Lata was created in early 2021 by 4 friends: Nacho, Vicent, Dani, and Xevi. We all met in NYC a few years ago and naturally bonded over food, soccer, good times, and generally being a Spaniard in the US. Fast forward to early 2021, we were in the midst of a global pandemic and we were having a heart-to-heart conversation about where the world was going. They say in times of uncertainty we tend to hold to the things that are closest to us, that ground us. So the conversation naturally gravitated to dear moments shared with our friends and things that we grew up with back home. Often around food! We wondered, how can we bring our culture closer to us and share it with the world?
We started playing with the crazy idea of opening a bar in NYC, more specifically a “vermut” (see next paragraph) bar, to taste, share and experience one of our favorite parts of Spanish culture: the vermut time. All of us being from very different backgrounds, we quickly realized that we could put our heads together and create a business that we felt really passionate about. The type of work that does not feel like work.
For those of you who might not know, the “vermut” is a pre-meal / social event that’s done right before lunch in Spain (similar to the brunch for Americans or the aperitivo for Italians). You typically eat small bites such tinned seafood, chips, olives, and drink -you guessed it- dry or sweet vermouth. It’s also just the perfect excuse to share a good time with your friends or family.
After much discussion, we came to realize that opening up an online shop will have a more global outreach. We fell in love with the idea of creating a community of people who share our passion for vermut, tinned seafood, and the culture around. That’s how Lata was born, with a clear goal in mind: to make gourmet tinned seafood and fish more accessible to our American friends. We sourced the best distributors in the U.S and picked the top products for taste, quality, and variety.
After our launch on November 1st, we were welcomed with so much support from friends and family and social sharing. We feel so grateful and motivated to continue our mission of sharing our love for Spanish food. We are excited about this project, and we can't wait to start sharing more content around how to enjoy our products and hear your thoughts, so feel free to drop us a line here, or follow us on social for more.
Welcome to the Lata journey!
Nacho, Vicent, Dani and Xevi.