Cusco Eats
We ate a lot of great food during our six weeks in Peru. We (especially Steve) also drank a lot of pisco sours, the national cocktail. Our hotel in Cusco even offered a free pisco sour class. Fredy the bartender taught us that pisco is a type of brandy, but in order to be authentic Peruvian pisco (D.O.C.), it must be made from one of the eight designated grape varieties and produced in one of five coastal valleys in Peru. Fredy then demonstrated how to make the perfect pisco sour: 90ml pisco, 30ml simple syrup, 30ml fresh lime juice, one fresh egg white. Shake, then pour into pre-chilled glass. We certainly enjoyed drinking the results!
Cusco had plenty of great restaurants. Kion offered Peruvian Chinese cuisine, locally known as chifa. I loved my Ta’lico mocktail, a blend of pineapple, passion fruit, lychee, and soursop juices. The chicken wings were crispy and tender, with a lemon-garlic sauce. The lomo saltado arrived on a sizzling cast iron pan, with thin Chinese pancakes. Was it really Peruvian Chinese food, or just Chinese food served in Peru? It didn’t matter; we ate it all. They even served fortune cookies.
República del Pisco had a lively atmosphere and an extensive menu of tapa-style. We tried a Ronda Chilcanera (flight of Chilcanos), and selected five different flavors. They reminded me of Moscow mules, but with the flavors of local fruits. One clever and tasty dish featured four different Peruvian classic dishes served as brusquetas (toasted bread bites).
Our number one favorite restaurant was MAP Cafe, a hidden gem in the courtyard of the Museum of Pre-Columbian Art. The host, Francisco, welcomed us like royalty and announced that our prix fixe lunch was all paid for. We reluctantly admitted that we had been mistaken for some VIPs! But Francisco’s hospitality did not waver. We wanted a light lunch, so I ordered capchi de setas (mushroom stew). It was topped with a puff pastry crust that was cut open tableside with a flourish - and it was absolutely delicious! We loved MAP Cafe so much that Steve and I went back two days later for the prix fixe dinner. Kudos to Francisco and the chef.
Honorable Mention
At Inka Grill, the freshly-baked sourdough quinoa bread and the chicken soup with quinoa and vegetables were delicious and totally worth the markup for being right on the Plaza de Armas.
The breakfast buffets at our hotels were quite good, with a wide variety of local dishes. The Aranwa Cusco had the buffet nicely arranged in a small room off the main courtyard. The JW’s buffet was spread across three large rooms.
