Big Yummy, 816 W Daggett Av, Fort Worth. 945-233-5293. 8am-11pm Sun-Thu, 8am-2am Fri-Sat.
From the shared parking lot of the upcoming Morton’s Tavern (formerly Twilite Lounge), throbbing cumbia music from inside South Main’s newest restaurant made locating the entrance relatively easy. This massive warehouse has been vacant for years until its transition into Big Yummy in December with a Venezuelan menu nearly as big as the space. The concept comes from Genesys Añez. After living in the United States for only seven years, the owner opened two Big Yummy locations in Dallas to go with her new address here on the Near Southside.
A garage door opens to a spacious patio under trendy rattan light pendants and complementary resort-style furniture. The same light fixtures carry throughout the dining room along with luscious greenery to capitalize on the subtropic theme. Near the entrance, a dark-stained wood wall stretches the length of one side of the restaurant, mimicking the dark-stained wooden bar that runs parallel opposite this wall. A lounge area sits near the bar, where a DJ booth is situated in the corner. And just like that, I’m ready to shimmy and shake late into the night, and this venue has the capability to transition into an event space for parties when the lights dim.
Diners eat under the watchful eye of a large mural depicting a smirking monkey wearing headphones. Perhaps this is Big Yummy themselves.
Sitting at the bar, I studied the vast two-sided menu as if I am fluent in Spanish, even glancing at the soccer game on the TV as if I were a fan of either team. I am not. Pictures somewhat helped guide my choices, but eventually I was given the English version of the menu when I tried ordering a dish that was available only during the day. My ignorance had been exposed, but now I’ll never forget almuerzo translates as “lunch.”
Though Big Yummy offers a wide range of food options, and I do mean wide, sandwiches largely dominate. Traditional Venezuelan handhelds are followed by hamburgers and hot dogs. Tacos and an arsenal of Venezuelan cuisine shape the rest of the menu.
If you’re dining alone, the lunch portions would be ideal, but unfortunately these aren’t offered during dinner service, essentially forcing a solo guest into ordering large-format plates that consist mostly of grilled meats like carne and pollo asada, mixtas (hot dogs, basically), or a combination of the three. The familia sizes graduate to surf and turf. A bounty of sides is available as shareables.
To kick off my journey to South America, I skipped the familiar ceviche and chicken wings for the party-size pasapalos, much to the surprise of my server, because I was ready to party solo. This offered a respectable sample of Big Yummy’s traditional Venezuelan dishes: heavy on bread, baked or fried, with different insides.
Tequenos, empanadas, tequeyoyos, pastelitos, papitas yuca, mandocas, sweet pastry-type arepitas — they all came in pairs rounded out with six bolitas de carne, or mini-meatballs. With similarities stringing them together due to breading, every bite was different. From the spiced minced-meat filling of the flaky empanadas to the sweet plantain and cheese of the mandocas and the fried potato-like substance of the yuca, not one was off. This dish alone would have been enough for a solo diner.
After asking and pointing to a few different menu items, I was led to trying the morocho. Between a toasted French baguette that reminded me loosely of a po’boy or a Cubano, shredded marinated meat plus lettuce, tomato, cheese, tartar sauce, and ketchup made for a solid sandwich.
Next on the agenda, the server suggested the plantain cabimera: fried plantains in lieu of buns with ham, egg, grilled cheese, and your choice of protein — the pork chop was my server’s choice for me. At this point, one would have thought I was eating for two. Alas, it was just me destroying my New Year’s resolution.
Big Yummy serves standard cocktails — a margarita, sangria, and negroni as well as the Spanish carajillo and an espresso martini. Standouts were the Orgasmo, full of Bailey’s, licor de cacao, licor de café, and leche, and the tropical-laden Golden Boy (mezcal, passion fruit, pineapple, and lime juice with a dash of chipotle tabasco and roasted pineapple syrup and rimmed with blue corn salt).
Big Yummy is a much-needed concept in Fort Worth’s burgeoning international dining scene, showcasing foreign cuisine rather than the humdrum of steak and potatoes. And what might have been lost in translation was overcome with a simple smile.
Big Yummy
Pasapalos $29.99
Morocho $14.99
Plantain Cabimera $16
