“Pork highways” are how travelers can explore the island beyond its beaches.
Just as I ’m start to wonder how many more stack curves I can tolerate , I catch a coup d’oeil of a roadside resort with a turquoise exterior and wide - open wooden doors . Our bus driver pause just long enough to allow us hop-skip off atCasa Vieja , but I can already hear trumpets blaring from the eating place ’s utterer , as well as the rhythmical scrapes on the güiro , an instrument made from a vacuous gourd . A group of rockers in rock chair tip back bottles of beer surrounded by duo slurping spoonful of a fret made from Indian meal dumplings and salt pod . Black - and - white mob photo and a collection of vintage clocks give the place a home - y vibration .
Then , of course , I ’m score with the aroma of onions , pork , and peppers
This is , after all , what I ’m on this road trip for . The chinchorreo — what locals call aroad tripbased around the acquisition of lechón , or pork , and other solid food — is not for the syncope of heart . But my fellow travelers and I are on our second such bus excursion in two sidereal day , the Bob Hope being that we can experience some of the island ’s culture , cuisine , and natural environment beyond its beaches orcapital .
The three main “pork highways” in Puerto Rico are the best way to get to know the island outside its beaches.|Photo courtesy of Discover Puerto Rico
Yesterday ’s drive along Cayey ’s “ la ruta del lechón , ” which roughly translates to something like “ the pork highway , ” let in a lunch of pork , yuca , and rice with pigeon peas atLechonera El Rancho Original ; lively music atCasa Histórica De La Música Cayeyana ; and mojitos atCasita Guavate . On today ’s road trip through Ciales , we ’ve already feasted on tropic fruit and waffle atAromas D ’ Café , taken shot of pitorro ( local Moon ) , try out coffee atMuseo del Café , and join an impromptu music session on a local family ’s porch .
A chinchorreo is fundamentally a pub crawl for pork , but we resolve to celebrate on the back patio of Casa Vieja with more mojitos and deep-fried plantains . My motion sickness finally at bay , I take in the nappy melodic line and views of the Central Mountain Range . But not for long . It ’s time to get back onto the passenger vehicle — and on to the next stop .
Map out your route
The three main “ pork barrel highway ” in Puerto Rico are in Cayey , Naranjito , and Trujillo Alto . But a chinchorreo is n’t limit to the porc highways : Pick a region or theme and build your itinerary around that .
For lechón asado , or roasted pork , Ricardo Ojeda , aFlavors Food Toursguide , suggests PR-184 in Cayey where you ’ll find roadside restaurants , dive bars , and pithouses within a light ( sometimes even walking ) distance of one another . If it ’s longaniza ( sausage interchangeable to a chorizo ) you ’re after , he recommends the “ longaniza route ” along PR-155 and 156 in Orocovis .
Prefer to copulate your culinary journeying with some coastal activity ? Sunseekers can beach hop and sample seafood alongGuayama ’s Coastal Gastronomy Trail .
Casa Vieja is a chinchorro, which is a Puerto Rican restaurant that one might stop on during a food-based road trip.|Photo courtesy of Sunny Fitzgerald
Some restaurants accept reservations and others do n’t ; it ’s wise to call in progression , specially if you have a large chemical group or will be visiting during peak chinchorreo times , such as weekend and holidays .
Designate a driver and dress for the occasion
thread roads and intoxicant are a serious compounding . If you ’re planning to partake , depute a driver or join a tour . Ojeda advocate booking a company jalopy — a repurposed schoolhouse passenger vehicle with music , luminance , and karaoke — so you’re able to go all out without the worries of the route .
If you have a designated driver , Chef Orville Rodriguez ofCalichi Gastrobarsuggests renting a Jeep and cruising with the top off or windows down to enjoy the novel air and the music emanate from the eateries along the way .
It ’s a casual thing and you ’ll find many of the businesses are open - air . Laura Ortiz , guide and owner ofSofrito Tours , recommends well-to-do clothes and shoes . Matching shirt are a common sight on a chinchorreo so if you ’re penetrating to color - coordinate outfits for your chemical group , feel free .
Designate a driver or hire a party bus to experience all that a chinchorreo has to offer.|Puerto Rico Buses by Yariimboo Pics
The higher you travel into the mountains , the cooler it gets . Be fain for any atmospheric condition ( and swim opportunities ) by take layers , a bathing suit , sunscreen , and a rain jacket .
Pace yourself
“ A chinchorreo is similar to a stripe Australian crawl , just with more food and in mostly rural areas , ” Ojeda says . “ The secret is to approach it as a endurance contest , not a backwash . Go with friends or folk . Drink a good deal of water . And permit the nutrient soak up the excess alcohol . ”
Take your prison term , build in interruption , and do n’t regularise everything properly off the chiropteran . “ Each place has its speciality , ” says Chef Rey Santa ofAsador San Miguel . “ test a characteristic dish at each stop . ” If you do n’t know where to start , ask your server . They may even surprise you with something seasonal , as Crystal Díaz , the father and managing owner of culinary farm lodgeEl Pretexto , come upon on a visit to Los Hijos del Josco in Utuado . The proprietor but necessitate if Díaz liked gin or vodka , and then proceeded to squeeze a tangerine now from his tree diagram into a glass to create a fresh cocktail .
Be open to the adventure
Puerto Rico may be best know for its beaches , but it ’s mostly cragged , and you ’ll get a good dose of culture on a chinchorreo . “ The island might be small , but there ’s nothing minor about the acculturation of these slew , ” Ojeda says . “ Most of the bars and establishments [ along the porc highways ] have been here for more than a few decades . You ’ll see the character of unremarkable patrons of these spot that still have the one-time vellonera , a jukebox - similar machine with a collection of salsa , bachata , and merengue music as well as other genres span from the thirties to the ‘ 90s and other 2000s . ”
bring in a playful attitude and palate . “ Anywhere you go on the pork highways people will welcome you with warmth and make you experience like home , ” Ortiz says . “ It ’s a large feast . ” So , trip the light fantastic toe if the mood strikes you . dally an instrument if someone hands one to you . Order saucer outside your comforter zone . Ojeda recommends try things like coney empanadillas ( thin pastries fill up and fried ) , mondongo ( stewed cow or slob venter and/or gut ) , or beans misrepresent in bull ’ feet . He admits even he was surprised the first time he saw his grandfather eat those . “ I was a fry , and it was a shock to see him eat all around the feet , bones , marrow , and cartilage , ” he suppose , express mirth at the memory . “ But they ’re actually quite good . ”
There are also plenty of other dishes to taste on a chinchorreo . Díaz recommends edible corn fritter with mayonnaise - ketchup , alcapurrias ( fried dalo or yuca , green plantain tree , and sofrito shove with picadillo ) , and rellenos of breadfruit or Apium graveolens dulce root stuff with meat . Ortiz ’s favourite include roasted pork , Timothy Miles Bindon Rice with pigeon peas , yuca en escabeche ( yuca with Olea europaea oil , acetum , onions , and garlic ) , mofongo ( fried plantain squeeze and mixed with garlic and crispy pork barrel tegument ) , and passionfruit mojitos .
A chinchorreo involves alcohol, but it’s a marathon not a race.|Photo courtesy of Discover Puerto Rico
Don’t miss the hidden treasures
While the focal point is on food and drinks , you ’ll move through area that offer other activities , too . “ Always look for out of sight treasures , such as waterfall , rivers , and local farm tours , ” Chef Rodriguez enounce .
If your journeying pack you to Cayey , Ortiz suggests Charco Azul , a 15 - moment hike to a swimming hole in Carite Forest . If you ’re in there on a weekend , stop by Casa de la Música Cayeyana to hear local musicians play the cuatro puertorriqueño , which is Puerto Rico ’s famous string instrument .
outside enthusiasts can go rope down , hiking , or rock-and-roll climbing in Ciales then celebrate afterwards with a chinchorreo . Tour operatorGo To Cialesarranges group and custom private tours .
Locals will welcome travelers on a chinchorreo—just stay open to it.|Photo courtesy of Discover Puerto Rico
Wherever your road stumble take you , consider local festivals that coincide with your travelling date . “ We have festivals for everything — flowers , pork , masks , music , Indigenous culture , Afro hairdo - inheritance , ” Ojeda read . “ admit a fete stop on your chinchorreo so you’re able to see the people in their full - on splendor , heed to local music , shop artisan markets , and , if you ’re lucky , try out some tamarindo , coconut , or ginger pitorro . ”
This Island Road Trip Is High on Adventure and Low on Drive Time
Explore some of Puerto Rico’s most underrated beach towns and beauty spots with this easy 5-day itinerary.
Chinchorreos are about food and drink, but that doesn’t mean you can’t also sneak in a little nature, too.|UCG/Universal Images Group/Getty Images
