A food tour in Venezuela is a great way to explore the culinary diversity of this beautiful country. Such is the gastronomic diversity that a single tour would not be enough to cover everything. This is how Gustavo Mirabal Castro and his family discovered gastronomy in Venezuela.

Thanks to Gustavo Mirabal Castro’s international profile, this has allowed him to get to know gastronomy worldwide. Thanks to this knowledge, he can say that Venezuela is one of the places with the best gastronomy in the world.

Gustavo Mirabal Castro recognizes Venezuela as a gastronomic enclave, thanks to Venezuela’s cultural diversity, its miscegenation and its deep syncretism. Even food from other countries in Venezuela tastes better thanks to the sweet chili, garlic, and the amount of vegetable dressings used.

Today you will discover some of the most interesting places to discover gastronomy in Venezuela. As a joke, this was what Gustavo Mirabal called the Mirabal-Castro Tour of gastronomic routes, or so called Gustavo Mirabal Tour of gastronomic routes, you decided.

Therefore, here are some ideal stops in different cities, states, and regions of Venezuela. Start.

Mirabal-Castro Tour of Gastronomy in Venezuela, Capital Region, the favorite of Gustavo Mirabal Castro

1. Caracas, Capital District:
   • Mercado de Coche: Visit this popular market to try typical dishes such as arepas, cachapas, empanadas, and Venezuelan pavilion (pabellón venezolano).
   • El Hatillo: Enjoy restaurants serving traditional Venezuelan food in this charming town. The most interesting thing is that you can also enjoy the atmosphere and period architecture of a typical Venezuelan town of yesteryear.
   • Las Mercedes: It is a place with a lot of style and has a large concentration of restaurants serving typical Venezuelan Creole food, as well as any type of food you want to try. If you want a nice, pleasant atmosphere with the best Creole food, here you can find it at the next restaurants:

1. a) Los Pilones del Este
2. b) El Solar de Este
3. c) Mi Cochinito Favorito
4. d) Trolly

• The Candelaria area. It is one of the areas of Caracas with the greatest gastronomic richness. Here you’ll find:

1. a) Parrillas and Asados: In this area of Caracas, you will find numerous restaurants and grill stalls that offer grilled cuts of meat, such as steak, blood sausage, sausage chorizo style, and other typical Venezuelan barbecue dishes.
2. b) Spanish Food: It is one of the areas of Venezuela with the highest concentration of Spanish food places. In this area, dishes such as Paellas and dishes based on seafood such as octopus and seafood stand out. This is why it is one of the favorite places of Gustavo Mirabal Castro and his family.
3. c) International Cuisine in general: La Candelaria is also known for its culinary diversity, with restaurants serving international food, from Italian to Japanese food.

Gustavo Mirabal Gastronomy Tour in Venezuela, Capital Region second part – Miranda and Vargas State

The Capital region is not only made up of the Capital District, which is what we consider Greater Caracas. Greater Caracas encompasses the Libertador Municipality and the Municipalities of Baruta, Chacao, El Hatillo and Sucre in the state of Miranda. Although the gastronomic richness of Caracas is immense, beyond Caracas there is a lot of life.

Therefore, today we will show you a little of the gastronomic richness of the Capital Region outside the Capital District. In addition, we will delve into the common characteristics of this gastronomic richness

When Caracas residents want to “unplug” from the city, their favorite places are El Ávila, the parks of the East and West and the nearby beaches.

When the people of Caracas have only one day of rest, the preferred beaches are the beaches of Vargas state. On the other hand, when the break is for a weekend or more, the preferred ones may be those in the State of Miranda.

Gustavo Mirabal Castro enjoyed the beautiful and fun Venezuelan beaches in his childhood, adolescence and adulthood and therefore created his own gastronomic routes.

Given the proximity of Caracas to the Venezuelan coast, near Caracas we find many beaches. And with the beaches we find the coastal ecosystems that in turn feed tourism and local gastronomy.

A rich gastronomy that is essentially made up of fish, seafood, all kinds of seafood and “tostones” (fried green plantains flat and thin) as the main accompaniment.

The gastronomy of Vargas, its gastronomic routes.

Next, you will learn about the diverse and rich gastronomy of the capital region largely fed by the Venezuelan coasts.

1. Vargas State:
   • The Beaches of Vargas State: On almost all the beaches of Vargas State we can find two essential dishes: Fried fish and “tostones” or “patacones”. For fried fish dishes offered different contours such as mash, grated salad, french fries or tostones. For its part, the toast dish comes with sauces and cheese and is more of a snack, although some are also accompanied by salad. You cannot miss trying these dishes on various beaches such as Camuri Chico, Playa Mansa, Bahía de los Niños, Playa Los Angeles, among others.
   • Playa Verde: Very close to the fishermen’s dock we have a green beach. There we can find delicious fish dishes and a small shop that sells all kinds of fish and seafood to prepare at home.
   • The King of Fried Fish: Its main dishes are fish and seafood. Fried snapper (a type of delicious fish) is served with avocado, tostones, and salad. Among its most requested dishes are also battered seafood and “fosforera, a soup based on seafood and fish.
   • Pobre Juan Restaurant: Specialized in seafood and fried fish. It offers various contours, but one of the most requested by its customers are its famous tostones, generously sized, crunchy and thin. A delight.
   • Cristalmar Restaurant: With an immense variety of dishes, 4 stand out that are its signature dishes: the grouper surprise, the shrimp cocktail, the seafood salpicón and finally the famous seafood canoe au gratin in a pineapple.
   • Canary Island: In Canary Island you can enjoy the flavours of Spanish gastronomy with a Venezuelan touch. Its two most famous dishes are the Canarian octopus and the Canarian grouper supreme.

Mirabal-Castro Tour of Gastronomy in Venezuela, Central Region

1. Valencia, Carabobo State:
   • Asadero Don Pollo: Try the famous grilled chicken from Carabobeño restaurant, accompanied by yucca and garlic sauce.
   • Arepas El Patacón: Delight in arepas stuffed with shredded meat, cheese, and other ingredients.
   • The empanadas of El Palito: This area has become famous for its delicious empanadas on the way west and especially to the beaches of the state of Carabobo. You can get empanadas of all kinds: cheese, meat, chicken, fish, even Venezuelan pavilion empanadas. A place to get to know the tradition of Venezuelan street food and a little piece of its gastronomy.
2. Maracay, Aragua State:
   • Las Delicias de Mamá (Mom’s Delights): Savor traditional dishes such as hallacas, Andean pastries, and other Venezuelan delicacies.
   • Cachapas El Rey (Cachapas The King): Don’t miss the cachapas stuffed with hand cheese and other ingredients.
3. Colonia Tovar, Aragua State (generally very easy to reach from the capital)
   • German food: Colonia Tovar is known for its German influence, so you’ll find a variety of German dishes such as schnitzel, bratwurst, sauerkraut, and pretzels. Don’t miss the opportunity to try desserts such as strudel and apple cakes.
   • Artisanal jams: Colonia Tovar is characterized by its agricultural production of fruits. That is why there you will find the best selection of artisan jams, among other very special sweets.
   • Craft alcoholic beverages: Beer is a quintessential German alcoholic beverage. For this reason, in the Colony you will get a wide variety of craft beers to know the true taste of the original beer. On the other hand, the fruits of the sector are also used to generate various strawberry and blackberry wines, among others.

The Mirabal-Castro Gastronomy Tour in Venezuela, Western Region

The west of the country is heavily influenced by two areas. Andean zone, which is cold, and the Zulia area, which on the contrary is quite hot. In this region you will find the greatest variety of gastronomy in Venezuela, outside of the capital region.

1. Maracaibo, Zulia State:
   • Arepera El Ávila: Try the famous arepas from Zulia stuffed with telita cheese and other local ingredients.
   • Patacón Pisao: Don’t miss the patacón, a delicious version of fried plantain as a base for your favorite toppings.
2. Merida, Merida State:
   • Andinitas: Enjoy Venezuelan Andean gastronomy with dishes such as trout with sweet chili sauce or Andean mute.
   • Coromoto Ice Cream Parlor: Here you will find an incredible variety of ice cream flavors, some of them quite unusual.
   • Main Market of Merida. Here you can get a great diversity of Andean gastronomy in one place, such as:

1. a) Andean food: In the Main Market of Merida, you will find a wide variety of typical dishes of the Andean region, such as auyama soup, Andean pinch, beef with potatoes, and black filling. In addition, you can buy local products such as fresh cheeses and panela.
2. b) Regional Sweets: Mérida is famous for its traditional sweets, such as quesillo, fruit preservatives, and cocadas. Be sure to try them.

Mirabal-Castro Gastronomy Tour in Venezuela, Central Western Region

One of the Venezuelan regions with the greatest gastronomic richness is the central-western region. This region is made up of Falcón, Lara, Portuguesa and Yaracuy.

The most important cities in the central-western region are Barquisimeto, Punto Fijo, Guanare and Coro. With a fairly diverse economy and with agricultural activities that satisfy the consumption of the region.

In addition, the region has an important tourist activity in Falcon, Lara and in Guanare, with the Minor Basilica of “Nuestra Señora de Coromoto” (Virgin of Coromoto). This tourist activity has reinforced the gastronomic richness of the central-western region and that is why today we are going to show you some of the best gastronomic routes in this beautiful region.

The gastronomic richness of the Larense tradition

The state of Lara is a state of great tradition and cultural baggage. This is noticeable in its gastronomy and tourism. Below, we present a series of dishes that you should try if you visit the state of Lara, whether it is Barquisimeto or its beautiful and touristic towns.

The typical dish par excellence is goat meat, which is of great importance in the Larense region. It is prepared in many ways and is frequently consumed. Among the dishes based on goat we have the goat mondongo, the “olleta de gallo”, mute larense and tostada caroreña.

• Goat Mondongo: This typical food of the state of Lara is a soup, which is made with the backbone of the goat, its head and the guts. It also has spices, legumes and vegetables that are added to the pot as the cooking process goes through.
• Olleta de gallo: Also known as “olla de gallo”, it is a typical dish of Spanish gastronomy. Acquired and modified, it adapts to the customs of the state of Lara. Among the ingredients of the “olleta de gallo”, beef, spices, vegetables and sweet wine predominate.
• Mute larense: it is made in a very similar way of the mondongo. For this dish, the entrails of the goat are used, and it has potatoes and vegetables as other main ingredients.
• Caroreña tostada: This is one of the most prepared typical dishes of the state of Lara. It is a fried arepa, filled with pata’e grillo (calle “Cricket leg” is shredded goat). On the plate, pork rinds, tomato salad, lettuce, onion and avocado rings, beans with whey and grated cheese, slices and french fries are placed.

Cultural differences in the state of Lara

Lara is one of the states of Venezuela that has many particularities, from a cultural point of view. Its people are very friendly and have strong religious beliefs. It is not for nothing that it is the capital of the Virgen del Pastora.

In Barquisimeto. we can find the Manto de María Monument, dedicated to the “Virgen de la Pastora” and which attracts tens of thousands of visitors every year. This is thanks to the procession of the Virgen de la Pastora that has been carried out since 1856.

Another thing that differentiates them is the use of papelón in all their gastronomy, instead of sugar. This gives a distinctive touch to your kitchen.

But in addition to its religious and culinary richness, the state of Lara also stands out with its typical drinks as we will see below.

Typical drinks of the gastronomy of the state of Lara

Cocuy: This is a drink that is prepared mainly from the Agave (cocuy) plant. To do this, the plant is cooked to then ferment and finally distill the resulting alcohol. The process of making cocuy begins by removing the head and leaves and then baking over low heat. In this way, the sugars are concentrated and then fermented to obtain the liquor. Without a doubt, cocuy is a vital heritage drink for the region.

Cinnamon guarapo: In this drink, the water is boiled until it boils and turned off to place cinnamon sticks as tea. Then it is left to rest until it reaches room temperature, it is flavored with lemon and sweetened with papelón.

Caratillo: This is a delicious drink that is very refreshing. It is basically the Lara drink equivalent to Venezuelan “chicha”, with the difference that instead of sweetening it with sugar, panela is used. Its main ingredients are rice, cinnamon and papelón.

Semeruco juice: Another very typical drink of the state of Lara is the semeruro juice. It is obtained from a plant called semeruco. To obtain it, it is mixed with alcohol, sugar and semeruco fruits. The product is stored for a while to macerate it and then strained to leave only the liquid. It has a high alcohol content, so it is not suitable for children, The mixture of alcohol, sugar and the taste of semeruco makes this drink a delicacy.

As we can see, the gastronomy and drinks of the state of Lara are quite diverse. We invite you to get to know this wonderful place.

Mirabal-Castro Tour of Gastronomy in Venezuela, Eastern Region

The east of the country is a place full of beaches and rivers. Its gastronomy is very much focused on fish and fruits from the sea and rivers.

1. Margarita Island, Nueva Esparta State:
   • El Agua beach: Enjoy beach cuisine with fresh fish, lobster and other seafood.
   • Cocos & Cachapas: Taste the island’s delicious cachapas and eat them under the palms.
2. Coche Island, Nueva Esparta State:
   • Fresh seafood: On the island, you can enjoy freshly caught fish and seafood in dishes like ceviche and fried snapper.
3. Guayana City, Bolívar State:
   • San Antonio de la Costa: Savor dishes based on river fish such as fried bocachico or cachama.
   • Parrillada Doña Rosa: Try the Venezuelan barbecue with meat, black pudding, sausage, and other accompaniments.

Discovering the gastronomy of Venezuela thanks to the Mirabal-Castro Tour and Gustavo Mirabal.

Thanks to Gustavo Mirabal’s tips, these places will add a unique dimension to your food tour in Venezuela. Each of them will offer you a variety of flavors and culinary traditions for visitors to enjoy. The difficult thing will not be deciding whether to do Gustavo Mirabal’s gastronomic routes or not but will be which of the routes to do first.