470032 Sun Dec 16 15:08:11 -0800 2007 1 56 South America 0 3213322 Here's part 1 of 2 of my food journal synopsis from a three week long trip to Peru (Lima, Cuzco, and Puno) with my SO. Though the focal point was Machu Picchu, we turned it into a chow vacation as well. Hope it proves useful for your future itineraries! Cuzco- We spent the majority of our time in this city, and had an opportunity to sample a wide variety of cusines (high end to street food, much like our range in accomodations) From the best to the so-so, here they are: Granja Heidi - in San Blas. We'd heard the chatter on the boards, so decided to try them for lunch (they are only open for lunch, as I discovered after repeated attempts to stop by in the evening). The restaurant was bright and airy, as well as clean (as expected from a German owner) The hidden away location on the second floor, next to a courtyard shielded us from unwanted street noise (as it turns out, Cuzco is a very noisy city) I had a chicken carapulcra dish - a traditional andean dish with chicken and stewed dried potatoes and chili. This was an absolutely delicious dish - mildly spiced and hearty enough for the cool weather outside. My SO had their savory crepe stuffed with tuna and cheese from the restaurant ownner's farm - a rather creamy mix resembling American tuna fish salad. We finished off our meal by sharing their carrot cake - a moist slightly spiced and not too sweet concoction with a nutty texture (as if half the cake was compsosed of finely ground nuts) Inka...fe Cafe - in San Blas. We enjoyed some execllent fruit smoothies one day at the bar, so decided to return for dinner. We absolutely loved this casual restaurant - over any of the high -priced options. We composed a meal out of many a la carte items, including an excellent (if not the best on our trip) chupe de quinoa (a more chowderish chunky soup, with chicken, veggies, quinoa, potatoes and Cuzco's ubiquitous squeaky cubes of white cheese) We also shared a fresh side of salad of mixed greens and avocado in a tangy light orange vinaigrette, a side of the papa huancaina, boiled sliced potatoes smothered with a cheesy sauce, accented with boiled egg and dark olives, and an entree of mixed grilled vegetables brochette (eggplant, bell peppers, onions and mushrooms) over rice. Everything was perfectly seasoned and cooked and srevice was top-notch. I definitely preferred the meal to some of the more expensive restaurants I sampled in the city. Restaurant Illary at the Monasterio Hotel- A gastronomy package was included in our booking at the Monasterio Hotel, where we decided to spend one well-earned night. The restaurant is breathtaking, a cavernous space appointed with enormous wine cellar, antiquities, plush chairs and 1000 thread count table linens. It was a bit jarring so soon after roughing it on a 7 day trek. in the mountains. The hostess deposited us at a table in the inside room (they also have tables next to the windowed walls abutting the courtyard). We shared a half bottle of malbec and dove into our amuse bouche- a zuchinni crudo, which was lighly marinated and dotted with some crunchy nuts. We had a little blip in service (itherwise excellent) - with the wine presentation occuring about 5 minutes into our appetizer course. I had an (over) grilled crawfish appetizer and then a duck breast with a fava bean/potato mash for entree. My SO had a smoked trout app with a roast pork and roasted bell pepper ravioli. My meal on the whole was nice seasoned, but way overcooked- the crawfish was overcooked to the point it was stuck to the skewer, and the duck which was ordered MR was tough. My SO seemed to be happy with his choices. Dessert was a chocolate based something or other - it might have been a chocolate daquoise - we were just so tired, that we didn't even finish them On the other end of the spectrum - the mercado central (or San Pedro, as the locals call it) is a wonderfully chaotic assortment of sundry vendors, grocers, and food counters. We had an excellent pollo saltado and trucha milanese, both heaping portions, for roughly 3 dollars each. The green salsa was absolutely addictive, and we dispensed it liberally over everything on our plates. We chose the busiest counter - the one against the wall in the back, which used blue stools for tables. The soup and cebiche counters looked delicious as well, although we did not try them. The chicken soup lady at the market in Pisac (2 hours from Cuzco) was great. Big heaping bowls of chicken and marinated veggie soup can be had there for merely $1.70. She is not to be missed. Additionally, the wandering tamale vendors there had delicious sweet or savory corn tamales with the most unusual fluffy texture. They weren't as greasy as those in Mexico and they were almost cakelike. Mundo Hemp - though technically, more a cafe than restaurant, was a hippie dippie place featuring hemp flour as a main ingredient in its offerings. We didn't get to sample any meals there, but we did enjoy a lovely afternoon snack of crunchy spiced cookies with hemp flour (perfectly spiced, not too sweet) and a refreshing hot tea of steeped ginger, honey, and rosemary. They seemed to have some nice healthy options for breakfast and dinner, from what I could remember of their specials board. Kin Taro- Being that I'm Japanese, it's hard to suppress that home food craving for Japanese food on trips abroad. Luckily they had Kintaro. I had an agedashi (fried) tofu and traditional gohan set - with steamed rice (Andean long grain), miso soup, and pickles. SO had a reasonably tasty veggie yakisoba. Sadly, they were out of natto. The flavors were good, the dashi for the Agedashi tofu and miso soup were spot on authentic and delicious. The grainy tofu cubes (maybe handmade?) were a bit tough for me to stomach, when all my life I'd gotten used to kinugoshi (silken) tofu. The dinner helped satiate my craving, though, and did the trick. The local restaurant right above the Marqueses Hotel had decent traditional meals for cheap - 3-5 dollars. We enjoyed trucha with chaufa (chinese style fried rice) and pollo saltado. Not as tasty as the central market's, but a bit more civillized, with actual tables and chairs and legroom. Inka Grill- I'd read just about every CH poster's recommendation for the upscale nouveau Andean resto, so was very disappointed to find this to be another overrated "tourist spot". The free addictive potato chips were awesome, however. The trout salad was average, and the mayo-heavy dressing was too heavy for the dish. I tried for the very first time, guinea pig or "cuy" roasted on a spit. They were nice enough to remove the head, and paws. The meat was gamey, reminiscent of quail, or the dark meat of chicken. The critter was seasoned nicely, with a dried chili and rosemary rub, but was tough as nails to eat, even when you picked it up with your fingers and gnawed into it with my teeth. (that's apparently the way to do it there). Not that I'm a connoiseur of cuy, but my sources say it's actually quite tender, when cooked right. My SO's dish of chicken and risotto was a mess- 4 strips of white meat chicken grilled to their death, lacquered with some nondescript gloppy sauce and thrown on top of a mess of cheesy, too buttery quinoa risotto. My initial excitement over the unusual quinoa risotto was overtaken by a vaguely nauseous feeling after about 3 bites. The desserts were huge (actually most restaurants serve HUGE portions so be careful not to over order) I had a mixture of sorbet with sliced fruit, and SO had a flan that was too heavy to finish. Incanto- this was another "tourist restaurant," with a fancy ambitious menu (pizza, pastas,upscale nouveau Andean cusine) and sleek, predominantly white-hued decor to match. I guess it's a newer arrival, judging from its absence in guidebooks and CH. Like Inka Grill, it too fell short on the food. The pizza with champinones was subpar, the cardboard-like dough being the problem there. It was as if they had forgotten yeast in their dough, although everything else on it seemed ok. Maybe that was the Andean twist? I had a duck with cilantro risoto. The cilantro risotto was actually pretty tasty, but I had a problem with the the duck leg being deep fried. The other meals we enjoyed were on our trek - a shout out to the excellent Llama Path cooks! Stay tuned for part 2 - covering our adventures in Lima and Puno. Sun Dec 16 15:08:11 -0800 2007 53427 kayonyc 1 3231299 Great report! I too ate at Inka...fe repeatedly when I was in Cuzco... have a tendency to stick to one place when I'm in a really touristy area, and I find something I like. I'm impressed that you were able to take such detailed notes on this trip - I find it much harder to keep up a journal when I'm travelling with someone - even harder when I'm woozy from the altitude. My eating in Peru notes are pretty scant. Looking forward to Part 2! Sat Dec 22 14:37:39 -0800 2007 3213322 44059 daveena