Chicheme of La Chorrera

Chicheme is made from cracked maize boiled until soft, then mixed with milk, sugar, cinnamon and vanilla and served cold, thick enough to need chewing as much as drinking, and La Chorrera west of the capital has claimed it as its own to the point where the town's stands on the highway are a fixture of the drive west. Every family recipe differs in sweetness and thickness. It is sold from roadside stalls and small shops rather than restaurants.

What you actually see

• The roadside stands - the highway stalls through La Chorrera that sell it.
• The texture - a drink thick enough with maize to be partly eaten.
• The spicing - cinnamon and vanilla with milk and sugar over the boiled corn.
• The local claim - the town's identification with the drink across the country.

When to go

Year round; stands operate through the day and into the evening. Weekends are busiest with traffic heading west. It is served cold at all seasons.

Honest expectations

It is very sweet and the texture puts some people off entirely. Hygiene at roadside stands varies. There is nothing to see beyond buying and drinking it.

Nearby

Panama City is east, and Punta Chame is southwest.