What is “soul food”? The dictionary describes it as the humble food of the people of West Africa brought to the deep south of the United States. But I know a woman born in North Africa who brought her food to the Southern most part of North America. In my opinion her food is “soul food” because her food is directly linked to her soul.

Lory Manzo, of Soul Sisters 2.0, and I have been chatting over text for a couple of months now. During this time I have learned a lot about this incredible woman. She is open, warm and encouraging. Our bond was immediate. Here’s a bit of what she shared with me about her life.

“I was born and raised in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, where I lived until I was 14 years old. I then moved to Rome with my mother, where I studied tourism.”

“Cooking has always been a fundamental part of my life. I learned the basics of Ethiopian cuisine from the women in my family — my mother, my grandmothers, my sister, and the woman who helped raise me — and they shaped my culinary foundation and identity.

At the same time, after moving to Italy, I was also learning Italian cuisine from my mother, my sister, and my grandmother. My mother is a chef in an Italian restaurant in Torvaianica, and in many ways, cooking runs through my entire family.

My grandfather, my father — who is especially skilled with grilling, barbecuing, and even mixology — and my uncles, who are known for their antipasti, all influenced my passion and understanding of food.

Over the years, I have traveled and lived in several countries, including Thailand, Indonesia, Australia, New Zealand, Fiji, Brazil, and Malaysia. Through these experiences, I discovered new cultures, flavors, and techniques, which I now incorporate into my fusion cuisine, while always staying deeply connected to my roots.”

Soul Sisters 2.0 doesn’t have a static menu, instead offering different dishes at different times. All reflecting Lory’s culinary experience. Sometimes it’s Italian, sometimes ribs or a slow cooked stew. You can see her offerings by following her on social media and placing your order in advance for delivery.

I was most excited to try her Ethiopian food. A favourite cuisine of mine. I love the experience of sharing one large communal platter with my table mates in the traditional Ethiopian way.

Lory’s Ethiopian food is totally authentic, the only exception being the injera, it’s the spongy crepe like bread that is traditionally used to scoop bite fulls of food from the platter. She has had to create a reasonable facsimile because the grain used to make it isn’t available in Mexico.

We enjoyed a lunch combination of three stews. Zighini, a rich and spicy ground beef stew, full of flavour and punch. Key Wot B Siga is a dish of stewed potatoes and beef slices with berbere spices was absolutely delicious.

My favourite dish was the Alicha Wot B Siga, a stew of tender beef, potato, and carrot in a chickpea based yellow curry. Each dish had a distinct flavour but married beautifully together. All soaked up in that tasty spongy flatbread. Wow, I’ll be thinking of this meal for a long time.

Lory’s Ethiopian menu also features a wide variety of vegan options including sautéed spinach with garlic and ginger, a potato, carrot and cabbage combination, a beet dish, and one of red lentils.

So that explains the “soul” part Soul Sisters, but what about the “sisters” part? Lory’s philosophy is that women should support and uplift each other. “That has always been at the heart of everything I create under the Soul Sisters name.” What started as a t-shirt logo, which she sells to this day, Soul Sisters morphed into a bar in Centro in 2018 which sadly closed due to covid.  Lory adds, “I am someone who believes deeply in rebirth and reinvention. Instead of seeing it as an ending, I chose to see it as an opportunity to evolve. That’s why I created Soul Sisters 2.0 — the next chapter.” And that explained the “2.0” part.

Today, Soul Sisters focuses on homemade, soulful food through delivery, as well as private bartending and private chef experiences in people’s homes. Recently Lory introduced her newest creation, Fiesta Chica Baskets, designed to bring beautiful, curated food experiences to special moments and celebrations. An offering of three tapas style baskets featuring the Mediterranean combo of meatballs, croquettes, caprese salad and dipping sauces. The Vegan basket of hummus, baba ganoush, cous cous salad, pita and falafel. Or the one I’m craving the Seafood basket of shrimp cocktail or tuna bites, ceviche, guacamole and pico with homemade tortilla chips.

I wish Lory nothing but success and I wish each of you the opportunity to try this delicious food and maybe even meet its creator.

Kath’s quote: “A recipe has no soul. You as the cook must bring soul to the recipe”.-Thomas Keller

Love never fails.

The idea of La Mesa came to Paige Miller while reflecting back on her time walking the Camino de Santiago in Spain. For those that don’t know, the Camino is an ancient network of pilgrim routes across Europe, primarily leading to the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in Galicia, Spain. It is a popular, 1,000-year-old pilgrimage walked by many for various reasons including spiritual growth, reflection, and adventure.

“Almost nightly I found myself surrounded by new friends and faces, and with limited dining options available before 9:00 pm in Spain, I often ended up organizing the creation of a meal that my new friends could all enjoy together.”

“Nightly, we ate well; we laughed hard; and we shared stories from our home countries, as well as stories from that day on the Camino. We left the table feeling more connected to life and humanity, with full bellies and overflowing hearts.”

Paige’s hope is to recreate that feeling of community here in Isla Mujeres, Mexico. While she is not a professional chef, she’s a fine cook who draws on her wealth of knowledge of the recipes learned throughout her world travels to 97 countries and counting.

Now this pop up event is happening with some frequency.  The evening I joined the table it was Moroccan night, inspired by Paige’s travels through that country.  It was held in the space shared by Dulzura Argenta Bakery and el meraki located on Juarez. The roof top location was the perfect setting. And the owners of those two establishments are providing support to Paige as she pursues this vision.

As we were greeting we were all given name tags with our first name and a word that came to mind when we thought “Morocco”.  I was Sue “Marrakech”. We spent the first half hour mingling with our fellow dinners, eventually settling to two long tables for our family style meal.

Paige started us off with full baskets of tender flat bread and a large platter of garlicky hummus and assorted vegetables.

The salad course of tender greens tossed in a cumin citrus vinaigrette was a lovely transition into our main course.

Bowls of fluffy couscous with toasted almonds accompanied

delicious chicken stewed with apricots and black olives. A very traditional Moroccan meal. It was lovely to pass the food around the table and enjoy it communally.

For dessert we had two options prepared by the talented Gabriela of Dulzura Argenta Bakery. Orange blossom cake with cardamom

or poached pear in star anise syrup. I had a taste of my friend, Tammy “Dancer” perfectly poached pear. I had the orange cake which while scrumptious, was too large for me to finish so just like family, it was passed down to table mate Frank “Camel” who happily helped me out.

While I very much enjoyed the food, it was the people that made this night so special. Sitting at my table were people from the U.S., Canada, Germany, the Netherlands, and Isla, by way of the EU and UK with ages ranging from young ones in their mid 20s to those in their 70s. Paige had placed some conversation starters under each plate but there was no shortage of chatter as people shared about themselves, their travels and their love of the island. It was was a wonderful way to be reminded that we all have more in common than we do things that separate us.

You can follow La Mesa, Isla Mujeres on Facebook or Instagram for upcoming events. If you would like your own private event or have a group and want to invite others to join your table, that can all be arranged by contacting Paige.

Kath’s quote: “It was was a wonderful way to be reminded that we all have more in common than we do things that separate us.“- Sister Sue

Love never fails.

When you think about dining in Mexico, Chinese take away is not likely at the top of your list of expected options, but Chef Aaron Castaño decided to change that when he opened El Dragon Isleño in 2020. I asked him “why Chinese?”, his reply, “because I like it”.  And you can tell that is true when you sample his yummy food.

El Dragon launched as strictly delivery, out of a friend’s garage, later moving into the Cañotal market. They settled in their current location two years ago.

Located on Medina, at the south end of the air strip, and across the street from the four Emmanuel Sanchez murals. They have a small number of tables where they provide sit down service.

While the vast majority of their business is delivery I’m glad we experienced the food onsite, for a number of reasons. Chef Aaron will tell you that food that has to be transported in “to go” containers is never as good as food straight from the kitchen to your table. Based on the popularity of this restaurant’s delivery the take out must be very good, but the food we enjoyed in-house was even better.

The small rectangular black plates, the tear drop dipping bowls, Chinese tasting spoons, angular noodle bowls, and chopsticks perfectly set the theme of the cuisine adding to the aesthetic. In contrast the wooden tables and chairs and concrete floor remind you you’re in a Mexican neighbourhood restaurant, where in my opinion the best food is often found.

We started our evening with delicious flash fried tuna coated in black and white sesame seeds and topped with a cilantro sauce. This dish is referred to as an “amuse-bouche” French for a “mouth amuser”. It’s a complimentary treat from the kitchen for those who dine in house. It’s designed to showcase a chef’s style and prepare the palate. It changes often so you never know what to expect.

Next we had veggie spring rolls served with a dark sesame and mirin dip. I’m a fan of sweet and salty so I dipped my spring rolls in the very tasty sweet and sour sauce. The perfect flavour combination, the rolls were piping hot, crispy and packed full of veggies.

Next up was a big bowl of lo mien. Served with six meaty jumbo shrimp, these noodles were flavourful without overpowering the delicate taste of the shrimp. The noodles were toothsome with a perfect texture. I can not wait to eat the leftovers later today.

The grand finale was the Costilla bourbon. A pork rib that was slow roasted for five hours and coated in the Chef’s specialty sweet bourbon sauce. The way the unctuous bit of fat melted in my mouth, coating it with flavour, will not soon be forgotten. This stellar piece of meat was served with fried rice, mashed potatoes and steamed vegetables.

So if you’re craving some Chinese delivery, give El Dragon a call. But to fully appreciate the work of Chef Aaron I would recommend dropping by to enjoy the full experience, including watching the chef in action and enjoying some great conversation. If not everyone in your party is into Chinese, never fear, there is a separate taco menu to choose from as well.

Kath’s quote: “I was eating in a Chinese restaurant downtown. There was a dish called Mother and Child Reunion. It’s chicken and eggs. And I said, I gotta use that one”. — Paul Simon

Love never fails.

Last year I had the pleasure of meeting Andrea, the owner of el meraki, an incredible vegan/vegetarian restaurant in Isla Mujeres, Mexico.

I was so impressed with her passion for healthy, delicious food and her desire to bring together community. It hadn’t been an easy road for Andrea and the el meraki team. The struggles faced by small specialty restaurants on the island are real. From very slow low seasons to the rising costs of rent, it can be an uphill battle.

Recently she found herself unable to continue in the space el meraki had occupied for three years. With a month and a half till she would no longer have a space, she reached out to her community. The result was the most amazing partnership was formed.

Enter Gabriela and Marita, owners of Dulzura Argenta Bakery. These sweet ladies have run their bakery located in Centro since 2018. It’s a wonderful space on a rooftop with seating and the bakery. They felt they could accommodate the needs of, the soon to be homeless, el meraki into the space.

It’s a perfect partnership. The bakery operates daily from 8:00 – 6:00 serving the most delicious empanadas and offering all kinds of decadent baked items, as well as custom cakes.  el meraki is open 9:00 – 3:00 providing vegan and vegetarian breakfast, lunch, juices and smoothies. Customers can order from both menus at the same time. They also share a, not very large, kitchen. Which, on a typical day, has five women working in it simultaneously, sometimes as many as seven. The good news is it is working well, due to these three women sharing a common vision.

They compliment each other so perfectly. Marita and Gabriela provide wisdom and experience, while Andrea and team bring a youthful energy. They bounce ideas off each other and both Gabriela and Andrea told me they feel less alone on this journey.

Now, on to the food. My friend and I started with a juice of the day. It was a refreshing combination of pineapple, mango, orange, cucumber, celery, and carrot. It is so nice to taste juice that has not been altered and is in its purest form.

We shared two plates of breakfast as we both like a little savoury and a little sweet. Starting with the omelette that was filled with zucchini, onion, mushrooms, and yellow peppers, all perfectly seasoned. There is something about the eggs here that put the eggs at home to shame.

Next we had the “Sunrise of memories”, oatmeal banana pancakes, served with agave and fresh fruit. Gorgeous in taste and presentation.

But alas, we had only experienced half of what this joint establishment has to offer. We absolutely had to have some Dulzura dessert. Though we could only manage half of it at the restaurant, the pieces we took home were fabulous later that day.

We had to try Gabriela’s special postre chajá, a traditional cake of her homeland. A vanilla biscuit base, moist sponge cake, along with layers of dulce de leche, whipped cream and peaches. It was light and creamy and the peach added a touch of tang.

Next up was Marita’s Patagonia tart, from her region of southern Argentina. This is a chocolate lovers dream. A rich chocolate crust is layered with dulce de leche caramel and chocolate ganache with a bit of whipped cream and fresh raspberries.

This place is so much more than great food and lovely beverages. It’s community. You feel it as soon as you reach the top of the stairs. Both friends and first-timers are welcomed with equal enthusiasm. The ladies love to bring people together through events such as a recent chocolate making workshop, their Spanish conversation table, or themed evening dinners. It’s a place to nourish both your body and soul.

Kath’s quote: “Food brings people together on many different levels. It’s nourishment of the soul and body; it’s truly love.” – Giada De Laurentiis

Love never fails.

On this trip I decided to check out more of the great take out options here on Isla Mujeres, Mexico. When we first started visiting the island, more than twenty years ago, I had never heard of anyone ordering food for delivery.  Of course there was a wide variety of food carts where you could pick up a bimbo dog or a taco. We loved to pick up a rotisserie chicken or find Tito, the Rib Man, on a Sunday afternoon. It was a nice change to relax in our room or around the pool instead of always going to a restaurant.

 Isla food scene changed significantly when Covid hit in 2020. Restaurants shut down and people stopped going to the corner taqueria. Restaurants started offering home delivery and people started selling food from their home kitchens. The result is there is now a wide variety of takeout and delivery options available.

Last night we had the pleasure of having dinner from El Fogoncito. We had the medium sized chicken burger which came with fries. The fries were thin and crispy, just how I like them. We ended up cutting the burger into quarters and I was only able to eat a quarter. Of course we also ate another dish. But to say this burger was huge is an understatement. I can’t imagine how big the large size is. The chicken was breaded in a crunch coating and was layered with ham, bacon, cheese, lettuce, and tomato, with just the right amount of mayo. A yummy combination. The large sesame bun was fresh and provided a good bun to burger ratio.

The other dish we shared was the chicken cordon bleu. The breaded chicken was tightly wrapped around a generous portion of ham and cheese, very flavourful. Served with pasta al burro that was buttery and delicious, along side carrots and zucchini. Again the medium portion was more than we could finish.  But we are thrilled to be having the leftovers for dinner tonight.

El Fogoncito, meaning “the bonfire” in English, is a two year old family business owned by husband and wife team Jesús Chan and Zury Yazmin.

Jesús shared “our specialty is hamburgers and breaded chicken” and I can see why it’s such a hit with locals.  The offerings are economically priced, especially considering the large portions, and obviously made with much love.

You can follow the Isla Mujeres’ Food Facebook page to see their menu posts. Order on WhatsApp where they’ll be able to help you in Spanish or English.

Kath’s quote: “Live, love, eat!”- Wolfgang Puck

Love never fails.