Texas in Bolivia
For you in Texas, it is hard to
imagine life without tacos, jalapeños, and Texas hamburgers. You cannot imagine my delight when a friend
told me about a hamburger place on the Second Ring that advertises Texas
hamburgers and kolaches.
Kolaches? If you are from my part of Texas you know
exactly what those pastries topped by fruit or some other delicacy. My friend, Anna, told me the owner was from
Texas. I had to go. Monday of this week, she posted a picture of
his delicious burgers. So, I decided,
today was the day!
Even though my house needed
cleaning, and I avoided cleaning it all weekend, I went anyway. It started as a cool windy morning, so I
decided to walk. It was a 45-minute
walk, but I stopped a few times to take pictures and sat in the plaza across
the street from the Cemetery, so it took me almost twice that long. By the time, I was at the plaza, the sun was
out and it was getting warm. So glad I opted
for short sleeves!
Hungry?
The Big Tex Kolache Bakery is on
the Second Ring and Avenida Alemania, a busy intersection. From the outside, it looked much like any
other burger place in Sant Cruz. Once
inside I saw more than a dozen varieties of kolaches and burger menu. I ordered a bacon cheese burger, without
onions, but smothered in jalapeños. I was a
little early for lunch, but that didn’t matter.
I don’t mind a 20-minute wait for a delicious burger.
While I was waiting, the owner,
Adrian, came in. One of his workers told
him I was from Texas.
“Where are you from?” he asked in
perfect Texan.
“Ennis,” I answered. “Since I am from kolache country, I had to
come and try.”
It turns out he was born in
Houston, but lived many years in Ennis.
We talked about many places we knew in common. He is married to a Bolivian lady and they
have a young son. They wanted to raise
him in the simpler life of Bolivia. So
that is why he is here.
Except that morning, he had a car
wreck and was frustrated at paying off the girl he hit. It seems she was starting and stopping over
and over. She pulled out in an
intersection and slammed on her brakes.
That is when he crashed into her.
She came out of the car screaming about her neck and threatening to call
the police. In Bolivia, if you are
American and get into a wreck, they will impound your car until you pay dozens
of fines giving numerous officials a financially prosperous month. She suggested they go to a body shop nearby. Though her car was covered with scratches and
dents, the body shop still said it should cost him $100. Now do you understand why I don’t want a car
in Santa Cruz?
Still, he was glad to welcome a
fellow Texan into his restaurant. I had
a very filling hamburger, but walked out with several kolaches for later. Not only will I be back, but I am already
making plans for a repeat visit with several different friends.
Texas in Bolivia is always
welcome!
How fun to find a place where the owner had also lived in Ennnis - no wonder he was making Kolaches....
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