Flor's Kitchen

Readers of this blog may recall my fondness for Caracas Arepa Bar. It is easily one of my favorite spots in the city, and I can always rely on their arepas as my go-to meal. Imagine my elation at discovering there's another spot for arepas in the city (yes, aside from the Arepa Lady in Queens - I know I have to visit her)! Enter Flor's Kitchen, a Venezualan restaurant in the West Village. Looking at their menu prior to my visit, I noticed that was more Venezuelan cusine than arepas. And when we arrived at the restaurant, there were even fewer arepas! Not a major problem, just a surprise. One thing I liked about Flor's was the atmosphere. It's located on a corner, so there are lots of windows. While not hugely spacious, there are two small rooms, one of them up a few stairs, creating the illusion of space. And unlike Caracas, they have real napkins.
My friend Stefi (who is allergic to gluten), came with me on my branching out adventure. As per usual, we started with a bottle of wine - that night a Tempranillo ($36).

It was a silky and mellow wine. I loved the glasses they served it in!
We shared the cachapas ($9): fresh corn pancakes with paisa cheese.


This was one of the best selections of the night. There were pieces of corn in the pancakes and the cheese was similar to a parmeasean. They were sweet, savory, and delightful.

Because we got an appetizer, Stefi and I each only got one arepa. She went with the reina pepiada - a chicken and avocado salad filling ($5.50).

I sampled it. The mixture was very flavorful and had more lime than the version at Caracas. She was happy but not hugely impressed by the texture and flavor of the corn patty (arepa) itself.

I chose the arepa barlovento - black beans, sweet plantains, and cheese ($5.50). It is a similar arepa to the de pabellon from Caracas, but without the beef.

The beans were very tasty and more complexly flavored than the beans at Caracas. But like Stefi, I was not enamored with the actual arepa surrounding the filling. I also didn't love the sauces that accompanied the arepas - a spicy green sauce and a guacamole-like sauce. They made me yearn for my Caracas sauce.



Then came an unexpected surprise. Our side order of coconut rice ($5).


Wow. This dish was incredible. It was sweeter than I'd anticipated, but not cloying, with pieces of coconut in the mix. It was heavenly. I would order it to go if I were in the area just so I could have it around. I would eat it for breakfast or dessert. Outstanding.

I will probably return to Flor's kitchen, with appetizers and rice on my mind, but probably not for the arepas alone.

Flor's Kitchen is located at 170 Waverly Place between 6th and 7th Avenues
212-229-9926