Sort-of Secret: Las Delicias, a beloved Colombian restaurant in Mississauga

The sort-of secret: Las Delicias, a slice of Colombia in Mississauga You may have heard of it if: You were lucky enough to get a recommendation from its faithful customer base But you probably haven’t tried it because: It’s in a Mississauga strip mall

Some restaurants have the power to transport you. The combination of scent, decor and flavour creates an atmosphere that, depending on your background, can feel comfortingly nostalgic or intriguingly new. Case in point: the charming family-run Las Delicias, a slice of Colombia in Mississauga.

Owner Rud Mejia Arenas and her second-in-command, Sandra Gomez, are the two pillars of Las Delicias’ warm, inviting vibe: Arenas usually stays behind the scenes while Gomez supervises the front of house. For the past 14 years, tucked away in an unassuming Mississauga plaza, Las Delicias has exemplified the GTA’s diverse culinary scene.

Arenas has lived in the neighbourhood for more than two decades. She and her husband, Gustavo Adolfo Caro Rios, both worked in an automotive factory right behind the plaza that would eventually house Las Delicias. After Rios was laid off during the 2008 automotive crisis, the couple started brainstorming ways to make ends meet.

Before the couple immigrated to Canada from Colombia in the early 2000s, Rios had worked in kitchens. The idea of opening a Colombian spot where they could feature the traditional dishes they missed from back home started to take shape. So the couple sold their apartment in Colombia and used the funds to create Las Delicias.

It was a family operation from the beginning. Gustavo, Rud and their then-12-year-old daughter furnished, decorated and painted the space themselves. “It felt nice,” says Arenas. “We sourced all of the decor from our own belongings. It feels like home.”

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The day they opened, Arenas recalls waiting anxiously for customers to arrive—they had only enough money left to buy ingredients for a single day of service. The stakes were high, and as the morning wore on, no one showed up. “Then, by some miracle, at the strike of 1 p.m., customers started flowing in,” says Arenas. “We sold out that day and had enough to buy ingredients for the next day.”

The menu features authentic dishes like bandeja paisa, a feast platter with white rice, beans, chorizo, avocado, arepas, plantain, a fried egg and chicharrones. Another signature dish is mondongo, a hearty soup made with pork, tripe and chorizo. Sobrebarriga, a flank steak served with rice, potatoes and yuca, is another standout. Las Delicias doesn’t have a liquor licence, but they do serve juices like jugo de mora, a Colombian staple. It’s both a sit-down spot and a convenient place to grab things like empanadas, palitos de queso and other baked goods to go. If you dine in, mains range from $22 to $30, and the portions are generous—two people can easily share without going hungry.

“We have a Latin customer base, but we also have a diverse clientele from different ethnicities,” says Arenas. “Whether you’re looking for a slice of home or trying to discover Colombian cuisine for the first time, that’s what Las Delicias is about.” For Arenas, the restaurant is her family. One employee who has worked there for nine years is now a trained electrician, but he still waits tables for Las Delicias on the side. “He always says he’s going to continue to come in for his shift until the day we close,” Arenas says.

In 2022, the restaurant hit a turning point when Rios died from a heart attack at the age of 54. It was a tough time that Arenas says she wouldn’t have gotten through without the support and love of her co-workers, particularly Gomez. “Sandra is an angel that was sent to me; it was almost as though the universe sent her in preparation for the toughest season in my life.”

Because Rios was also Las Delicias’ chef, Arenas had to make a difficult decision. Would she continue, and if so, whom could she trust with the cooking? The answer turned out to be herself. “I chose to continue the business in homage to my husband,” she says. “I had never worked in the kitchen, but I took up the challenge and continued to make the menu items my husband cooked. The menu has stayed the same since we opened, and it will remain the same.”

This aversion to change is for good reason: Las Delicias offers an authentic taste of Colombian cuisine that keeps customers coming back for more. More than a restaurant, it’s a tribute to Colombian culture, a testament to family resilience and a hidden gem in an often-overlooked part of the city.