Atlanta Food Carts » Hector Santiago

Alfresco Scene

Christiane Lauterbach — Sat, 24 Jul 2010 15:29:15 +0000

The best little improvised dining room in town belongs to Hector Santiago of Pura Vida, who gets his staff to drag a heavy wooden table and some chairs across the street and sets up a tent in the parking lot at the corner of Blue Ridge and North Avenue, one block south of Ponce de Leon.

What’s on the menu? chicken burritos wrapped in newspapers, agua frescas, and Mexican pop.

Look at the burritos being made and admire the contraption (typical Hector-the-Handyman) for displaying them upright.

The stand is open Saturdays and Sundays from noon until “the chicken runs out.”

By the way, Pura Vida is starting a lunch program next Tuesday, July 27, selling Latin gourmet sandwiches out of the side door of the building. Super Pan sandwiches will include Pork Belly Coconut Buns, a Chipotle BBQ Beef Sandwich, Jamon Serrano on house made Spanish Coca Bread with manchego cheese & date-marcona almond butter, and more.

Pozole + Funk

Christiane Lauterbach — Fri, 07 May 2010 08:24:54 +0000

Also from Hector Santiago, this slow-cooked pozole with onion, garlic, aromatics, and epazote took the cake (so to speak) at the James Brown celebration and street food festival last weekend. Santiago filled each glass with pozole, radishes, cilantro and onions, and covered the whole thing with the juice left from steaming the chicken for burritos, adding a final flourish of pickled bird chiles on top of the whole glorious thing.

Notice the turntable in the picture? There it is…with the food next to it!

Vendor Gallery: Hector Santiago

Christiane Lauterbach — Thu, 06 May 2010 12:36:15 +0000

During last Sunday’s James Brown Bash in the Old Fourth Ward, one of Atlanta’s greatest chefs dished out freshly cooked burritos wrapped in newspapers.

Hector Santiago of Pura Vida on Highland Avenue is that rare chef who can go high and low with the same passion, talent, and energy. His joining the street food movement is wonderful news!

“El Burropollo is inspired by the burritos I used to eat in my uncle’s restaurant, Burritos Robles in El Paso,” Santiago told us. “Yes…my uncle is a Puerto Rican cooking burritos (he’s been married to my Mexican aunt for as long as I can remember)….He first started Burritos Robles about 40 years ago in Ciudad Juarez., then moved his business to El Paso.”

“They were the hottest burritos I had ever eaten,” Santiago remembers, “and what I love about them is that it was 95% meat and a little garnish. I serve mine with sauces to tame it down but in El Paso they do the contrary…they are truly Chile Heads! ”

Vowing to keep the menu simple, with the addition of a fried item so he can recycle his oil into diesel to help keep his cost down, Santiago is deadset on going mobile.

Gracias to Hector and pura vida, y’all!

[photos by Karl Injex]