether achiote, annatto, turmeric or saffron.
Photo by Daniel S. Burnstein
I just care that it’s slightly oily, with distinct fluffy grains that, when mixed with the ample red beans, makes me ready for anything. Sitting in brightly lit Sophie’s, with its steam trays full of oxtail stew or fried pork chunks, brought me back to the nights I taught ESL at a midtown Marxist-run school. Afterward, we’d go to an Irish bar on Ninth Avenue, drink pitchers of beer, eat the inexplicably Latino steam-table fare and talk about the world’s woes.
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Sophie’s Cuban Cuisine
369 Lexington Avenue (between 40th &
41st streets)
212-922-3576
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Got a snack attack to share?
Contact NBrand@aol.com
