La Jugueteria: “There’s Babies in the Rafters!”

Continuing my exploration of the food in Bogota, Colombia led us to a unique restaurant called La Jugueteria.

After several days of lots and lots of street food, my final night in Bogota we opted to eat at a “nice” restaurant and drop the kind of cash you wouldn’t normally come close to spending on the street. Up entering La Jugueteria, we were immediately confronted with a display case full of retro toys, including the old school WWF action figures you see below.  Man, this display case was full of every toy you could imagine – an eBay re-sellers wet dream.

After being seated and starting to review the menu, my friend suddenly leaned over to me and quietly whispered “look up.” When I did, this is the sight I saw:

Yep, babies. Literally HUNDREDS of dolls of babies were hanging from the rafters throughout the entire restaurant. Creepy, but I also admired the commitment. These folks went ALL IN on their restaurant theme idea and it was totally working for me from an atmosphere stand-point.

Click below to read more and see pictures of some of the tasty food!

First up we got an order of empanadas to share as an appetizer for the table.  No complaints here. The pastry was light and flaky, the sauce had just the right kick, and the meat was tender and well-seasoned.

Next up for me was some tortilla soup. I appreciated the separation of the ingredients as I got to mix  corn, cheese, avocados and sour cream into the soup at my own pace. Kept all the accompaniments nice and fresh.

One of the more interesting dishes was the side order of plantains. At La Jugueteria, they prepare the plantains to look like a banana split smothered in cheese to resemble ice cream, and even topped with a cherry in the middle.

My main course of beef tenderloin was less remarkable than the earlier courses, but tasty nonetheless.

A couple more pics of the decor:

Overall, solid food and a very, very unique atmosphere.