It was not long after I bought my first bistec picado that I swore I’d never order it again. The dish is one of Panama’s staples—a stir fried beef dish with vegetables and a light tomato sauce—and to be fair, the first time I tried it was an embarrassment to cafeterias and open-air fondas around the nation.

The beef was from the lower crust; lots of pebble-like hunks of fat which had not been cooked long enough. They resembled, in texture and taste, warm Vaseline. It was strange that the fat had not been rendered, I thought to myself, considering the vat of beef appeared to have been sitting there for several months. The edges of the pan showed the point, not unlike a rising tide line on the beach, where the bistec picado had originally been. The distance was dauntingly long.

It was served along side a spoonful of white rice as well as a small salad which was, truthfully, meager. Lettuce as limp as fabric, a slice of under-ripe tomato, and a dash of pepper on top. Alice Waters would have had a fit.

I tried to hide the discomfort as my host for the meal was hold a steak knife; eventually putting away nearly one third of the portion I had been so kindly gifted by a fat woman behind the counter wearing a shirt that said “I’m a Sexy Bitch”. I’m pretty sure the woman was sporting a slight beard.

My bistec picado incident was soon thereafter concluded when I smuggled the remaining beef into a napkin which I slipped in my gym bag. It’s an embarrassing feeling, having to fake eat your hosts’ food in a foreign country because you don’t want to offend anyone.

In the end, I decided to give bistec picado a second chance and order it again. And truth be told, it was a very enjoyable dish. Much of the experience depends on the quality of the ingredients, so for your introduction, stay away from the fly-ridden roadside stands. Try a nicer restaurant, perhaps Tinajas in the banking district, for a decent go.

This post's rating:

Related Stories

Filed under: Country Guide on January 28th, 2008