El Atino & Co launches in Richmond
Recently launching, El Atino & Co has brought the authentic taste of Latin America to the heart of Richmond. The Bridge Road complex comprises of the EA&Co. Food Store alongside the popular Food Laboratory Café and Cooking School launching in December.
The EA&Co Food Store is the only Latin American food-store and cafe in Melbourne, they invite visitors to try and purchase genuine Latin American cuisine and authentic ingredients, in a vibrant and family friendly space.
The World Loves Melbourne predicts Latin American as a trend to be continued in Melbourne.
The shelves of the food-store include an extensive range of imported goods from all regions of Latin America as well as a brand of EA&Co. house-made counterparts.
Products available at the food-store include Yerba Mate (tea) and house-made Chimichurri from Argentina, Pacoquinha (peanut candy) and Guava Paste from Brazil, a variety of frozen fruit pulps, Plantains and Arepas from Colombia and a crazy array of hot sauces, dried chillies, beans and tortilla flour from Mexico.
Lastly Peru’s selection of chilli pastes, purple corn Chicha drink and their famous flouro yellow Inka Kola, this soft drink is not for the faint hearted.
We dined for lunch with a group of 6 of us and enjoyed the ambience with classic rock playlist from the speakers. The Mollettes with Avocado were a tasty comfort food with melted cheese enjoyment.
The Andina Salad is seriously good; it almost doesn't need protein as it's packed with subtance and goodness including quinoa and steamed beetroot and pumkin seeds, to name a few.
Positive comments also at our table about the hearty Pork burger on the specials menu, served with chips.
The Steak sandwich was also excellent (wouldn't mind a bigger bread roll) with a variety of chips.
El Atino’s house made Dulce de Leche is available for purchase (we grabbed some for later) on its own or inside a decadent Alfajores biscuit. Alfajores are a traditional Argentian treat where the caramel spread is sandwiched between two buttered shortbread-like cookies.
Some of the other house-made products available for purchase include the El Atino & Co Granola, Chipotles in Adobo and range of dried chilies including Pasilla, Ancho, Guajillo, Morita amongst others. All these items are made free from preservatives and artificial flavours.
Many of the ingredients available in the food-store also feature heavily in the Food Laboratory’s menu. For example, the chilies used in the marinade of the 5 Chilies Prawn Tacos can be purchased in store as well as the tortilla flour or already-made corn tortillas.
A selection of take-home meals are also available if you don’t feel like cooking, one favourite is the Cochinita Pibil, slow-roasted Mexican pulled pork marinated in Achiote paste or the famous Argentinean Beef Empanadas.
Images: El Altino and The World Loves Melbourne