Note 26th June 2016: I recently found out that La Mina no longer exists. Out it went and in came an Asian restaurant. It’s true that Bogotá is full of overpriced restaurants with food that isn’t worth the buck (usually pricing is one notch higher than the food quality) and retarded service like slow and […]


Colombian sweets/desserts take sweetness to a whole different level, on par of the Middle-eastern sweet pastry baklava or the Indian Jalebi! So you have a sweet tooth? Not a problem! Get some arequipe! Arequipe is equivalent to the more commonly circulated name, dulce de leche, in Spain and many other Latin American countries e.g. Argentina. It […]


Harry’s Bakery is one of those cafes that simply entice you with large-size cakes on display, usually too many of them for you to be able to make a decision. The cake size and selection indicate that it’s an American-style café rather than a dainty patisserie. After thinking long and hard, evaluating between choosing my longstanding favorites […]


I was in a small, typical Colombian cafe (you know, one of those that look scruffy but dish up amazing food, just like those in HK!) when I first came across this peculiar oval-shape fruit. Apparently tree tomatoes are different from the usual ones that we put in our salad or pasta..  I had a […]


Dunkin has done very well in Colombia, especially among the middle class, by offering good value. And they fit in well here because Colombians have a very sweet tooth. Their desserts are very sweet and a lot of which are made from milk and a kind of caramel (arequipe). So Dunkin has definitely got their […]


For those who have had enough of beans and potatoes from the Andean cuisine, costeña food offers a reprieve with its interesting fusion of Caribbean presence (fish-bias) and Arabic influence (which includes falafel and aubergine-filled tamales!). The sweet and fluffy coconut rice and round, ball-shaped butifarra sausages certainly make an interesting change from plain rice and […]


The answer is an Aromatica! In a country of which its name is synonymous with coffee, it is hard to find an alternative hot drink. Coffee is so ubiquitous that it’s drunk everywhere, at any time of the day, in the form of a tinto, a black coffee. However, few people know that majority of the […]


er.. Yes.. I am cheating and posting something that I have written for a local newspaper here.. Well technically it still fits the bill – something about Colombia and something that I have written! This exhibition of the Muiscas gold offering objects is a fascinating view into the past of Colombia. It’s a pity that the […]


It’s been 3 months since I last wrote! After such a long period of absence I have decided to come back with vengeance no matter what! I have said initially that the day I stop writing here is going to be the day I stop getting any cultural shock. Well quite the contrary is true […]


Dulce Mini Mal is all about innovation. The café dishes out divine cakes and tarts using ingredients that are typically representational of ‘Colombia’, championing ‘all-things-Colombian’. So instead of going to a patisserie expecting all the familiar options like Oreo cheesecake or chocolate gateaux, you will find a creative take on sweets, such as the guava […]