Pilar Altamirano
Pilar Altamirano, CEO of Yape! Gourmet, exhibited her products from Peru at the TRA Marketplace in San Antonio last week.
The Texas Restaurant Association Marketplace last week in San Antonio was well-stocked with products suitable for Mexican/Latin restaurants. El Restaurante publisher Ed Avis was there, manning the el Restaurante booth, and visiting other booths. Here are a few interesting items he found there:
Comal Mexican Restaurant Supplies – This company, which is located in Houston but
manufactures its products in Monterrey, Mexico, showed a wide variety of interesting products, such as comals and other cast iron cooking and serving ware; some interesting stands for the serving ware that make it more useful on tables; and a hand-cranked tortilla maker. www.comalrestaurantsupplies.com
Yape – If you use Peruvian ingredients in your dishes, you’ll like the selection from this company. They exhibited several varieties of pastes – such as Mirasol Pepper Paste and Guajillo Pepper Paste – as well as a large number of other classic Peruvian ingredients in brine, marinade, and juice form. Especially interesting is their line of sweet ingredients that are based in quinoa. http://www.yapegourmet.com
SuCabrito – Do you use cabrito in any of your cooking? If so, you may want to check out SuCabrito, which imports young goats from Mexico for the foodservice market. They also import lamb and mutton. www.sucabritousa.com
SuKarne Premium Meats Co. – Another meat vendor was just around the corner from SuCabrito. SuKarne also imports meat from Mexico, primarily beef. It is supplying a number of retailers in Texas, but can serve foodservice clients, too. www.sukarneglobal.com
Nasonville Dairy – You surely already use a lot of cheese in your restaurant, but if you’re
looking for something a little different, check out the line from this Wisconsin cheesemaker. They were handing out samples of their cheddar and jack cheeses loaded with peppers, from XXX Habanero to Scorpion Pepper to Chipotle Cheddar. Imagine a fun cheese plate with those flaming flavors! www.nasonvilledairy.com
HS, Inc. – Our good friends at HS were exhibiting their line of taco holders, molcajetes, salsa dishes and other tableware. Interestingly, owner Sue Burnett said one of the most popular items at the show was their simple spreaders, which make a lot of kitchen jobs much easier. http://www.hsfoodservers.com/
Matador Processors – This company provides a line of premade, easy-to-serve Mexican apps such as Stuffed Relleno Teasers (like a mini chili relleno) and Stuffed Cheese Bites. Fun options for your bar. www.matadorprocessors.com
Tajin Fine Grind – Tajin is well-established as a rimmer and seasoning in Mexican restaurants, but now the company is offering a “fine grind” version that sticks better to chips. Just think how thirsty your bar patrons would be after digging into a bowl of tortilla chips sprinkled with Tajin! http://www.mexilink.com/tajin.html
Mineragua – This sparkling water from Mexico is not really new, but Novamex was serving it in
a variety of fun mixes, such as pear and rosemary fizz. Find recipes here: https://www.facebook.com/JarritosMineragua