Patacon Pisao

In Maracaibo the late-night sandwich doesn't use bread: two green plantains are smashed flat, fried until crisp, and used as the bun. Patacon Pisao started as a food truck uptown in the mid-2000s, feeding the after-club crowd, and has kept that spirit in its Essex Street storefront, where the kitchen runs late.

Order the patacón with shredded beef or pernil, layered with cheese, cabbage and sauces, and eat it with both hands. Add tequeños — cheese wrapped in dough and fried — and a cachapa, the sweet-corn pancake folded over soft white cheese. Yuca fries and vegetarian versions round it out. It is loud, quick and generous, and better at midnight than at noon.