Arepa Bar

Si se les antoja probar una arepa venezolana, tienen que visitar este local. Probé una arepa pabellón, la cual tenía carne mechada, frijoles negros, platanos maduros, y queso blanco. Me encantó la textura de la masa crujiente al exterior y la mezcla del dulce y salado de los maduros con el resto de los ingredientes. Estuvo absolutamente riquísima y me dejó super full. Tienen otras variedades de arepas para aquellos que prefieren algo vegetariano tal como la arepa dominó o también te dan la opción de rellenar tu arepa tal como tu quieras (tipo a la carte). También tuve unos tequeños que estuvieron divinos. Comparten el local con dos restaurantes, uno peruano y otro mexicano. Hay suficiente espacio y estacionamiento para grupos grandes. ¡Se los recomiendo y buen provecho!

This place is so yummy and has a million options, even if you are vegetarian or vegan. I like that it's kind of in a food court with three different restaurants, and it's huge, so it's a good place to bring a group. Service was excellent. I especially loved the green sauce that came with our bowls!

This place is wonderful, there's more than one restaurant inside this place. My husband and I ate at two different restaurants. Is our second time coming here and the food is delicious and well presented. The place looks very neat and clean. There's music playing in the background at all times. You get to seat and order wherever you want. I ate at Arepa Bar and everyone was very nice. I got the Queen Arepa and it was delicious, the chicken was a little hard for my taste but it was still delicious. Definitely recommend the Tequeños (is like a cheese stick but better:)). The ladies come and check on you after you get your food. Super nice ambiance and great service.

If you're wondering what an arepa is, it might be easy to compare them to Mexican gorditas or Salvadorean pupusas--all delicious corn "pockets" to hold flavorful fillings. There are slight differences between them though, and what makes arepas unique is that they are usually made with precooked cornmeal (masarepa) and stuffed after cooking. Arepas are very common in Colombia and Venezuela. Arepa Bar is a Venezuelan style spot that's in the same building as Inkanto (Peruvian) and Granada (Mexican juice bar). They all went through the Kitchen 66 restaurant incubator program and it's so cool they collaborated to be in a brick and mortar spot together. Doña Carmelita (Mexican food) is also in the same building, which has been there for a while. The place itself looks great since I last visited. They painted the outside and it looks a lot better! I love how spacious it is and how much seating is available. There was Salsa music playing when I walked in, so they made my dance heart happy. Arepa Bar is run by three sisters. The two that helped me were super nice. I wanted to try as many as possible and got four arepas even though they tried to tell me that I'd be satisfied with just one. They weren't kidding (makes sense since they're $11 each!). Their arepas are HUGE (see pic with my hand for reference). I could only fit two at a time on my plate. They also don't mess around with the amount of filling- all of them were bursting with it, so much so that I had to take some out so I could hold it more easily without it falling apart. I didn't want to use the bag to eat it but that might have been easier. This just shows I need practice in my arepa-eating so challenge accepted, I'll definitely be back! The bar is setup for you to make your own, so we went with the shredded chicken and avocado, avocado and mushroom, beef with cheese, and one with only cheese. The classic cheese one was my favorite but the mushroom one was great too. The bags they use to put them to go are super cute. The marker they used was neon so it was hard to tell what kind they were but we figured it out. The arepa sauces are so good too! I think one had garlic, crema and cilantro and the red one was spicy- will ask about this next time! There's also an option to make it a bowl and include beans, rice, or plantains. They have Venezuelan chicha, which is similar to Mexican horchata, made with white rice, but it's extra creamy and thick-- they use three kinds of milk. The consistency caught me by surprise at first. I felt like I needed a spoon instead of a straw. Finally, we tried their chocolate marquesa no-bake dessert. It's made with layers of Maria biscuits, condensed milk cream, and butter. Their serving for this is also very generous. I could only eat a small corner at a time.

The vegan arepas are delicious. There isn't really a vegan arepa on the menu but there are vegetarian ones so ordering could be easy. That wasn't quite the case. I don't know what happened between the time the photos posted here were snapped and my visit but the menu looks different and the arepa wrapper is plain white paper. There is no writing on the wrapper at all. So no one, no vegan at least, is being set up for a successful order here and this also leaves the person behind the register in a more awkward position than they need be. For example, when we ordered two arepas from the menu, the two that looked vegetarian and most easily veganable, and tried to explain we didn't want the cheese, that we were vegan, a lot of questions came from behind the counter and then from us, and then from them, and back to us, etc.... Denoting a vegan/vegetarian item would reduce the amount of time per order (a plus for restaurants, no?), help ensure clarity on both ends, and that the orderer receives what they meant to order. There are a lot of things listed on the arepas menu, many of which may or may not come with a meat juice base or stock, cow boob juice butter, etc., or not- depending on the place. Denoting vegan, vegetarian next to items on the menu would help a lot. So after clearing up what was vegan and available to sub into an arepa (though no information was volunteered, each item needed questioning from us when ordering), the person behind the counter asked us if "you want real mushrooms?" So now we get to figure out what was meant by "real" mushrooms! That was weird. Like, was the question 'do you want mushrooms or magic mushrooms' because yes and yes please! I'm down to clown of a Wednesday afternoon! Sure I drove but I can handle my $h!+ and ordered a Lyft, no problem! Or are "real mushrooms" cooked in meat juice or cow boob juice? After asking we didn't really get any clarity. I asked if they were cooked in or with any beef, chicken, pork, or fish, they weren't. I asked if they were cooked with cow boob juice or cow boob juice products, they weren't. I asked "they are just mushrooms right? They aren't animals, right? They aren't made from animals, right?" They were not. I said "these mushrooms are not animals, they are a fungus, right?" The answer was "well I'm vegetarian so I don't know." What? Like, wwwwwwwhhhhhaaaaatttt? I'm vegan and I know what a steak is. I'm United Statesian and I know what bonito flakes are. I'm a he/him and I know that Sure is strong enough for me but is made for she/hers. I am 1/2 of a DINK household and I know how to change a diaper, even though I have never (good lords willin' & the crick don't rise) touched one while it was on a living creature. coitus, I bet I could even point out all of these things in a line up. So, short story long, we never were able to get to the bottom of what was meant by a "real" mushroom (where are those damn meddling kids when one needs them?!) or even if this joint had fake, or unreal, or imaginary, or like fourth dimensional, or square root of negative one mushrooms because, at this point, we'd been having the back and forth for quite a spell. I didn't end up having a special grin or seeing any geometry after lunch but I didn't end up with any GI issues either so let's call it a wash. Again, the arepas were fantastic. I do wish it was easier to order and/or look at the menu and determine what was vegan (or vegetarian, or...). The place is great, just plan on taking notes, doing some bullet pointing, generating an essential question, formulating a hypothesis, testing that hypothesis, iterating, testing again, rinse and repeat, until one has solved for X or the itis takes hold. Strap on dear reader, you're in for an adventure!And the tea is southern style sweet tea, again not listed anywhere on the menu that the 'beetus comes free with each order of tea. I love the food hall this place is in and I R E A L L Y want to give more stars. I really, really, really want to give this place more stars. But the amount of words exchanged without a clear answer is not ideal.Five stars to the food hall though. The space this joint is in is rad as hail.

I love Arepa Bar! It's part of a mini food hall with two other restaurants, so if your friend wants to try the Peruvian place, you can order separately and sit together. The arepas are delicious, and every time I go, the sweet owners suggest a topping or side I might try that makes it even better. I appreciate that they have multiple vegetarian options, too. My favorite is the Domino Arepa, with black beans, plantains, and cheese. So tasty!

Food is fresh, very filling and VERY tasty. The people behind the counter are attentive and kind- we've been 3 times and today we are going a for our fourth!

Everything about Arepa Bar is incredible! The employees were so helpful and the food was amazing.