My South American Adventure

OK. I may have over stated things. I've never been to South America.

But I did just get back from someplace almost as far away and just as exotic.

Kansas City, KS.

I ventured into The Dotte to help Logtar celebrate his 30th birthday. I received a Google Calendar invitation to the event on Friday. I'd met Logar and his lovely wife Bea at a blogger meet at the 75th St. Brewery. I knew I was going to like Logtar as soon as I noticed his Green Lantern shirt.


I recognized some of the other folks on the list and was honored to be invited. It sounded like a fun time.

The invite was to dinner at Rincon Colombiano in downtown KCK.

You can read what Logtar has to say about the place and why it is so dear to his heart here. Charles Ferruzza reviewed it for The Pitch Restaurant Guide here.

I had no exposure to Columbian cuisine, so I solicited Logtar's assistance. He recommended the Bandeja Paisa. Or, as I like to call it, the #1. Here is how it looks on the website.



What we have here is some delicious charbroiled beef, some decadantly scrumptious fried pork rinds (basically "pork cracklin's on the cob"), a fried egg, a Colombian sausage that got better and better with every bite, some fried plantain, a bunch of rice and a mess of beans.

As Bea explained it to me, this is what the coffee bean harvesters would eat before going out to work their asses off all day. I was also told that any true Colombian restaurant will offer this dish. It's a basic. If it's not on the menu, it's not a Colombian restaurant. Turn around and walk away.

In North American terms, this would be the Big Assed Farmers Platter. Think steak and eggs, biscuits and gravy, bacon, pancakes, hashbrowns and a cinammon roll the size of your head.

Before I even touched the food I took a picture of it so as to assist the doctors and nurses in the Cardiac Ward when I had a heart attack half way through the meal. They would need to know what they were up against. You can tell how scared I was by the blurry pick. My hands were shaking that bad.


My dish included a quartered avacado. I didn't get around to trying that. "Avocado" is an ancient Mayan word for testicle. You don't even want to know what guacamole means. But I digress.

Everything was fabulous! This is like the Colombian version of Strouds. This is Colombian comfort food. It was awesome! And the company was great. Fellow bloggers Eric and Michelle were there, lots of Logtar's friends and co-workers. I especially liked Tom. He's an athiest and RenFest enthusiast like me. One of Logtar's co-workers had his infant son with him and he totally stole the show as the center of attention. He was dancing to the music and posing for the camera.

The staff was incredibly friendly and welcoming. It was a great evening.

If you are ever looking for an out of the way, unique dining experience, I can highly recommend the Rincon Colombiano. Good eats!

But I'd probably stay away from the Tongue Stew cooked in "Colombian Sauce".


I get the impression it's like the Colombian version of haggis.


A traditional, national dish that no modern human would dream of actually eating. It dates from a time when people would proudly proclaim "We are so tough, we eat THIS! So don't fuck with us!"

Happy birthday Logtar, and thanks for the invitation!