When Argentina played Chile across the river at MetLife in the opening round of Copa America, every table at the Chilean restaurant La Roja de Todos was booked; those who showed up without one stood near the glass dessert display to watch. Almost all wore red national team jerseys, many with the name of forward Alexis Sánchez on the back; some had face paint; one wrapped himself in the Chilean flag.
The Chilean colors are applied to Jose Soto’s cheek
Fans dine while waiting for the game to begin
Platters of steak and fried fish
Owner Pablo Colque—originally from Valparaíso—is a big fan of Chile’s national soccer team, as evidenced by the restaurant’s name, which is derived from the team’s name. He says that La Roja, or “the Red One,” immediately identifies the place to the 20 million Chileans in the world. Yes, people come here for home-cooked dishes such as baked empanadas and fried fish, which Colque names as specialties. But the restaurant also serves as home for Chilean soccer fans, and any match that involves the national team draws the community from all around and demands an advance reservation.
Pablo Colque, owner of La Roja de Todos
Fans were there to support the team, live and die with each near miss and defensive stop; we were there to cover the community’s display of soccer fanaticism, strong within a group whose population in New York City is reportedly under 10,000 (some fans came from Long Island, where there is a decent-size Chilean community).
A tense time for the room
La Roja de Todos is one of New York City’s few Chilean restaurants (perhaps its only one), which moved recently from Corona, Queens, to a small mall in the borough’s quiet College Point neighborhood. For Colque, it was a matter of more space and more parking, while keeping it in an area easily accessible to the borough’s strong Latino representation. The dedication that supporters display by showing up is simple to Colque, who explains that being a fan outside Chile intensifies the experience. There was no doubting that feeling when the national anthem came on and everyone sang in unison, followed by the Viva Chile chant (“Chi-Le Chi-Chi-Chi Le-Le-Le Viva Chile!”), which recurred over the course of the game.
A moment of collective disbelief
That’s the way it frequently is here for this global game. In a city with so many international cultures, it seems there’s always a place to gather with other national team supporters. As Colque says, “Acá la gente siente nostalgia. Se siente mucho más emotivo ver cuando Chile juega fuera de Chile que estar en el mismo Chile.” (Here people feel nostalgic. It feels much more emotional to see when Chile plays outside of Chile than being in Chile itself.”)
Pablo Colque takes food and drink orders from a table
During the evening, servers snaked through the tightly packed tables, which seat around 90, carrying drinks and lots of steak sandwiches and giant avocado-and-mayo-topped hot dogs. A couple of TV glitches brought groans. Cries for a yellow card followed a replay of a Chilean player being cut down. Tension ramped up as Argentina’s Lionel Messi bounced a ball off the post and its goalie, Emiliano Martinez, made two saves in short time, keeping Chile off the scoreboard. Finally, La Albiceleste found the back of the net late, and Chile lost 1–0.
Colque says that when Chile wins, it is madness. La Roja was electric till the end, but true madness may have to wait for the next game.*
Multigenerational fans take in the match
*Unfortunately, Chile was eliminated during group stage play; Argentina advanced to the next round.
