La Fonda Paisa

Washington DC

South American Restaurant

$$$$

This Silver Springs Columbian bakery and food stop is a cultural exception in an urban area where the reigning Latino group is Salvadorian. The emphasis is on the Paisa region at the foot of the Andes, as the name suggests, and carb-cravens claw for <em>almojabanas</em> (cheesy corn-flour bread balls), <em>buñuelos</em> (fried dough balls powdered with sugar), pan de quesos (something like a danish) and <em>chicharrones de Guayava</em> (flaky sugared pastries filled with purple guava jelly), in addition to an assortment of cakes. Don't stop at the bakery, though: a bodega like lunch counter (you'll grab a numbered ticket) yields whole fried fish, arepas, tamales, empanadas, carne asadas and mixed fajitas. Don't shy away from the daily specials, even if they're unfamiliar (<em>bandeja paisa</em> is a winner: white rice, red beans, black pudding and roasted pork).