The Latino Restaurant Association is helping to highlight the flavors of Latin America with its DINE Latino Restaurant Week from May 14-19.
In its third year, the event is part of the Los Angeles-based association’s restaurant program, which aims to raise awareness about delicious foods from South America, Central America, Mexico, and the islands of the Caribbean. This week, more than 100 restaurants across the cities of Los Angeles, Orange, San Diego, San Bernardino and Riverside counties are participating, with offerings including Nativo’s Plato De Milanesa and Chamo Venezuelan’s Pollo a la Plancha.
During a phone interview, Lilly Rocha, CEO of the Latino Restaurant Association, said that the idea of promoting Latino restaurant owners this way came during the coronavirus pandemic, which heavily impacted the hospitality industry.
“We’re doing it as a way to share our rich cultural food history and also to let the general public know that there’s lots of different amazing Latin cuisines,” Rocha said. “For example, Mexico has many different regions with different cuisines. Here in LA, we represent not just the states of Mexico but also other Latin countries like Colombia and Ecuador. As a community, we’re excited to work together and to promote each other.”
The restaurants featured in Latino Restaurant Week are not hand-picked or charged to participate. Instead, the group reaches out to its community members, inviting them to participate. The group’s mission as a nonprofit is to promote Latin eateries and get customers in their establishments by creating promotional graphics, special menus, and social media campaigns to prepare them for this week. Rocha said the promotions are also meant to get foodies out of their cultural comfort zones.
“I hope people try something new, maybe a different type of cuisine,” she said. “I know we all have our favorites, but we’re hoping people will go out and try something new and see how wonderful it…
Read the full article here
