Mi Pana - Makes Me Say Dame Más (Give me more!). Venezuelan Comfort Food in National City.

**** Sadly, Mi Pana has closed

Sometimes I get really lucky. Recently, I was searching for some Colombian food options when I came across a place that just opened in National City named Mi Pana. Even though there were Colombian dishes (and Mexican) on the menu; I quickly noticed the Venezuelan dishes....arepas of course; but other items I hadn't heard of. I quickly contacted Frankie's Auntie "Alle" who is part Venezuelan and has spent a good amount of time living in Venezuela. Looking over the menu; she got even more excited than I did!

So of course I had to head on down ASAP to check the place out. The restaurant is located in a little strip mall on Highland Avenue.

It's a tidy little shop, with the Venezuelan flag in the logo; so any thoughts of ordering Colombian dishes went out the window.

The very sweet young lady working was so nice and friendly....having very little experience with Venezuelan cuisine (other than arepas), I knew I was out of my depth, so I asked for a recommendation. Something other than arepas. She asked me if I liked plantains, which I answered with a very enthusiastic "yes". So she recommended I try the Patacon, the fried plantain sandwich. So I selected the Carne Mechada, shredded beef version.

Several salsas were provided for me. The nice young lady seemed to really enjoy explaining things to me. She pointed to the bottle on the left and told me "that's wasakaka, it's really traditional Venezuelan, and my favorite!"

I tasted the wasakaka, which was like a garlicky, creamy, slightly citrusy sauce, I was sold. The cilantro based sauce; that was like a nice chimichurri was also quite good.

And then my Patacon arrived.

Man, that fried plantain was delici-yoso; slightly sweet, crisp edges, the interior was soft, almost bread like. The shredded beef was nicely seasoned, with a pleasant toothsomeness. The cheese was mild and milky; much like mozzarella. As you can tell; it was a messy sandwich, which dictated eating it with a fork and knife. It perhaps had a bit too much greens and mayo; but overall a very satisfying sandwich. Especially if you enjoy sweet and savory together.

By the next time I'd seen Alle; she had been to Mi Pana. During one of the days the Missus had to work, we decided to meet up and have breakfast...and what a breakfast it was. She already had her favorites and other items she wanted to try, so I let her start the ordering.

Alle loves Cachapa, panckaes made of sweet corn, so we started with that. She ordered the "classic version" stuffed with cheese.

She loved this, but it was bit too sweet for me. I did enjoy the cheese though; which had a slight salty-milkiness.

Next up the Mandoca con Queso, a sweet cornmeal cake with cheese and Tequenos, think of a white cheese, soft and a tad saltier than mozzarella, wrapped with pastry......oh man, did I love the salty-yeasty-mild sweetness.

Man were those Tequenos good!

Our arepas were still being made as we finished up our...ahem, starters, so the really nice woman delivered some Pan Andino with Coffee to us....on the house!

The Pan Andino is fairly dense and sweet. It's great with coffee or tea....as a light dessert. It was nice gesture as well.

Apparently they make their own bread. On my previous visit; I saw a guy buy five loaves of this bread!

If you've never had an arepa; think of an unleavened "bread" that looks like an English Muffin......but if made well (and they do it well here) that's where the resemblance ends. These arepas taste oh so "corny" and I believe a nice amount of fat is used, which makes these arepas more moist than their Colombian counterparts which I've had.

Alle had ordered her favorite breakfast Arepa; the Reina Pepiada; an arepa stuffed with shredded chicken mixed with mayo and avocado. Think of it as a wonderful chicken salad. Also, Alle recommended getting the arepas griddled (asada) instead of fried; which really created a firm, but moist and bready texture. The corn flavors came through quite well.

Alle wanted me to have a taste of her arepa, so I grabbed the knife and fork; but she told me to put those away saying: "you're mi pana, so grab it with your hands and have a bite....no; two bites." I came to find out that "Mi Pana" means "My Friend" or "My Buddy" in Venezuelan slang. Loved the flavors; perhaps a bit on the rich side, but not overly salty, slightly milky from the cheese; the flavor from the arepa really stood out.

I decided to get what I was told was a breakfast classic....because well, I'm classic (old) and all that. The Perico.

Perico are scrambled eggs which are spiced up and mixed with onions, tomatoes, and peppers. With the pile of cheese, this was a pretty hefty breakfast. This was good; though not as wonderfully satisfying as the Reina Pepiada.

Man, what a breakfast. I asked the woman working if they could wheel me to the car. She said, "I think we can find a wheelbarrow somewhere around here!" I love these folks. Meanwhile, Alle had a nice discussion with the cook talking about where her family lived in Venezuela and all that.

And so; I thought I had enough for a post. But I guess my stomach thought otherwise. I was really craving the Tequenos and really wanted to try the Arepa Pabellon. The young lady who was working on my first visit was here and was so happy to see me....I really like these folks.

And those Tequenos were even better!

More crisp, more yeasty....man, bread wrapped cheese...….

I decided to get my arepas "frita", fried this time around, which entirely changed things. Just like the difference a frame can make around a painting; this crisp and crunchy arepa added a crunchy texture. The shredded beef was delicious and the black beans really upped the ante with regards to overall flavor. The slices of plantain really added a pleasant creamy, light sweetness and the cheese on this arepa, which was like a crumbled cotija was a bit more salty and stood up well to all the other flavors. I'll definitely get this again.

On this visit; I noticed this sign near the menus.

Which reminded me of what Alle said while we were having breakfast; "Venezuelans love sweet with their salty; it creates a balance."

Well, if Mi Pana keeps making sweet and salty dishes like this....I'll definitely keep coming.

Mi Pana
2241 Highland Ave.
National City, CA 91950
Hours:
Mon - Fri 10am - 8pm
Sat - Sun 9am - 8pm

It's always great trying new cuisines and dishes I've never had. And even better when the food is good, I have a great guide like Alle, and the folks making and serving the food are gracious and nice like at Mi Pana.

Comments

[kat]

sounds like a gem!

[Soo]

Looks like a great place I need to visit!

[Kirk]

I really enjoyed my visits Kat!

Check them out Soo. I enjoyed the Venezuelan items.

[RedDevil]

Great review! On my list now!

[Kirk]

I think it's worth checking out RD. Plus, the pricing is quite reasonable.

[Junichi]

My friend was raving about this place last week. He found it on the way to Machete.

[Kirk]

I think it's worth a visit Junichi!

[caninecologne]

Those tequenos...I must try them! I saw this restaurant pop up as new on the 4 lettered site. Glad you were able to check it out a few times. Venezuelan food is something I haven't had too much of (just once at a food cart in PDX).

[Kirk]

Hope you enjoy CC! My Venezuelan friend loves this place.

[kendi]

Soooo excited to try this place. I keep reading about arepas and adore plantains. Thanks for the review.

[Kirk]

I hope you enjoy Mi Pana Kendi! Please let me know what you think after you check them out. Thanks so much for commenting!

[Jenne]

My friend and I checked this place out yesterday—delici-yoso indeed!
Thanks for the recommendation

[Kirk]

Happy Holidays Jenne; it's so nice to hear from you! Glad you enjoyed Mi Pana

[Janfrederick]

Oh man, I need to bookmark this.

[Kirk]

Hey Jan - Haven't been south of the 94 since the pandemic started; but a friend told me that Mi Pana is doing takeout. So go for it!