Food & Drink

Large cuts of beef grilled low and slow over charcoal, then sliced to order. Bolivian grass-fed beef is on another level — richer and more flavorful than anything you'll find in Europe. Served with rice, fried plantains, yuca, and salsa.

Savory-sweet baked empanadas with a juicy filling — Bolivia's iconic morning street snack. Get them before noon, that's when the best ones sell out.

A massive shared platter of chopped beef, sausage, fries, peppers, eggs, and tomatoes. Classic Cochabamba party food — perfect for groups.

Breaded beef cutlet layered on rice and potatoes, topped with a fried egg and fresh salsa. A hearty Cochabamba staple.

Grilled beef heart skewers seasoned and charred over open coals. Find them at street stalls in La Paz after dark.

Rich peanut soup with vegetables and pasta — surprisingly delicious and deeply comforting. A Cochabamba classic.

Spicy pork stew with hominy corn, served as a hearty breakfast in La Paz. Locals swear it cures altitude sickness (and hangovers).

Fresh corn masa mixed with cheese and spices, wrapped in a corn husk and steamed or grilled. A sweet-savory snack found across the highlands.

Small cheesy yuca bread balls, warm and stretchy. A beloved Santa Cruz snack, perfect with coffee.

Deep-fried pork until golden and crispy, served with mote (hominy) and llajwa. Weekend lunch tradition.

Thick, creamy soup with corn, potatoes, melty cheese, and fragrant wacataya herb. Pure comfort in a bowl.

Mashed yuca mixed with cheese, shaped and grilled on a bamboo skewer over charcoal. Smoky, cheesy street food from the east.

Spicy salsa made from fresh tomatoes and locoto peppers, stone-ground. Served with literally everything — Bolivia's essential condiment.

Hearty highland soup with chuño (freeze-dried potato), lamb, vegetables, and wheat. Warming, filling, and perfect for cold La Paz evenings.

Beef tongue slow-cooked in a rich, spicy ají amarillo sauce with potatoes and peas. Sounds adventurous, tastes incredible.

Tiny, intensely sweet bananas — nothing like the bland supermarket ones back home. Sold in bunches everywhere for almost nothing.

Bolivian avocados are huge, buttery, and absurdly cheap. Sliced onto everything from bread to soup — you'll never go back.

Sweeter and more aromatic than European varieties. Street vendors peel and slice them on the spot with salt and lime.

Juicy and fragrant, common at breakfast buffets and in fresh juices. Best in the tropical lowlands.

Bolivian peaches — small, intensely flavored, and sun-ripened. Also dried for mocochinchi, the classic street drink.

Santa Cruz's pride — a thick orange rind hides sweet-tart translucent flesh. Seasonal, addictive, and impossible to find outside Bolivia.

Custard apple with creamy, vanilla-like flesh. Mark Twain called it "the most delicious fruit known to men." We agree.

"Ice cream bean" — long green pods filled with cottony sweet pulp you suck off the large seeds. Fun to eat, surprisingly good.

Prickly pear cactus fruit — refreshing and mildly sweet with tiny seeds. Common in highland markets, vibrant pink or green.

Small tart fruit from the Santa Cruz lowlands with a tangy kick. Used in juices and jams — worth trying fresh if you spot it.

Sweet passion fruit cousin with a brittle orange shell — crack it open and spoon out the jelly-like pulp. Milder and sweeter than maracuyá.

Guava — fragrant, pink-fleshed, and intensely aromatic. Eaten fresh, as juice, or cooked into thick paste with cheese. Unmistakable smell.

Passion fruit — wrinkly outside, explosively tangy and aromatic inside. Incredible as fresh juice, which you'll find everywhere.

Artichokes grow beautifully in Bolivia's highland climate. Steamed or grilled, often served with a simple vinaigrette — tender, earthy, and surprisingly common in local markets.

Bolivia's national spirit — a grape brandy from the high valleys of Tarija. Smooth, aromatic, and proudly Bolivian.

Singani mixed with ginger ale and lime over ice. Bolivia's signature cocktail — refreshing and dangerously easy to drink.

A warm, thick purple corn drink spiced with cinnamon and cloves. Sweet, comforting, often paired with pasteles in the morning.

Tea brewed from coca leaves — mild, earthy, and the first thing you should drink when arriving at altitude. It genuinely helps.

A cold, sweet drink made from dried peaches rehydrated with cinnamon and cloves. Sold in bags on the street — refreshing on hot days.

Singani shaken with tumbo (banana passion fruit) juice, sugar, and ice. Tangy, tropical, and dangerously smooth.

Fresh-squeezed orange juice, made to order at market stalls for pennies. Sweeter and more intense than anything from a carton.

Passion fruit juice — explosively tangy and aromatic. Order it at any juice stand and watch them blend it fresh.

Creamy, sweet papaya blended with water or milk. A breakfast staple — thick, filling, and tropical.

Fresh pineapple juice — sweet, tangy, and instantly refreshing. Blended to order at any market juice stand.

Thick, creamy mango juice — fragrant and tropical. Best in the lowlands when mangoes are in season.

Fresh-squeezed mandarin juice — bright, sweet, and citrusy. A market favorite that tastes like sunshine in a glass.