I'm sure it tasted fine... Columbian style red beans and rice is a wonderful dish..

having corn and beans in the same meal lets you have a complete blend of needed amino acids - complete protein. You can add whole corn/maize to the chili or pozole - which is corn kernels processed into hominey.

Having a large migrant population in western NY, it's not hard to find Goya or other brands of hispanic products.   Corn tortillas are commonly used instead of cornbread for that matter... made from finely ground hominey, "Masa", and cooked on a hot griddle.