For the Foodies

When I first started this blog I had good intentions of writing about food and cooking in the places we would visit. But there have been a few obstacles that have gotten in the way of doing that. Many of the apartments we have stayed in, although advertised as having a kitchen, are just dishes and cutlery for take-out. I won't get into how dismal these kitchens are but I can say that when Ramanan bought his pocket knife, I thought it was going to be useless. I was wrong! It has turned out to be the only knife that most of the kitchens had. So needles to say, my expectations and reality have not meshed that well and I have been happy to make very, very simple meals whenever I could. Other times we stay in hostels and the kitchens are better but with so many people using the space, you just have time to make your meals and get out. Finally, (I think Ramanan and I are similar in this way) taking a picture of what is on my plate is the last thing on my mind when I am hungry. Usually by the time we get our meal served to us, I see it, want it and devour it! So my point is that I am going to try to be to a little more disciplined about taking photographs before I devour my food :-)

I am a food person and so far I can't say I have been all that impressed with what we have had. The exceptions would be Las Delicias, a tea house in Sucre, Eli's delicious meals in Sucre and the meals we had at Marchelo's home. That is why I was really looking forward to coming to Peru. I have read and heard Peruvian food is really delicious, more than just meat and potatoes, which is what you generally get when you eat out. Our second day in Lima, we went to the Larcomar, an outdoor mall on the cliffs of the coast in Miraflores, the trendiest neighbourhood in Lima. Here is where we were going to eat. And according to Ramanan, I have been talking his ear off about having cerviche, a sea-food medley cooked in lime juice with red onions and chilli and served with sweet potato. I had decided after all the flavour deprivation, this meal had to be mind blowing.

We choose a restaurant and for drinks I ordered the Maracuya (passion fruit) sour and Ramanan, the Pisco sour, Peru's cocktail contribution to the world. Then came the cerviche, filled with tender pieces of shellfish, sole and octopus and served with the sweetest and vibrantly orange sweet potato I have ever had. When the food arrived, I almost forgot to take a photo again :-) I ordered the Tacu Tacu and Ramanan, the Lomo Amazonico. The Tacu Tacu, a blend of rice and beans served with a creamy stew of seafood was divine. Ramanan's dish of breaded steak came with a delicious salsa, more than what we have gotten anywhere else. Finally a delicious and satisfying meal!