Usaquén

Though there is a sprinkling of traditional Colombian stalwarts concentrated in North Philly—Tierra Colombiana and El Bochinche among them—Bogotá native Mel Tenorio always felt there was room to bring the flavors he grew up eating to his adopted hometown. After executing a series of successful pop-ups out of Fishtown’s Philly Style Bagels, Tenorio introduced Usaquén, named after the neighborhood of his youth, to a cozy corner space in September 2017. While Colombian food is by definition a fusion cuisine, built upon centuries of influences from Europe, Asia and elsewhere in Latin America, Tenorio has taken this idea a step further, offering personal riffs on fare like burritos, shakshuka and a full English breakfast. But plenty of native favorites are still in play: Mainstays on the menu include cayeye, a pepper-plantain hash topped with queso blanco and a fried egg, and a pork belly that’s served on pan de bono (cheese bread) baked from scratch.