A Day Of Latin Flavors

By STEVE KORNACKI The Tampa Tribune

Published: Oct 14, 2007

TAMPA - There was an even more significant Cuban feel in Ybor City on Saturday.

But the sounds of bands and aromas of home cooking from Mexico, Puerto Rico, Venezuela, Colombia, Peru and other Latin American countries also had a strong presence at the Festival del Sabor in Centennial Park.

"This is so vibrant and a fantastic opportunity to experience the Hispanic culture from so many different angles," said Lorena Rivas of Tampa, a judge in the festival's entrees category who is of Venezuelan heritage.

The music of Mariachi Espuelas de Oro, a Mexican band, filled the early afternoon air, and English was definitely the second language in most conversations. But you didn't need to speak Spanish to have a good time.

"The best part is Latin and American people all together having fun," said Maria Lorenzo, owner of Mami's Cafe in downtown Tampa.

Lynn Schultz, manager of the Ybor City Saturday Market, which hosted the event, estimated attendance at nearly 10,000. The festival was presented by Centro Mi Diario and CentroTampa.com, and The Tampa Tribune was a sponsor.

Food was the focus, but vendors with Latin-themed clothing and art were among the 60 vendors.

Owners of West Tampa Cigar Co. set up a cigar bar (minus alcoholic beverages) and dominoes tables. Cigar smokers lounged in leather chairs and recliners while watching a flat-screen TV, and children learned dominoes from adults.

"It's like Ybor in its heyday here today," said Darren Alvarez, who owns and operates West Tampa Cigar with his father, Leo, and brother, David. "This kind of event brings everybody together."

The 21 cooking contest entries came from restaurant owners and folks who usually cook only for their families, like Marty Puig of Tampa. Her Famous Lechon, a roast pork, is cooked with garlic and oregano just like her great-grandfather, Nicolas Cancio Sr., prepared it in Cuba.

Puig stuffed the 11-pound pig leg with the ingredients through a hole made in its skin and cooked it at 250 degrees for 10 hours. "Until the meat falls off the bone," she said.

"I am Italian and Cuban," she said, before extending both arms to make a point. "I have spaghetti sauce in this arm and mojo from pork in my left arm." She chuckled and added that the garlic "keeps the vampires away."

Elsie Ilarraza's guava cheese flan passion finished first in the dessert category and won best of show. Julio Colon's roast pork and rice was chosen the top entree, while Debbie DiStefano took the appetizer title with her mussels a la tuma made with garlic, wine and clam sauce.

Vendors such as Hector Perez, a chef at La Cocina Latin Cafe near the University of South Florida campus, prepared food in front of customers. He cooked shrimp in a flaming pan and added creole sauce before taking plantains out of a fryer and grinding them with a wooden mortar and pestle that was given to him by his mother. Steam rose off the plantains as he worked them into a pork and olive oil mix with the pestle. He ladled garlic over it before forming patties of a Puerto Rican treat called mofongo.

"I love having the ability to share my food with others and have fellowship," Perez said through an interpreter and customer, Roberto Cabrera. "It's important in our culture to have this integration of the Spanish heritages."

Reporter Steve Kornacki can be reached at (813) 731-8170 or skornacki@tampatrib.com.