Family-owned eatery aims to honor Venezuelan roots

Anthony Calero is trying to describe his food to a new customer over the phone.

“Yes, arepa,” he said before spelling the savory maize dough treat for the caller. “A-R-E-P-A. If you’ve never had an arepa in Venezuela, you haven’t really tried one.” That is, Calero explains, until now. On Oct. 28, Arepa Pueblo, a new Venezuelan Café opened in the Palm Johnson Plaza in Pembroke Pines. The family-owned eatery is the brainchild of Calero, 27, after never being able to find an arepa as good as his mother’s.

“Other arepas I’ve tried, they’re not crispy enough,” he said. “I’ve eaten this food since I was as young as I can remember.”

The restaurant serves 18 different types of arepas, with fillings ranging from breakfast options like scrambled eggs with onions and tomatoes ($5.99), to a chorizo stuffed variety ($7.99), and even a vegan alternative with black beans, plantains and avocados ($6.99).

Calero’s favorite is the pernil, or roasted pork. Growing up in a Venezuelan household, he said that arepa tastes like Christmas to him.

Prices start at $5.99 and nothing on the menu is more than $10. Everything is made in-house with recipes originating from Anthony’s mother, Mariela.

“We want people to feel at home here,” she chimed in before heading back into the kitchen — where you can usually find her.

“Everyone knows my mom for a different type of food,” Anthony explained. “My friends know her for her arepas, her co-workers knew her for her beef, my family knows her for her empanadas” — which Arepa Pueblo offers in four different options, including beef, chicken and fish ($1.99-$2.50). “My mom’s empanadas are like potato chips.” He said with a grin. “You can’t just have one.”

Mariela’s husband of 29 years, Anthony’s father, Antonio, also put his signature on Arepa Pueblo — the coffee.

“My dad is Colombian so that’s where the coffee part comes in,” Anthony explained.

There are 12 types of coffees on the menu, ranging from the classic espresso to Nutella cappuccino and macchiato. Mariela also put her touch on three regularly available desserts, quesillo —a Venezuelan flan, tres leches and torta de pina, a pineapple upside down cake (all $2.99).

The process to open Arepa Pueblo took about two years. “It’s like buying a house,” he said. “I worked as the handyman, I ripped out the floor, painted the walls, built the benches,” he gestures toward a wooden booth where multiple people can sit together.

Arepa Pueblo is located at 9940 NW 6th Court, Pembroke Pines 33024. The cafe will serve breakfast, lunch and dinner. Call for hours: 954-367-2279.