April 08, 2022

In response to a growing demand for more authentic, global cuisine, Susquehanna University Dining has brought a new Latin food experience to residential dining.

Chef Grace Ramirez Chef Grace RamirezThe university’s dining service provider, Aramark, along with its higher education field culinary team, has partnered with Chef Grace Ramirez to launch a new station, La Latina Cocina, offering authentic Latin dishes to campus diners. This new offering debuted at the end of Women’s History Month and will run through the end of the spring semester.

A chef, dedicated humanitarian, author and broadcaster, Ramirez has become a world leader who brings her Latin American heritage and charisma to the vast audiences of Oceanía and the Americas. A blend of celebrity power and rooted knowledge of the culinary complexity of Latin American tradition, Ramirez is committed to shaping the future with authentic vibrancy and sustained care for nourishment, values inherited from a long lineage of powerful women. Miami-born and Venezuela-raised, the current New Yorker’s diverse Latin heritage was the inspiration for her cookbook, La Latina, featuring her interpretation of traditional recipes from Latin America.

La Latina is the name of my first cookbook, and the word cocina means kitchen or to cook. The kitchen in Latin American food and culture is the hub, the heart of the house, where the party happens, where we share with freedom and creativity, and where people gather. It’s not only about the place, but it’s an action because La Latina Cocina means the Latin female that cooks, and it is about bringing all the flavors from Latin American culture into one concept,” said Ramirez.

La Latina Cocina’s menu items draw heavy inspiration from Ramirez’s cookbook and are also developed as a collaboration between Ramirez, Aramark’s corporate culinary development team and chefs from its higher education business. The higher education chefs selected for this collaboration have each been recognized in Aramark’s Chef Spotlight series that brings the company’s diverse chefs to the forefront and showcases their stories, experiences and culinary talent throughout the year.

“Susquehanna Dining is excited for the opportunity to partner with Chef Grace Ramirez which will bring authentic Latin flavors to our students,” said Kevin Hamilton, Susquehanna Dining’s general manager. “We know that students appreciate and want more global food experiences on campus and are looking forward to their feedback.”

Susquehanna will feature La Latina Cocina as a station located at Evert Dining Room. Students will have the option to order the following items:

  • Mojo pulled pork, featuring black beans, arroz rojo, platano maduro, salsa verde
  • Chicken tinga, featuring pulled chicken in chipotle adobo, salsa rojo, pickled onions, fresh cilantro on corn tortilla
  • El choripán, featuring split & grilled chorizo sausage with guasacaca on a crunchy toasted roll with a side of tajin flavored potato chips
  • Chipotle mushroom tostada (vegan), featuring chipotle mushrooms, crunchy cauliflower tortillas, pico de gallo, vegan cheddar, chipotle mayo
  • As well as platano maduro​, frijoles negros and arroz rojo