Pablo Neruda wrote odes to Chilean foods, but he left out one of the most beloved of all: the Completo. Some might think I’m talking about a Chilean hot dog, but don’t be fooled! Don’t believe me? Check out: A Hotdog is Not a Completo.
When it comes to a frankfurter on a bun, it’s hard to beat the Chilean version—the completo—for a colorfully creative revelry in excess gunkyness. And it is so well loved that there are entire Facebook pages dedicated to it! Continue reading
Quick: where was this picture taken?
It’s a pretty safe bet that there’s only one country on Earth that this picture could have been taken.
Do you know?
There are plenty of clues here… Keywords like Fuente de Soda, Schop, Completo, and Buddy Richard are a dead giveaway to the country…
Cueca Brava even provides clues to the city.
Is it clear yet?
Chile of course… that was a no-brainer. But congrats if you named the city as Valparaíso—and quadruple points if you knew the street! (O’Higgins!)
So, for those of you still in the dark… What were the clues? Let’s go through them one by one:
Fuente de soda: a literal translation of the North American “soda fountain,” although in practice, they tend to be more of a type of sandwich shop, rather than the typical ice cream and soda shop that was so popular in the US in the 50s and 60s. For example, I have never seen them serve an ice cream soda (or a banana split or even a sundae), but they do serve beer (schop).
Escudo: One of Chile’s favorite national beers.
Schop: Draft beer. Places that sell schops are often called “schoperías.” As far as I know this is pretty standard Chilensis for a frosty (or not) mug.
Café (express / cortado): Most Chileans tend to drink instant coffee at home (Nescafé, sometimes referred to by purists as “no-es-café” (it is not coffee), has a definite corner on this large market) When they go out, they drink “café café” (coffee-coffee) and say “vale la redundancia” (it bears repeating) to explain that this is no regular coffee (which would be Nescafé) but rather REAL coffee. And it will probably come in a very small (demitasse) cup and often includes a small glass of soda water and a couple of little butter cookies on the side.
The whole coffee vs Nescafé thing warrants an entry of its own… it’ll happen one of these days.
In the meantime know that if you go to a coffee shop they’ll ask if you want “express” (espresso), cortado (café con leche), or capucchino (don’t be fooled by the name—this version comes with a ton of whipped cream).
Completo: Chilean hot dog topped with an abundance of mayonnaise, (see A Hotdog is Not a Completo).
Menú: You might think that a menu is a list of everything a restaurant has to offer. But you’d be wrong. If you ask for the menu, the waiter will be happy to recite the list of daily specials. If you want to see the full list, you’d better ask for the carta.
Colación: When it comes to lunch, Chileans seem to make a very clear distinction between almuerzo, which is the word we all learned in Spanish class for the midday meal, and colación. The term colación is used in relation to the quick-ish lunch that is eaten at school or work, while almuerzo is the leisurely meal eaten at home.
Cueca Brava: Also called cueca chora or cueca urbana, this is the more bohemian side of the traditional Chilean cueca (the national dance, by the way). Valparaíso vies for the title of king of the cueca. (See Choro el Piernal de la Cueca Chora, and while you’re at it, go ahead and take a look at September-style cuecas at Chile’s Fiestas Patrias: Fondas for September).
Buddy Richard: Chilean singer-song-writer and early pop star Ricardo Roberto Toro Lavín created his stage name by from Buddy Holly and the “Englishification” of his given name Ricardo. Born in 1943, his heyday was in the 1960s and early 1970s, but as this sign shows, still performs on a pretty regular basis.
So how’d you do? Did you know the inside tips to Chile?
Posted in Foods, Identity, Language * Idioma, Life Style, Music, Personajes chilenos
Tagged Chile, completo, cueca, cultura popular, customs, food, Music, sándwich, sánguche
Writing the landmark 100th post is a bit of a daunting task. I had intended to post this on December 1, which I had declared Cachando Chile’s 1-year blogiversary, but with all the hoopla over the Alienating Chileans post (which hit and passed the 100 comments mark that day), followed by an enormous amount of real-life events—you know the kind—all those things that get in the way of blogging, but that end up becoming “blog fodder*’ anyway. (*Eileen gets credit for coining this extremely apropos term).
In honor of this landmark, I wanted to look back over my first year of blogging. A lot of territory has been covered here (take a look at the Category list on the right hand side of the page), and I’ve gone through the past 99 posts and selected a few that I think merit another go-round. Some have been reader favorites, some have been particularly fun, other controversial, and others just plain favorites of mine. There are plenty more… but alas I can’t choose them all!
Those of you who have been reading for a while will recognize most of them. Others who are newer to Cachando Chile probably missed some of the earlier bits…
I’d love to know your opinions! Please feel free to leave comments on the individual posts or on the overall concept here. Let me know if you have a favorite I’ve overlooked or if there’s a topic you’d like more of in the future.
The whole blog is about reflecting on life in Chile, but some of the posts hit it more on the head than others…and there are some that I particularly like and think deserve a bit more attention:
The Dance Card’s Full : This is something of a general overview of Chilean culture and my take on why it sometimes seems so difficult to become close friends with Chileans.
I was a Peruvian Dish Towel Smuggler: My unwitting and involuntary foray into an international smuggling incident and illegal alien operation.
SAG and the No-Spice for Chile Campaign: Chile is an island. You may not realize it by looking at a map of South America, but its natural borders make it particularly vulnerable to certain agricultural risks… much to the chagrin and dismay of foodies with a taste for big international flavors.
The Calendar Trap: After nearly 2 decades of hearing it, you would think that I should have learned by now that when a Chilean says “next Wednesday” they mean it literally and not the “next week on Wednesday” as it too often gets translated in my gringo brain.
Santiago Metro: the daily crush: There’s nothing earth-shattering here, but the picture’s worth a couple thousand words when it comes to a snapshot of a crucial bit of the everyday lives of more than 2 million Santiaguinos.
San Lunes: Chile’s Stormy Monday: A personal favorite of playful writing on an age-old problem.
Language has proven to be a popular topic and over the year we have explored slang, false cognates, embarrassing bloopers and faux pas, popular expressions, and bi-lingual humor.
Glossary & Chilenismos : This list of Chilean vocabulary and expressions has grown over the year into a linguistic guide to speaking “Chilensis,” which surely has little to do with the Spanish you learned in school (or anywhere else, for that matter!)
Chilean Spanish Spoken Here: a Rooster from the Glue : A rollicking linguistic free-for-all started by Canadian comedian Eileen Shea that wreaks havoc on the languages and commits some serious linguistic abuse while engaging in inter-linguistic puns and nonsense for an entertaining look at Chilean slang.
Ya Pasamos Agosto: that most frightful and fateful month of the Chilean year prompted a long series of euphemistic bucket-kicking, farm-buying, daisy-pushing expressions.
Chilean Expression: Born with a Hardroll under the Arm: More odd-sounding expressions that make life and language more interesting.
Beware those dangerous little words that seem so familiar but that can really trip you up if you aren’t careful! Here are a couple examples:
Cynical or Cínico: Think of the English definition while using the word in Spanish will get you into hot water. Be sure you know the difference!
Flirting with Frugal: Once again, those little language quirks play their tricks on words that seem to be the same but aren’t…
All things food related, especially anything to do with slapping something between 2 pieces of bread.
Sánguches: written by founding partner “El Viejo,” this is the all-time top Cachando Chile hit, with a good review of Chile’s truest comfort food.
Anthony Bourdain loves Lomitos: Foodie rockstar Bourdain made the front page of the local news when he was spotted chowing down one of Chile’s favorite sandwiches.
A Hot Dog is not a Completo: As anyone who has ever been in Chile surely knows, the Chilean concept of a frankfurter on a bun has little to do with the good old mustard-smeared variety that is so popular in the US.
Cola de Mono: Who knew that this traditional cold hooch & milk Christmas punch would turn out to be such a hot topic? Curiously enough, it and its sister post with recipe (Cola de Mono: Chile’s true Christmas Spirit are quite a popular duo at Cachando Chile.
When I first started blogging, a friend in the know told me that controversial topics make the best posts. I don’t normally go looking for trouble, but I did manage to stir up a bit here here and there bz pushing a few buttons here along the way.
Dogs are a topic all in themselves. I’ve posted about them three times this year and people’s opinions range from one extreme to the other, represented in It’s a Dog’s World and Quiltros & Hero Dogs.
May I Take Your Purse? Certainly stirred up a lot of opinions on cultural practices, trust, friendships, and even a bit of international debate.
Ways to Alienate a Chilean: This post breaks all records for the number of comments and number of participants in the conversation, as well as the broad range of opinions expressed. Phew! I never dreamed it would provoke such a response, and frankly I thought the discussion was very rewarding. I certainly hope to come up with more like this in the future!
When I began this blog a year ago, I had not planned on making photography a big part of it, although it is certainly one of my own greatest interests. That changed with time and photography gradualy found its place and greater space in Cachando Chile. Here are a few of my favorite photo essays:
Concón: Looking Good after 468 years, Part 1 and Concón: Looking Good after 468 years, Part 2: A chance encounter with a local anniversary celebration turned into 2 days of fun and photo op.
El Dieciocho: Chilean Independence Day: Chile takes its Independence Day celebrations very seriously. Here’s a look at a typical home celebration as well as a municipal to-do.
Parada Militar: Gotta Love a Parade: The day after Independence Day is Armed Forces Day, and the parade is a major event.
Posted in Expat living, Foods, Identity, Language * Idioma, Life Style
Tagged popular culture, completo, Language, Chile, food, customs, family, Chilean Spanish, Eileen Shea, popular expressions, chilenismos, chilensis, blogiversary
Dear Cachando Readers-
I apologize… once again I fell into the “I forgot I’m at the end of the world” trap. Hanging out with Alice in the rabbit hole again…
It turns out that Anthony Bourdain will NOT be regaling those of us who live in Chile tonight with his quick-witted tales of how much he enjoyed (or didn’t) his time in Chile. My mistake. They had contacted me from the program itself to say that the show would air tonight, but… silly me… I forgot to ask what continent they were talking about. See, with internet and all, it is so easy to forget that “tonight” there may well mean “six months or so” here… so for the time being, we will have NO Reservations and no Bourdain just yet… Apparently it will air here in 2010!!
So now, go have a completo, or a lomito, or an arrollado with a good beer, or better yet Chilean wine to drown your sorrows and wait for the real thing…
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The original post… which WILL be true one of these days! (the links are still worth checking out!)
Anthony Bourdain made waves during his visit to Chile a couple months back as he traveled through the country’s mid-section and on to the south in search of “real food” Chilean style. Hot dogs, lomitos, arrollado, sea urchins, oysters, and wine were on his list of hits… piure definitely was not.
He was taping for his show “No Reservations” and the word is out… the Chile episode will air at 10pm on Monday, July 13 on the Travel Channel.
Wanna know what’s to come? You can catch the drift by taking a look at his itinerary. Then read about what he had to say when he was here at “Anthony Bourdain loves Lomitos” or what he says himself on his own blog: “Antonio/Antonia.” Local gringa expat Liz Caskey was involved in the production and tells her side of No Reservations at Eat Wine, and then you can also see a sneak preview of Tony’s first confrontation with the ubiquitous completo, check this out:
Ask any non-Chilean what food amazed them most while in Chile and they are likely to tell you the “completo.” I have never seen this on anyone’s list of typical Chilean foods, but it should be. Literally 
tons of the things are consumed each year.
Para español, usa la herramienta de traducción o lee el resumen de abajo…
You might think this is a hot dog, but don’t be fooled. It may start out with the same basic ingredient (frankfurter or “vienesa” as they are called here”) but no self-respecting Chilean would ever eat it with just a squirt of mustard. No sir. A completo must be complete! That means ketchup, mustard, relish, chopped tomato, sauerkraut, pickled green chili pepper, gobs of avocado (palta) and an absolutely obscene amount of mayonnaise on a hot dog bun. A variation is the “italiano,” which is a hot dog topped with just chopped tomato and avocado.
You’ll find familiar looking squeeze bottles on the table. The yellow one is filled with runny, grainy mustard, and the red one is probably NOT filled with ketchup, but rather a thick red hot sauce, which many a gringo palate has discovered the hard (or rather the “hot”) way!!
Look for the popular “Dominó” restaurants that have been serving completos and other typical sandwiches since 1952 (downtown at 1016 Agustinas and on Huerfanos and Ahumada, as well as others around town). Or the famous Quicklunch in the covered corridor on the south side of the Plaza de Armas. In both cases are eaten standing at the bar.
For more about Chilean sandwiches, check out “Sánguches.”
And for more about the Flavors of Chile, see: “Tasting Chile.”
Do you have a story about “completos”? Please let us know!
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Un hotdog no es lo mismo que un completo. Básicamente podría serlo, pues consiste en una salchicha (o vienesa, como le dicen en Chile) en un pan alargado. Pero no. Los completos en Chile son verdaderamente completos. Pueden llevar, además de la típica mostaza o el ketchup, tomate natural picado, palta (aguacate), chucrut, cebolla, queso y enormes cantidades de mayonesa.
En las fuentes de soda, lugares donde se comen completos y sándwiches, siempre encontrarás tres botes: uno es amarillo, que tiene, evidentemente mostaza; pero cuidado con los otros dos. El rojo no lleva ketchup, sino una salsa roja de ají picante. El verde es el del ketchup.
La cadena de restaurantes Dominó es clásica y puedes encontrar muchos de sus locales en el centro (calle Huérfanos), así como en Providencia. El Dominó se especializa en muchas otras variedades de completos (con huevo frito, pimientos, etc.)
Ver también “Sánguches” y “Tasting Chile.”
¿Tienes una historia sobre los completos chilenos? ¡Cuéntanos!
