This is another revisit of sorts. I've discussed bananas and plantains many times on this blog. (As I've covered, the distinction between the two is slight, and kind of vague.) Specifically, on August 26, 2014, June 2, 2018, and June 1, 2019 I talked about them, and these specimens usually came from the South American nation of Ecuador. However, today's subject is a little different, in that the plantain chips I recently ate came to me from Costa Rica, in Central America. And if you're curious, I did previously mention a Costa Rican edible before, in my post on March 30, 2016 about chayote. The type of chips (or "crisps," in certain places) I had this time were the lightly salted kind, and the garlic ones, both from the Vitarroz brand.
Also, yet again the company who made the products I sampled has a deficient online presence. In this case, the official website didn't open. So my information had to come from other sources, perhaps of questionable accuracy. (Most notably, one of the most detailed articles came from the notorious NYC newspaper "The New York Post.") With that in mind, Vitarroz International Foods, LLC, is based out of New Jersey in the U.S., and is distributed by North Shore Bottling Company, Inc., out of Brooklyn, NY. Vitarroz was founded in 1955 by persons unknown, and has grown to be the second largest supplier and distributer of Hispanic foods in the Northeast United States. Vitarroz makes or distributes over 300 products, including rice, beans, luncheon meats, coconut milk, soups, and sardines. In 2009 it was bought by Carlos Gomez, who was born in the Dominican Republic. Reportedly he was an entrepreneur at a young age, starting a bicycle repair shop at the age of 9. Gomez made his way to the U.S., and started other businesses as well. His most successful one was the humungous Union Telecard Alliance, a phone card company. Additionally, in 2007 he bought the famous NYC nightclub LQ (for Latin Quarter), in its second incarnation and location. LQ sadly became infamous shortly afterwards as the location where NFL wide receiver Plaxico Burress shot himself. It closed in 2015.
Vitarroz plantain chips, lightly salted: These were yellow discs, about 1.25 inches (about 3.5 cm.) in diameter. They were crunchy, but bland. As advertised, there must have been extremely little salt on them. I've had plantain chips before, and these were a rather weak example of them. Not bad, but just disappointingly boring.
Vitarroz plantain chips, garlic flavor: These were the same size, shape, thickness, and color as the other kind. Also crunchy. The garlic taste wasn't strong, but it was noticeable. Enough to make these solid--not great, but better than average. All in all I wouldn't recommend the lightly salted ones, but the garlic ones were okay, and would make a nice snack for someone looking for a slightly different kind of crunchy snack.
As I often do, let's take a brief look at some famous folks from Costa Rica, or at least people with significant Costa Rican heritage. Arguably the most notable person is Harry Shum, Jr., who was born in Costa Rica, of Chinese parents, but is now a U.S. citizen. An actor and dancer, he appeared in such movies as "You Got Served" (2004), "Stomp the Yard" (2007), "Mom's Night Out" (2014), and "Crazy Rich Asians" (2018), but he's probably most remembered for his roles on television's "Glee" (2009-15) and "Shadowhunters" (2016-19). Staying with actors/actresses, there's Madeleine Stowe, who was born in the U.S,, but whose mother is Costa Rican. Stowe had roles in such films as "Stakeout" (1987), "Revenge" (1990), "The Last of the Mohicans" (1992), "Short Cuts" (1993), "12 Monkeys" (1995), and "The General's Daughter" (1999). Hernan Jimenez is usually on the other side of the camera, serving mostly as a director, writer, and editor. His movies (titles translated from Spanish) include "Eyes Closed" (2010), "The Return" (20120, "About Us" (2016), "Elsewhere" (2018), and "Love Hard" (2021). Danny Burstein is like Madeleine Stowe--American born, but his mother was Costa Rican. He's an actor and singer, mostly of Broadway plays and musicals. He's been nominated for 7 Tony Awards, and won 1, for 2020's "Moulin Rouge." He also appeared in such films as "Transamerica" (2005), "Deception" (2008), and "Indignation" (2016).
Switching to sports, there's Hanna Gabriels, who was born in Costa Rica. A boxer, she's amassed a record of 21-2-1, and is currently the WBA Light Middleweight and Light Heavyweight champion, and is also the WBC Heavyweight champ. In the world of golf, Roberto Castro was born in the U.S, but has a Peruvian father and Costa Rican mother. He's won 6 PGA events, and finished as high as 12th in a major, the 2013 PGA Championship. In the Olympics, the most accomplished athletes are the Poll sisters. Both were born in Nicaragua, from German parents, but moved to Costa Rica as adolescents and competed for this country for the Olympics. Sylvia (sometimes spelled Silvia) Poll won a silver medal in the 200 meter freestyle swimming event in the 1988 Games, and her younger sister Claudia bettered her by winning a gold medal in the 200 meter freestyle event in the 1996 Games, and then 2 bronzes in the 2000 Games, in the 200 meter freestyle again, and the 400 meter freestyle competition. (Sadly, Claudia was banned for 2 years for PEDs in 2002, but maintained her innocence.) As of now the Polls are the only Costa Ricans to win a medal in Olympic competition.
Finally, astronaut Franklin Chang-Diaz was born in Costa Rica, has Chinese heritage, and eventually became an American. He flew on 7 Space Shuttle missions from 1986-2002, which is tied for the most ever with Jerry Ross. Chang-Diaz is a member of the NASA Hall of Fame, understandably.
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