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Holy Guacamole! You’ve gotta eat here! I fell in love with their Instagram (@arepa.ink) account and have been meaning to taste the goods – stuffed Venezuelan arepas! I was happy to see Arepa Ink is located right beside one of my favourite local shops Duck & Dodo and across from Crouch library on Hamilton Rd. Interestingly, located in a laundry mat, don’t let the location deter you from dropping by this gem in #LdnOnt.
Started in 2020 Arepa Ink has grown a following because their Venezuelan-style stuffed arepas have brought a new twist to a staple of Latin American cuisine. Made from cornmeal, a variation of arepa can be found in just about any Central and South American country as a go-to snack or side-dish enjoyed at breakfast, lunch or dinner. What sets these Arepa Ink aprepas apart is they have elevated a simple snack to a full meal because they are stuffed with chicken, tuna or beef. The other ‘twist’ is they ‘ink’ (or inject) the masa (dough) with either spinach, squash or beet puree to make them very colourful (with some additional nutritional benefits).
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If you feel this plump arepa is not enough, add yuca fries, sweet plantains, tropical fruit or sugar cane lemonade and round it off with a churro. You will have the perfect ‘fast food’ meal without all those really bad calories! Just want a quick snack? You can have a simple (vegan and gluten-free) Classic Arepa.
“The Arepa is a naturally gluten-free, vegan, Venezuelan staple made from pre-cooked Cornmeal. Arepas are to Venezuelans, as Bagels are to Canadians.”
Arepa Ink website
Started by two young Venezuelan women who lost their jobs due to the pandemic, they brought a dream to life by opening an areparia in 2020. Mariá Avilán and Carla Calderón run this small restaurant in a very unlikely location but have still made an impact on their community. Besides their awesome use of social media to promote their brand, they have partnered with Growing Chefs for a virtual cooking class to teach kids how to make arepas. You can watch videos on how to make a chicken sofrito stuffed arepa!
Teaching kids how to cook one of the signature dishes is all par for the course for this family driven business. So much so that they named their signature arepas for their daughters: the Luciana, the Camila, the Sofia, and the Marcela. Not to be forgotten, their newer Knight Arepa is an ode to their husbands.
Venezuelan Arepas
Venezuelan arepas are stuffed with wholesome goodness but what makes Arepa Ink’s arepas so good are the ‘pepitas’ (seeds) they add to the masa. Sprinkled with hemp, chia, sesame and flax seeds, they add a unique taste & texture to these traditionally bland white cornmeal tortillas. Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE traditional AREPAS but these are just next level.
The dipping sauces that accompany each unique creation is the PERFECT compliment. I tried the green bestie (parsley & cilantro) and the red passionate (tasty red pepper) to compliment both my Camila arepa and deep-fried yuca. The deep-fried cassava fries are crispy outside and hot and tasty inside, you do not want to miss this yummy side dish! The only drawback is there are only 5 yuca fries for $6 (a bit pricey in my opinion).
I bought a Camila Arepa stuffed with chicken sofrito salad and avocado in a pepitas + classic dough. The gals at Arepa Ink love colour and you have a choice of spinach, beet or squash + pepitas dough to round out the unique flavour combination.
My recommendation
I highly recommend this brand new Venezuelan arepas restaurant in London, Ontario. I know Arepa Ink has flavour combinations and a menu interesting enough which will have me coming back for more. If you have not been, you should try it delivery is available through UberEats, Skp the Dishes and Door Dash or just drop by and pick it up yourself. You’ll love meeting Mariá , Carla and their staff – tell them Margarita sent you 😉.
Stay tuned, I will be updating more pictures and recommendations as I make my way through the menu!
Arepa Ink has two very distinct Venezuelan arepas additions to its menu:
The Knight (pictured access from FB page) slow-cooked pork shoulder marinated overnight in passion fruit!
The Lumberjack. Fusing Canadian and Venezuelan cuisine, their “ode to Canada”, has a dough made with maple syrup and candied walnuts, filled with caramelized apples, peameal bacon, and smoked gouda. YUM!
Need to know:
UPDATE: It is unfortunate that this wonderful eatery has closed permanently. I was sad to hear that although these entrepreneurs tried hard to introduce arepas to London, the pandemic adversely affected many businesses and Arepa Ink was one of the casualties. If either of the two owners opens up another restaurant, I will be sure to update this post.
I have chosen NOT to take down this post because I want others to know about arepas!
Location
547 Hamilton Rd, London, ON N5Z 1S5 (Located inside The Neigbourhood Laundry)
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