<\/a>HEREDIA, COSTA RICA \u2014 If you frequent downtown Heredia, you\u2019ve probably already heard of Soda le Cafard, the city\u2019s hottest new restaurant. Located in the central market, the small, booming new soda offers some of the best comida tipica <\/i>in the Central Valley.<\/p>\n

What really makes le Cafard stand out from the rest however, is its owner and head chef, Daniel Valverde Araya, who just so happens to be a human-sized cockroach.<\/p>\n

\u201cI grew up in a kitchen,\u201d Valverde told El Peji<\/a> on his smoke break over a cup of espresso. \u201cAs long as I can remember I\u2019ve been really, really into food, you know.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

From a young age, Daniel says he has enjoyed the melody of sabores that is Costa Rican cuisine.<\/p>\n

\u201cI never had the palate of a \u2018traditional\u2019 Tico-bicho,\u2019\u2019 he said. \u201cWhile my friends were happy eating Pinguino crumbs, I was creeping into the kitchen to sample the finer stuff: arroz con pollo, olla de carne, manteca. That\u2019s how I started getting into the art, getting a closer look at the pros in action, you know.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

Getting closer usually meant putting himself in harm\u2019s way.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, I almost got smooshed dozens of times. It drove my parents up the wall,\u2019\u2019 Valverde said. \u201cThey always wanted me to be more like my 600 older brothers, you know, to settle down and have a nice wife and a little place under the sidewalk where I could raise my brood. \u00a0A family roach.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

But even family pressure couldn\u2019t keep Daniel\u2019s passion from flourishing. He nursed his dream of being a chef for years, often staying up all night to scurry around dark pantries. Then, thanks to an impulse buy on a trip to the capital, he got the kick in the thorax he needed, he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI took la 400 bus into Chepe to see my cousin, got turned around and found myself on Avenida Central,\u2019\u2019 he said. \u201cLong story short, I bought a bootleg copy of Ratatouille from a vendor. Mae, I watched that movie again and again. I thought: if some rat can make soup, wait til they try my pinto.\u201d<\/p>\n

Valverde isn\u2019t fooling around in his kitchen. He and his team have worked for years honing his skills in restaurants all over the Valley before opening le Cafard.<\/p>\n

\u201cI mean, if you\u2019ve ever eaten in any soda, my friends and I have probably handled your food.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

Soda-foodies agree that this roach can boast a roast. Y\u00f3rdan Torres has eaten breakfast and lunch at le Cafard every day since its opening.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe little guy really knows his way around the cocina,\u2019\u2019 said Torres, squirting an entire bag of natilla on a pl\u00e1tano. \u201cWho cares if he\u2019s a cuca? Actually, these are the only meals I\u2019ve had at the market that didn\u2019t have roach in them.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

When asked about his success, Valverde said he has a message for roaches everywhere: \u201cWhen the kitchen light comes on, don\u2019t scurry away. This country is a cockroach\u2019s dream, so make sure not to let any rolled up magazines, shoes, or useless Raid cartridges stand in the way of your true destiny.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

Via Elpeji.com<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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