Lindsey Nair

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Today's recipe: Ethnic tastes

It felt like I'd just walked into the Hispanic version of the movie "Big Night."

First came the shrimp cocktail, Mexican-style -- served in a tomatoey juice with lime, onion, cilantro and avocado.

Then came the chicken-filled flautas, which were wrapped in a tortilla and then deep-fried, yet somehow managed not to taste greasy at all.

Then, pork- and onion-filled tacos in double-wrapped corn tortillas, then sopes al pastor, then chilaquiles.

Oh, there were probably eight courses by the time we were through with lunch, and the cook, Mexico City native Roberta Rodriguez, was just warming up.

Among the Roanoke Valley's burgeoning Hispanic community, Vinton eatery Azteca De Oro -- a combination Mexican grocery, pool hall and restaurant -- is well-known.

It's the place where construction workers come to tank up on Rodriguez's cooking, to find chorizo and other hard-to-find Latino foods, and to buy international calling cards so they can phone their families in Mexico, Honduras and the Dominican Republic.

Vivien Sanchez-Jones, herself an immigrant from the Dominican Republic, frequents Azteca often. "I like to bring Anglos here because the food is authentic. Here they cater to the immigrant community," she said over lunch last week. "Americans need to know that real Mexican food isn't all slathered in sauces and cheese."

Indeed, Azteca's food stood out from the typical chain-restaurant fare. But Sanchez-Jones didn't invite me here just to talk food. As the school liaison for Roanoke's Refugee and Immigration Services, she wanted me to know about the 631 foreign-born children her office helps;

About the growing number of Latinos who are coming here to work and put down roots, many of them buying homes;

About the children of undocumented immigrants, many of whom aren't in school because their parents are too scared to sign them up;

About the couples who leave their children behind in Latin America, some for five or more years, until they establish themselves here -- working at restaurants, construction, on farms -- and then send for their kids.

As if on cue, a couple come to our table to tell Sanchez-Jones about a break-in at their apartment. They'd saved $1,000 in cash so they could bring their five children here from Mexico, only to have it stolen while they were away from home working -- they each have two jobs -- the night before.

Sanchez-Jones lectures them on the importance of saving their money in a bank, not at home, reminding them that Wachovia is willing to work with immigrants to establish accounts.

Sanchez-Jones and co-worker Tina Moore are often the voice of refugee and immigrant families in Roanoke, the people who enroll the growing number of Latino and African children in school. They set up Boy Scout soccer teams for Hispanic youths and stand up for the kids being picked on at school because they're Muslim, or from Africa, or otherwise labeled "different."

Operated by the Catholic Diocese of Richmond, Roanoke's RIS office is celebrating its 30th anniversary with an international buffet and live music Saturday from 5:30 to 9 p.m. at St. John Lutheran Church. That's the real reason I'm here sampling this magical lunch and eating my weight in Mexican food.

Think how boring the restaurant scene would be in Roanoke without our immigrant-produced fare -- Brazilian, Italian, Lebanese, Mexican, Vietnamese, Chinese, Indian, Bosnian and Thai.

It will all be represented Saturday, courtesy of restaurateurs like Azteca owners Roberta and Alejandro Rodriguez, people who came to Roanoke looking for the American dream and ended up making the valley a richer and better-tasting place for it.

As Sanchez-Jones put it: "Learning about food is as important as learning about the language. It's something we all have in common."

It doesn't matter if you don't speak Spanish or have never met a Somali Bantu refugee.

Breaking bread, baklava, chicken-filled flautas -- it's a filling place to start.

Proceeds from the $30 tickets will help fund the office's school liaison program; call 342-7561 for tickets.

Azteca De Oro, located at 217 S. Pollard St. in Vinton, is open from 9:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m., seven days a week. 343-9677.