Street food on Colombia’s Caribbean coast is among the best you can find in the country. Popular options include salchipapa, picada, chuzo desgranado, perro caliente, and patacon con todo. Every food stand or fast-food restaurant is known for its iconic, often handmade sauces, which give each dish a unique touch.
Barranquilla, one of the region’s most representative cities, is famous for offering the best fast food, where every bite reflects a fusion of ingredients and local creativity.
The Salchipapa, queen of street food in Colombia
The salchipapa is the most iconic street food on Colombia’s Caribbean coast. There are many variations, ranging from simple to mixed flavors.
The simple salchipapa includes French fries, sausage, lettuce, costeño cheese or mozzarella, shoestring potatoes, tomato sauce, pink sauce (a blend of ketchup and mayonnaise), and tartar sauce made with mayonnaise, parsley, onion, egg, and mustard. This is one of the most affordable options, priced between 10,000 and 12,000 pesos (between US$2.5 and US$3)
The mixed salchipapa, in addition to French fries and sausage, includes chunks of beef, chicken, lettuce, sauces, and costeño cheese or mozzarella. This option costs 15,000 pesos.
Picada
Picada (mixed grill) and mixed salchipapa are often confused, but they are different dishes. Picada includes French fries, sausage, chorizo, butifarra (a sausage made from seasoned beef and pork), beef, pork, chicken, lettuce, shoestring potatoes, tartar sauce, and pineapple marmalade. In some places, BBQ ribs and slices of green plantain are added. The price of this dish ranges from 25,000 to 30,000 pesos (between US$6.1 and US$7.4)
Chuzo desgranado (Skrewer)
The chuzo desgranado (skrewer) is a street food icon in Colombia, especially in Barranquilla. This dish includes the traditional costeño bollo limpio, made from ground white corn, accompanied by chunks of beef, chicken, or a mix of both, along with shoestring potatoes. It also comes with pineapple marmalade, tartar sauce, and, in some versions, lettuce. The price is around 15,000 pesos (US$3.7)
Perro caliente (hot dog), Colombia’s street food classic
The perro caliente (hot dog) is one of the most affordable street food options on the Caribbean coast. It comes with sausage, white onion, lettuce, shoestring potatoes, mozzarella cheese tartar sauce, pineapple marmalade, tomato sauce, and mayonnaise, priced at 7,000 pesos (US$1.7). There are other variations, such as the Swiss perro, which features Swiss sausage; the twin perro, with two sausages; and the Hawaiian perro, with pineapple chunks, among others.
Patacon con todo, a typical Caribbean dish
The patacon con todo (patacon with everything) is made from smashed green plantain topped with shredded chicken, shredded beef, chorizo, butifarra, mozzarella cheese, lettuce, corn kernels, shoestring potatoes, tartar sauce, costeño cheese or mozzarella, pineapple marmalade, pink sauce, and tomato sauce. The price of this dish ranges from 18,000 (US$4.4) to 25,000 pesos (US$6.2).