What to Eat in Santiago: Pastel de Choclo, Seafood and Fuentes de Soda

Shaped by Chile’s 4,300-kilometre Pacific coastline and the irrigated estates of the Central Valley, Santiago’s culinary repertoire celebrates cold-water shellfish, sweet summer maize, braised meats, and unpretentious counter dining. Alongside contemporary restaurants in Vitacura and Barrio Lastarria, the city’s most enduring institutions are its traditional picadas (neighbourhood taverns) and stainless-steel fuentes de soda (lunch counters).

Pastel de Choclo, Humitas and Empanadas de Pino

During summer and early autumn (December to April), giant native sweetcorn (choclo) dominates Santiago menus. Pastel de choclo is baked in a black clay dish from Pomaire and layers minced beef, sautéed onions, cumin, raisins, black olives, hard-boiled egg, and chicken beneath a golden crust of ground corn and fresh basil (albahaca). Humitas steam the same basil-scented corn paste inside tied corn husks. Year-round, bakeries turn out empanadas de pino, square-folded wheat pastries baked in wood ovens with juicy diced beef, onions, olive, and egg.

Pacific Seafood: Caldillo de Congrio and Machas a la Parmesana

Overnight refrigerated trucks bring Humboldt Current fish and shellfish daily from the Pacific coast to Mercado Central. Celebrated in Pablo Neruda’s poem Oda al Caldillo de Congrio, caldillo de congrio is a restorative broth of pink or black conger eel simmered with white wine, potatoes, tomatoes, onions, and coriander, served steaming in a clay bowl. Other signatures include machas a la parmesana (pink surf razor clams baked on the half-shell with butter, white wine, and Parmesan cheese), pastel de jaiba (creamy crab gratin), and grilled reineta.

Fuentes de Soda: Completo Italiano, Barros Luco and Chacarero

Pull up a stool at a classic fuente de soda along the Alameda or Avenida Providencia, such as Fuente Alemana or Confitería Torres (founded in 1879). The completo italiano tops a Vienna sausage with diced tomatoes, a thick blanket of mashed Chilean Hass avocado (palta), and mayonnaise, echoing the colours of the Italian flag. Equally popular are griddled steak sandwiches on crisp marraqueta bread: the Barros Luco (beef and melted cheese, named after President Ramón Barros Luco) and the chacarero (thin steak topped with green beans, tomatoes, and sliced green chilli).

Mote con Huesillos and Maipo Valley Wines

On warm afternoons, carts on Cerro San Cristóbal ladle out tall cups of mote con huesillos, an alcohol-free refresher of dried peaches (huesillos) simmered in caramelised cane sugar and cinnamon over husked wheat berries (mote). In the evening, wine bars pour coastal Sauvignon Blanc alongside peppery Carmenère and structured Cabernet Sauvignon from the Maipo Valley.