Food and Drink Guide to Chile: Wetin to Chop and Drink

Why Chilean food go surprise visitors

Chile stretch pass 4,000 km, so the food dey change from the Atacama desert reach Patagonia. Expect plenty seafood, correct corn and meat dish, fresh bread, and wine wey punch pass e price.

Popular dishes make you try

• Empanada de pino — baked pastry wey full with minced beef, onion, one slice of boiled egg, olive and raisin. Na the national snack, e sweet well around Independence Day (18 September).
• Pastel de choclo — sweet-corn casserole wey dey sit on top beef, chicken and egg, dem go bake am till e turn golden.
• Cazuela — soup stew wey get one piece of meat, pumpkin, potato and corn for cob.
• Curanto — one Chiloe feast of shellfish, meat and potato bread, traditional dem go cook am for pit with hot stone.
• Porotos granados — summer cranberry beans with squash and corn.

Roadside food and small chops

• Completo — loaded hot dog with tomato, mashed avocado and mountain of mayonnaise (the italiano version show the flag colours).
• Sopaipillas — fried pumpkin dough, dem go chop am plain, with pebre, or for syrup (sopaipillas pasadas) for rainy days.
• Mote con huesillo — sweet summer drink-snack of dry peach and husked wheat.
• Chorrillana — one mountain of fries wey people go share, dem go top am with beef, onion and fried egg.

Seafood for the coast

The cold Humboldt current make Chile na seafood paradise. Try ceviche of reineta or corvina, machas a la parmesana (razor clam with cheese), caldillo de congrio (conger eel soup, wey poet Pablo Neruda praise well), and erizos (sea urchin) if you dey adventurous. Mercado Central for Santiago and Caleta Portales for Valparaiso na correct spots.

Wetin to drink

• Wine — Chile sabi carmenere, cabernet sauvignon and crisp Casablanca sauvignon blanc well well. Valle de Colchagua and Maipo na easy day trip from Santiago.
• Pisco — the grape brandy wey dey inside pisco sour (with lime and egg white) or piscola (with cola).
• Terremoto — pipeno wine, pineapple ice cream and grenadine; one truly enough.
• Mote con huesillo and fresh fruit juice for those wey no dey drink alcohol.

Practical chop tips

• Lunch (almuerzo) na the main meal; plenty places go offer cheap menu del dia around 5,000-8,000 CLP.
• Dinner dey run late, often after 9 pm. Once na evening tea with bread around 6-8 pm.
• 10% tip (propina) na customary and dem go usually suggest am for bill; you fit adjust am.
• Tap water generally safe for cities but e get plenty mineral for north, so plenty people prefer bottled.
• Try pebre, the fresh tomato-coriander-chili salsa wey dey most tables, and ask for aji if you like heat.

Stay connected for Chile

HelloSIM eSIM go keep you online for map, menu translation and restaurant booking the moment you land, no roaming bill.