Yerba Mate, Dulce de Leche and More Latin Goods

If you are like me, from South America, or have eaten certain Latin American products that you now use regularly, your search is over. Finally downtown Peekskill has the type of store that caters to us. And it is more than a small store with a few ethnic items, it is large, well-stocked, well-lit and amply serviced by a friendly staff of at least 30 on any given day.

The supermarket I am describing isat 1049 Park Street. This is the place where the growing Hispanic population of Peekskill (now at 33.6% according to the 2010 US Census) shops for fresh fruits and vegetables at prices usually lower than in other supermarkets. Above all, this is where a Latin American can find products from his or her country.

 And that brings me to my personal experience. When my mother visits us from Argentina we must have yerba mate in the house.  She is an avid mate drinker. For those who don’t know, mate is a South American tea, specifically from the Paraná river region where Paraguay, Brazil and Argentina converge. It is consumed in a special cup made of gourd and sipped with a metal straw (bombilla). For Americans, it is usually an acquired taste, but you can find it in health food stores at the shocking price of $7.50 for 16 tea bags. The price at La Placita? $1.69 for 500 g. or 17.6 oz. of loose tea. This means that my mother does not have to travel with her own yerba mate.

Since I left Argentina decades ago I always expected to have my favorite sweet spread brought to me by visitors from my country. They knew they’d be greeted with immense love if they showed up at my door with dulce de leche. This is the most sensual, delicious and yes, nourishing dessert. It is a milk spread made with caramelized sweetened milk. If you never tried it, don’t wait. Last week I bought a 500 g. (17.6 oz) container for $4.99 at La Placita.

There is so much more that one can get here that I am sure the place will become an addiction for me. I can buy mole poblano, for my husband’s favorite Mexican dish; Criollitas, typical Argentine crackers that melt in your mouth; dulce de batata, another sweet spread made with sweet potatoes and eaten either alone or sliced and served with cheese slices.

I could go on and on, but it is important that I mention that La Placita offers much more than imported Latin American products. It has a large selection of fruits and vegetables, as well as dairy, meats and fish. All of it is very fresh and very well priced. Here you find the essential ingredients for ethnic dishes: boniato, plaintains, tomatillos, cilantro, recaíto, yuca, yautía, queso blanco, and much more.

On any regular day you will find the Hispanic shoppers alongside the non-Hispanic. It appears that the store attracts a large multiethnic population. For the residents of Peekskill, to have access to a supermarket nearby is a very good thing. One elderly shopper who is not Latina explained to me that she appreciates the supermarket and shops there once a week when she can use her 10% discount card offered to seniors, valid on Wednesdays and Thursdays.

On the same day I met two other women, one from Cuba and another from the Dominican Republic, and each had ten bags of groceries in their hands. Surely, they were satisfied customers like me.