Sweet Auburn Barbecue Visits Venezuela for One Night Only

Sweet Auburn Barbecue (BBQ) continues its series of pop-up dinners with a collaboration featuring fellow Sweet Auburn Curb Market resident Arepa Mia on Thursday, April 2. Sweet Auburn’s Asian-inspired barbecue and owner Howard Hsu’s Malaysian-Chinese heritage will combine with Arepa Mia’s Venezuelan menu and owner Lis Hernàndez’s South American upbringing to create a one-of-a-kind menu.

Hernàndez and Sweet Auburn BBQ executive chef Joey Stallings have created a menu that fuses the exciting flavors of both restaurants while also showcasing dishes signature to each. Appetizers include a heart of palm and avocado salad, a popular Venezuelan fried cheese snack known as tequeños and Sweet Auburn’s ribs, given a Venezuelan twist when served with tangy gausacaca sauce. The star of the dinner will be the selection of three arepas filled with Sweet Auburn brisket, Riverview Farms pork and a blend of seasonal, locally-sourced vegetables, influenced by both Hernàndez and Stallings.

Round out dinner with cocktails such as a “tizana,” Venezuela’s answer to sangria¸ “papelón con limón,” crafted with panela, water, lime juice and rum and rum and coke, and a dessert of dulce de lechoza, a green papaya dessert spiced with cinnamon and cloves.

The series, which debuted in January, has already brought late-night ramen featuring guest chef Reid Turner of Kimball House and a Chinese New Year celebration with Monday Night Brewing. In the future, guests can look forward to a collaboration with chef Hector Santiago, celebrating his late restaurant Pura Vida, which previously held Sweet Auburn’s address.

April’s dinner will begin at 6 p.m. and continue late into the night. For more information, please call Sweet Auburn at 678.515.3550 or visit their Facebook.