Pork tamale with red mole sauce from Tamales Acapulco de Doña Tere
Torta ahogada ("drowned sandwich") made with barbacoa beef from the Pipirin taco stand
Two types of pozole from Obelisco Restaurant
Left: Mangonada from Nieves Cinco de Mayo in the Fruitvale Public Market
Right: Iced cardamon coffee from Reem's California
Cheese man’oushe (left) and Sfoof (turmeric orange tea cakes) from Reem's California
Baklawa (baklava) from Reem's California
Pistachio panna cotta from Reem's California
This past Saturday I was invited to attend a press preview of Savor Oakland's new food tour through Fruitvale. Savor Oakland has been putting on tours that combine food, culture, and history in Oakland since 2012. Like all of their tours, ours began with a warm beverage made with arroz. We then walked over to the Tamales Acapulco de Doña Tere and enjoyed pork tamales with red mole. Next, we briefly visited El Charro market, where they sell goods like masa (the dough used to make tortillas) and interesting fruits that can be hard to find elsewhere.
The tour also includes a look at murals in the area, which are used to preserve the history of the ever-gentrifying neighborhood. We saw one mural depicting the Chicano Movement of the 1960's that was quite beautiful. After hearing a brief history of Fruitvale and about its abundant fruit carts, we tried torta ahogada (a sandwich "drowned" in salsa) made with barbacoa beef at the Pipirin taco stand, which has been in the area for over twenty years. Then, we stopped outside the beautiful St Elizabeth Church across the street.
Next, we walked over to Obelisco Restaurant to try mango agua fresca, horchata, three types of pozole, and homemade tortillas. At the Nieves Cinco de Mayo stand inside the Fruitvale Public Market, we tried my favorite food from the tour, the mangonada, a drink made with chamoy sauce, mango, lime juice, chili powder, and a tamarind straw that reminded me of those Lucas candies I had in elementary school. Our tour ended with pastries and iced cardamon coffee at Reem's California, a new cafe selling traditional Arab street food right next to Fruitvale BART station.
I would like to thank Christina of East Bay Dish for inviting me and our tour guide, Ferron Salniker of Ferronlandia, who blogs about food from California and Mexico. We all had a great time!
Check out more posts from Oakland.
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