A rival to pizza has arrived from at Cumbia Bar-Kitchen

A Colombian-themed cafe in the Central Market gives a welcome twist to the usual bread-based snacks, writes Simon Wilkinson

Ceviche at Cumbia. Photo: Simon Wilkinson

One of the great mysteries of discovering new foods from around the planet is seeing how perfectly they fit with our contemporary diets – and wondering how long it will take for people to catch on.

What will be the next pizza, which, when introduced to Australia by southern Italian migrants, was considered in many circles to be totally uncouth?

I’d like to nominate arepa, the corn cakes that are a staple in a number of South American countries. They are versatile, totally scrumptious (especially when fried to a crisp, golden, crust) and, in this era of ever-increasing dietary acronyms, gloriously GF.

As the demand for gluten-free dining continues to grow far beyond serious, diagnosed coeliacs, here is a substitute with infinitely more upside than most of the joyless breads available now.

Arepa are the foundation for much of the cooking at Cumbia, Adelaide’s first Colombian restaurant, an eatery that has added a dash more colour and ethnic diversity to the Central Market precinct.

Cumbia. Supplied

Co-owner Salvatore Pittelli was running a city cafe, specialising in coffee and Italian-style toasted sandwiches, when he met and eventually married Julietha Burgos Canon. They travelled to see her family, in Colombia, and Salvatore also fell head-over-heels for the culture and food of this new land.

After a long search for the right venue, the couple took over the relocated Cappo’s fish shop, on Grote St, replacing the glare of scrubbed tiles and glass display cases with a handsome spread of emerald paint, timber slats, mosaic features and potted greenery. An exposed brick archway opens to the market stalls, where they parked a hawker’s cart that dispenses takeaway street snacks such as empandadas and pork belly rolls on trading days.

Ceviche at Cumbia

They opened in the middle of winter, bringing a chef over from Colombia to introduce the kitchen to such specialties as lechona, a pork roast stuffed with rice, and the nourishing milky soup, changua, both on sabbatical during the warmer months.

I’ve been calling by for a quick lunch now and then, initially finding comfort in that soup and, more recently, a few versions of bruschetta-style melts (beef and mozzarella / avocado and feta) where the arepa is a bit like a muffin at the base. Then there is the “Lima”, a salad bowl of quinoa and black beans bound in a feisty chipotle salsa, half an avocado, crumbled feta, diced tomato and semi-circles of fried arepa looking all tanned and brown, as if they’d spent a lifetime in the jungle sun. It’s a combination that is more than the sum of its parts.

In recent times, the tapas that had been reserved for a Friday night shindig are now permanent fixtures.

Coco's fish at Cumbia. Photo: Simon Wilkinson

They include coxhina, a Brazilian croquette of shredded chicken and cream cheese in a casing of deep-fried crumbs. A trio of the dumplings are held upright in a mortar of mayo that is also used to spell out “Cumbia” on the plate. Hmmm.

More typical is the Peruvian ceviche, pieces of raw fish “cooked” by the acid of lime juice. On a previous visit, the fish was cubed and the timing of the cure judged perfectly. This time, the flesh has been sliced into thin strips, which might explain why it has tensed up and become quite chewy. Still, the freshness of lime, chilli and diced tomato, scooped on to a sweet potato “cracker”, carries the day.

“Coco’s fish” is a chunky fillet of ling, delicate and barely set in places, balanced on an arepa disc, topped with a pair of peeled prawns and drizzled in a smooth, lightly spiced sauce based on tomato and coconut.

While the lechona is on hold, they serve instead a simpler roasted pork belly, two thick slices of melty meat layers topped with a crackling lid that has so many little bubbles and uniform crunch it is like eating honeycomb. The menu promises pickles but we get two big wedges of baked apple instead, which doesn’t feel terribly South American.

An Italian caprese-style almond meal cake balances the richness of white chocolate with lemon juice and a shot of pisco. It’s clearly freshly baked, amazingly light and a neat summation of this Italian/Colombian partnership.

That’s not all. This cake, and another dessert of sauteed plantain (cooking banana), are totally gluten free.

CUMBIA BAR-KITCHEN

Shop GR43, Adelaide Central Market, Grote St, Adelaide, 0404 131 418,

cumbia.com.au

OWNERS Salvatore Pittelli, Julietha Burgos Canon

CHEF Leonardo Ferreira

FOOD Colombian TAPAS $8-$18

MAIN $25-$36 DESSERT $8-$12

DRINKS Get into the spirit with a pisco cocktail. Small selection of wine, both local and Chilean.

OPEN

BREAKFAST/LUNCHTue-Sat

DINNER Thu-Sat

SCORE 13/20