Hola Arepa - Box of Joy

We've been doing a ton of pick up and carry out dining from local restaurants. I am very bad at remembering to take photos of the food when we arrive home.  

Hola Arepa and Hai Hai were doing "Boxes of Joy" which was a huge snack assortment in a pizza box of some of their favorite menu items. The contents changed every week or two. I just looked at their website and it doesn't look like they are doing them anymore though. 

The box included queso, several salsas, guacamole, seven layer dip and several fried delights including arepitas and a couple types of empanadas. It was all delicious and reheated well too. 

and a giant bag of chips! 

The pickup process was very quick and easy. We just pulled into their packing lot, called a number on the sign and they ran it to your car. And the snacks were delicious and sustained us for a couple of meals and a few snacks too. 

Hola Arepa
3501 Nicollet Avenue South
Minneapolis, MN 55408
(612) 345-5583
http://holaarepa.com

Hola Arepa

We’ve been trying to get to Hola Arepa for awhile now, but it is always super busy with a really long wait. We decided to go for a late lunch on a recent Saturday and we were seated after they cleared off a table for us. The restaurant is actually quite small, but cute and cozy.

Jolly poltergeist drink

John had the slow-roasted pork arepa. In case you have not yet tried an arepa, they are cornmeal griddle cake sandwiches. This had pork, black beans, cotija cheese and Hola sauce with yucca fries and chimichurri sauce on the side. John liked the arepa because it was light and tasty.

I had the tostada chilaquiles with tomatillo salsa, fried eggs, black beans, queso fresco, pickled onion, radish, jalapeno, cilantro and pork. The pork was very rich and tender and I am glad I added it. (It was $2 more to add the pork.) The dish did not look that large to me at first, but I was unable to finish everything. The tomatillo salsa had a nice tart bite to it and it was actually quite spicy with the fresh jalapenos.

Our server was great and the food was amazing. It seemed like the prices were considerably higher than they were when Hola Arepa was a food truck, but I suppose they have a lot more overhead now. The portions were certainly generous enough.


Deals & discounts: Happy hour is served Thursday – Friday form 3-6pm and Tuesday – Sunday 10 to close. Both food and drink specials are available. The prices are pretty nice too.


Hola Arepa
3501 Nicollet Avenue South
Minneapolis, MN 55408
(612) 345-5583
http://holaarepa.com