Spring 2026 | Local Latino

Breakfasts of Campeones

Whether rice, tortillas, or eggs, Latinos know how to jump-start their mornings.

As soon as the first rays of sunshine peek through our curtains or blinds, and right after the rooster crows, usually the first thought is, “What’s for breakfast?”

A desayuno, or breakfast, in a Latino household usually involves hot chocolate or coffee (with milk for the little ones), perhaps oatmeal or maicena (which is a type of corn pudding, similar to cream of wheat), and a hearty dish with corn, tortillas, bread, rice, potatoes, or plantains that likely also contains several proteins, probably eggs and meat.

If you don’t have much time in the morning, a sweet pastry — with guava, pineapple, cheese, dulce de leche cream, or a combination of these — or a savory empanada filled with chicken or meat from last night’s dinner also can quickly quell those early morning hunger pangs.

Other fast breakfast foods can include arroz con leche (rice pudding), yaniqueques (johnnycakes made with wheat flour, water, salt, butter, and oil, a culinary remainder from the prior United States occupations of Caribbean basin nations), and carimañolas (cylindrically shaped cassava fritters stuffed with a protein), which are similar to the Puerto Rican alcapurrías (though these are made with plantain and malanga dough).

Depending on where your family hails from, your breakfast entrée will vary. Caribbean Latinos often boil or mash plantains or potatoes and accompany them with fried eggs and salchicón (think thick salami slices) or longaniza (a type of longer sausage link). In Central Americans’ kitchens, cheese pupusas are popular dishes, as are gallo pinto and casamiento (these last two are rice-and-bean dishes). Want to give yourself and your children an extra shot of pure energy? Consider making Salvadorian empanadas, which are condensed-milk-filled, fried sweet plantain dumplings.

In South America, particularly Brazil, baked or fried pão de queijo or pan de queso (cheese bread) are delicious, easy options. Colombians and Venezuelans tend to snack on cheese corn arepas, while Argentines enjoy medialunas, or croissants, and sip yerba mate.

Some of these dishes can be found in Northern Nevada restaurants. Of course, there’s Mexican fare such as huevos rancheros and breakfast burritos, but a lesser-known breakfast that you’ll definitely want to try is chilaquiles. This comfort food is like eating warm, saucy nachos. They’re usually made with stale, crisped tortillas (so that they don’t get too soggy); on top, cooks carefully toss the chips in red and/or green sauce; shredded chicken, beef, or pork; beans; cilantro; onions; perhaps potatoes and eggs (fried or scrambled); and, of course, it’s all topped with cheese.

Luckily for those of us in the Reno-Tahoe area, Los Chilaquiles Mexican Breakfast serves 12 variations of chilaquiles, and if you love mole, there’s one dish that features it that you should definitely try. A Downtown Reno location of the business is coming soon, making it more accessible for local residents to indulge, especially before a stroll along the Riverwalk.

As the area’s Latino population diversifies, hopefully you’ll have a chance to explore more of their gastronomic traditions, too. ¡Buen provecho!

RESOURCES

Gloria’s Café
2365 Dickerson Road, Reno
775-409-3277 · Find Gloria’s Café on Facebook

La Parada Café
301 Kietzke Lane, Reno
775-786-6359 · Restaurantlaparada.com

Los Chilaquiles Mexican Breakfast
3380 S. McCarran Blvd., Reno
775-622-8966 · Loschilaquilesreno.com

Mendoza’s Coffee Bar
5425 Sun Valley Blvd., Sun Valley
775-360-6663 · Find Mendozas Coffee on Facebook

Marketón
1500 S. Wells Ave., Reno
775-786-8788 · Marketon.com