If you’re looking for a delicious but particularly affordable meal, however, look no further than the street food carts. These meals on wheels have everything from Colombian traditional dishes to international favorites. Street food is a great way to sample a bunch of Colombian food dishes on a budget before you commit to the brick & mortar eats – and with prices starting in the sub-$1s, you can’t go wrong.

Exploring Colombian Street Food Culture

Colombian street food is more than just cheap eats – it’s a cultural cornerstone that reflects the country’s regional diversity, social spirit, and deep culinary traditions. Found on bustling corners, coastal boardwalks, and busy intersections downtown, street food is as much about community as it is about flavor. That quick arepa or ceviche sold from a cart is woven into everyday life – feeding busy workers, school kids, late-night revelers, and families.

The informality and affordability of street food also make it a space where innovation meets tradition, and a great place for you – the traveler – the get a peek inside of Colombian culture, sharing a universal love. Family recipes are passed down through generations, yet tweaked with modern influences and new preferences. Eating at a street stand is a unique and special social experience. Vendors often know their customers by name, and meals are shared standing shoulder to shoulder.

It feels like Colombians use food as a mechanism for taking care of each other. They always want to feed you, and are so concerned with whether or not you’ve eaten that “have you eaten” is actually part of the Paisas’ notoriously long greeting. Colombians also frequently use food metaphors in casual speech.

For example:

• My girlfriends in Medellín refer to hot guys as “bizcocho” (Colombian biscuits).
• Sometimes when an attractive person walks in people will say, “who brought the chicken?”
• The most famous would be when they tell you not to “give papaya,” which means to flash things that people will want to steal.
• When you have a hangover you have guayabo, or guava. 

Buñuelos

Okay so buñuelos. Everyone in Colombia is obsessed with these little fried cheese balls that people eat for breakfast, snacks, holidays. You’ll see them in bakeries, gas stations, your friend’s kitchen counter…

I get it. They’re cute.  But they’re also kind of dry?? Why is no one dipping these in anything?

They’ve got cheese in them, sure, and that’s fun. But the texture is more “dense cheesy cornbread trying to be a donut” than melt-in-your-mouth. They have the potential to be great with a little spicy guava jam or maybe a creamy ají, but instead what you usually end up doing is raw-dogging this dry cheese puff, sauce-free. Wild behavior.

I’m not above a eat a buñuelo, and you should of course try one when you’re in Colombia, but you’ve been warned. 

Regional Variations in Colombian Cuisine

Colombia’s varied geography means street food offerings differ by region, with each having its own unique spread that needs to be tried by you:

The Andes

My favorite variation of Colombian dishes is the Medellín version of ajiaco. While ajiaco might be most closely associated with (and claimed by) Bogota, their version just isn’t as good. To me at least. But I’m not sure why – my Medellín friends told me it’s the guasca that they put in the Bogota version that I don’t like, while my Bogota friends told me I’m straight up wrong about my opinion. So definitely try for yourself and let me know.

Also in the Andean region, empanadas, buñuelos (cheese fritters), and hot aguapanela (sugarcane drink) dominate. The first few times I tried aguapanela I could not figure out what it was but I loved it. It was like some sort of honey strain that I’d never had but now I couldn’t get enough of. 

You’ll also run into caldos — light brothy soups often served for breakfast. Caldo de costilla (beef rib soup) is the go-to hangover cure, especially in Bogotá. And if you’re ever handed a tamal for breakfast, just go with it. It’ll probably be huge, wrapped in a banana leaf, and come with chocolate and cheese on the side — don’t ask, just dip.

And of course, you can’t talk about the Andes without mentioning bandeja paisa — the ultimate Colombian gut-buster. It’s got everything: chorizo, beans, rice, ground beef, plantain, avocado, fried egg, arepa, and a whole dang pork belly. It’s not a snack, it’s a lifestyle.

The Coast

On the coast, you’ll find my second favorite – the fried arepa de huevo. While the Medellín arepas are dry, hard, and plain, these ones are buttered up, stuffed with an egg, and served with hot (mild) sauce.

Overall, the coast just has a ton of seafood, obviously, so while you’ll find great seafood dishes in the major cities, it’s better on the coast. 

Coastal food just feels more alive — everything’s brighter, hotter, saucier. If you get the chance, try ceviche de camarón (shrimp ceviche served in a styrofoam cup with crackers), arroz con coco (sweet-savory coconut rice), or posta negra (slow-cooked beef in a panela sauce). And don’t sleep on the juice game — people will hand you flavors you’ve never heard of (lulo? corozo?) and they’ll all somehow taste like the best thing you’ve ever had.

The Coffee Region

In the coffee-growing region (Salento, Manizales, Pereira) — food gets a little heartier and humbler. You’ll find a lot of trucha (trout), usually grilled or fried and served with patacón and rice. It’s simple and it hits especially well after a hike or a bumpy jeep ride through the mountains, but if you’re a foodie you might be underwhelmed.

You’ll also see plenty of calentado (yesterday’s rice and beans, reheated and topped with an egg), and yes, more arepas — but thinner, cheesier ones. Breakfast is a big deal here, especially when it comes with strong coffee and mountain views.

Finding the Best Street Food in Colombia

Street food in Colombia is an adventure. The best bites aren’t always in restaurants. Sometimes they’re sizzling on a roadside grill or passing through a plastic window outside of a pharmacy called “Drugs.”

To find the good stuff, follow one basic rule: if there’s a line, there’s a reason. 

In general, this is where the street food lives: 

• Menú del Día – small, unassuming restaurants where locals go to get a complete (and good, and healthy) meals for $3 ($4 with inflation)
• Carts – you’ll see them, usually with hot dogs, but also with better food like fruit
• Alleys – if you’re willing to risk you life, sometimes you will come across the best street food
• Shopping Malls – Colombians actually love fast food, which converges with street food at the many shopping malls in this country

Where to go, by city

• Bogotá: Head to Plaza de Mercado de Paloquemao for fresh juice, empanadas, and tamales wrapped in banana leaves. Or explore La Candelaria, where vendors post up with carts of arepas and buñuelos near the plazas.

• Medellín: Check out La Minorista Market or roam the streets of Laureles and El Centro for arepas con queso, chorizo con arepa, and crispy empanadas with ají.

• Cartagena: The walled city is packed with vendors selling arepa de huevo, carimañolas, and tropical fruit cups. Don’t skip Getsemaní at night — the street food game there is strong, and that’s where my arepas con queso lady slangs it.

• Small towns (pueblos): Honestly, some of the best food is roadside — freshly fried by someone’s tía on a wood fire, especially in the coffee region or Llanos. 

The Influence of Colombian Street Food on Restaurant Menus

In Colombia, street food isn’t just fuel — it’s the blueprint. Some of the best restaurants in the country are borrowing straight from the sidewalks, turning classic street snacks into elevated dining experiences. What started as fried snacks on a paper napkin are now showing up on ceramic plates with microgreens — and we’re not mad about it.

In Medellín, spots like ElCielo, Oci.Mde, and Carmen nod to street flavors with fancy spins on things like arepas, empanadas, and ají sauces. You’ll see arepa de chócolo paired with artisanal cheese, or buñuelos served tiny and perfect, with truffle honey or guava foam. Even lechona (stuffed pork) and chontaduro (a coastal fruit snack) are getting fine-dining moments.

Meanwhile, casual restaurants across the country have built their whole menus around street staples. Think chorizo con arepa on cast iron skillets, bandeja paisa with premium cuts, or gourmet hot dogs loaded with pineapple sauce, crushed chips, and quail eggs (yes, that’s a thing).

1. Make sure the food is cooked through. Avoid anything that looks or smells raw.
2. Avoid anything that’s sitting out in the sun, since heat aids bacteria growth.
3. Stick to well-known street food stalls. Avoid the dodgy guy in the alley who seems to be as popular with the street cats as he is with the tourists.
4. If you’re not sure what something is, ask the vendor what it is and how it’s made. If you can do it in Spanish that’s even better.
5. Make sure you have travel insurance that covers medical bills – just in case 🙂

Street food is an adventure in Colombia and I highly recommend getting acquainted with. So yes to all of it. You deserve that second arepa de huevo.

When you’re ready for something fancier, check out lists of the best restaurants in Medellín and Cartagena.

But in the meantime, when you’re full, sun-kissed, and happily wiped out on street food, you’ll want a hotel that hits just as hard. I rounded up the best stays in Cartagena so you can keep the good decisions going—go check them out.

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