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Chicago Magazine
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  • 1 / 16
    Rincón dances at Rica Arepa's anniversary party.
    Photo: Geoff Stellfox
  • 2 / 16
    Seven-year-old Sofia Avendaño naps during Rica Arepa 's one-year anniversary party.
    Photo: Geoff Stellfox
  • 3 / 16
    Maria Uzcategui, 22, and her husband, Kharim Rincón, 24, blow out candles at a party for Rica Arepa
    Photo: Geoff Stellfox
  • 4 / 16

    Photo: Geoff Stellfox
  • 5 / 16
    Emmanuel Arrieta and his daughter Pierina dance at Rica Arepa's anniversary party. Uzcategui and Rincón played a key role in helping Emmanuel and his wife open their own Venezuelan-Puerto Rican restaurant.
    Photo: Geoff Stellfox
  • 6 / 16
    Julia Velazquez holds her daughter at the restaurant, a nucleus for Chicago's scattered Venezuelan community.
    Photo: Geoff Stellfox
  • 7 / 16
    Sofia McMahill drinks passion fruit juice during her family's first visit to Rica Arepa in early December.
    Photo: Geoff Stellfox
  • 8 / 16
    Greg McMahill, who drove from Naperville to try the restaurant's authentic Venezuelan food, holds his son in the renovated dining room.
    Photo: Geoff Stellfox
  • 9 / 16

    Photo: Geoff Stellfox
  • 10 / 16
    Uzcategui and Rincón dance at Rica Arepa's anniversary party.
    Photo: Geoff Stellfox
  • 11 / 16
    A guest tacks a bolívar note, Venezuela’s hyperinflated former currency, to the wall at Rica Arepa.
    Photo: Geoff Stellfox
  • 12 / 16
    Uzcategui and Rincón show off their handywork
    Photo: Geoff Stellfox
  • 13 / 16
    Uzcategui runs orders during a lunch rush.
    Photo: Geoff Stellfox
  • 14 / 16

    Photo: Geoff Stellfox
  • 15 / 16

    Photo: Geoff Stellfox
  • 16 / 16

    Photo: Geoff Stellfox
Photos: Joy at Rica Arepa

At the Hermosa storefront, a young couple slings tasty cornmeal sandwiches — and for many Venezuelan immigrants, recreates a world that no longer exists. Read the full story here.

February 15, 2019, 12:00 pm
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