The cooking of the Dominican Republic is a fine culinary example of Hegel’s Dialectic, the 19th century German philosopher who came up with the notion that when a thesis met an antithesis, it formed a new synthesis. Which, in this case, translates as a confluence of the dishes and ingredients of Spain, the Middle East, African and Indigenous peoples like the Taíno.
The result is some of the best Caribbean cooking in town — food found at the affable, cheerful mall café called El Bacano, home of “Sabor Dominicano.”
We have a fair number of Cuban restaurants here in SoCal. We have Puerto Rican restaurants, albeit a rarer sight. But when it comes to the cooking of the Dominican Republic — which shares the island of Hispaniola with Haiti — there are hints of it here and there, at several Caribbean restaurants.
But El Bacano may be our only restaurant that serves exclusively Dominican chow. And darned good it is, too.
Because it’s a dish with so much history, let us first consider the side dish referred to on the menu as “Moros.” Which is a shortening of the colorful full name “Moros y Cristianos,” which translates as “Moors and Christians” — a dish that apparently earned its name during the period from the 8th century through the 15th century when there was an African-Muslim regime governing the Iberian Peninsula. “Moros” referred to the black beans; “Cristianos” to the white rice.
The dish persists at El Bacano, where it’s prepared three ways: With rice and black beans, rice and red beans, and rice and pigeon peas, all cooked together and flavored with oregano, garlic, onions and tomato paste. Each of the Moros are prepared on a pair of days — six days of Moros, for the six days El Bacano is open.
Another section of the menu is dedicated to “Beans & Peas” — four preparations in this case, akin to the Moros y Cristianos, but without the Cristianos.
And there’s more starch to be found on the menu: the mangu is a cousin of the Puerto Rican standard mofongo, a dish of mashed boiled green or sweet plantains, flavored with salami or longaniza sausage, fried cheese, and a pair of fried eggs. It’s a dish that sticks to your ribs — and various other internal organs as well.
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But though we can live on beans and rice alone (they’re a complete protein as I recall), at El Bacano you certainly don’t have to. The menu begins with the heading Casa Favorites. And they’re favorites for good reasons.
One of them is called Santana’s Chicken — and it’s chicken as good as it gets. Long cooked till it’s falling off the bone in a marinade of garlic, onions, oregano, cilantro and more, served over white rice and black beans (and lots of them). It’s a big order of chicken for $16, a good deal of which I took home. It was even better the next day. Long cooked proteins are like that.
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The same is true of the dish called La Bandera — beef cooked till it’s on the verge of collapsing into its basic elements, so tender it barely needs to be chewed, in the same marinade as the chicken, which seems to be the universal flavoring at El Bacano — and there’s nothing wrong with that.
It’s also used on Machi’s Chicken, which is fried to an admirable crunch. On the pan-fried thinly sliced beef. On the pan-fried pork chops. And on the sautéed pork.
It’s also on the pescado frito and the camarones guisado. But not on the bacalao guisado, made with codfish salted to preserve it. Or in the “Sancocho Dominicano” — a stew of pork, chicken and beef, with plantains, kabocha squash, corn on the cob … and a Taino tuber called yautia.
For those in need, there’s a Chimi Burger, seasoned with that universal marinade, topped with mayonnaise and ketchup. There’s a tostada with salami or ham, and cheddar cheese. There are empanadas. And unexpectedly, there’s a Chimi Dog — a hot dog with shredded cabbage, onions, mayo and ketchup. You can swap the french fries for fried plantains.
There are smoothies, because this is SoCal, and it’s the law. And anyway, one of the smoothies is made with the Caribbean tropical fruit called zapote. But no black beans.
Merrill Shindler is a Los Angeles-based freelance dining critic. Email mreats@aol.com.
El Bacano
Rating: 3 stars
Address: 13009-1/2 Victory Blvd., North Hollywood
Information: 818-210-0026, www.elbacano.com
Cuisine: Dominican/Caribbean
When: Lunch and dinner, Tuesday through Sunday
Details: Soft drinks; reservations not needed
Atmosphere: An unexpected treasure in a shopping mall, what may be our only Dominican restaurant, brilliantly showcasing the unique cooking of an island we need to know better.
Prices: About $20 per person
On the menu: 7 House Favorites ($16-$20), 3 Sides of Moros ($5), 5 Orders of Beans & Peas ($4-$8), 3 Sandwiches ($12-$15), 6 Other Specialties ($3-$20)
Credit cards: MC, V
What the stars mean: 4 (World class! Worth a trip from anywhere!), 3 (Most excellent, even exceptional. Worth a trip from anywhere in Southern California.), 2 (A good place to go for a meal. Worth a trip from anywhere in the neighborhood.) 1 (If you’re hungry, and it’s nearby, but don’t get stuck in traffic going.) 0 (Honestly, not worth writing about.