The mother of BLT Steak chef, Victor Albisu, owns this Latino market that used to be in Alexandria, on Pickett Street. Now you'll find it in the Idylwood Plaza, behind Whole Foods on Leesburg Pike. A Peruvian, she makes her own sausages and chorizos, from Guatemalan, Argentinian picante, Mexican and Salvadorean recipes, along with morcilla.

They're probably the best sausages I've bought anywhere in the area, packed with chunks of meat along with the usual soft ground mousse and each with its own distinctive taste and spice.

And there's a range of meats at remarkable prices from the cheerful butchers behind the counter. Bone-in beef shank at $2.39 a pound, anyone? 'Gallina' is on the long butcher's list, translated as 'heavy fowl'. Portuguese bacalao is available, too.

In the grocery shelves you'll find all manner of jars and cans of vegetables and sauces from pretty much the entire South American continent, like chimichurri, canned red hot peppers, and pacaya in brine.  Among the dried goods is cinnamon tea,  Peruvian dried giant white corn, white whole dehydrated potato, pumpkin seed flour and other intriguing supplies. The fresh produce section is small, but has useful things like thin-skinned baby bananas (far more intense in flavor than the regular size), tomatillos, and a range of fresh peppers and chillis.

Plaza Latina, 2190 Pimmit Dr, Falls Church, 703 748 1500.

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