Waffle with Carop Syrup

By Walter Coraza Morveli and Hebert Edgardo Huamani Jara (translated by David Knowlton)

This restaurant is located on the narrow and steep Cuesta San Blas street, near its beginning, on the second floor of a colonial house. It is easy to recognize because above the door is an image of a cow along with the name Granja Heidi (Heidi’s Farm). It is a place like everyone hopes for, tranquil and welcoming. Read the rest of this entry

Image of a Typical Man Drinking Chicha

By Fernando Delgado Aguirre (translated by David Knowlton)

Chicha made from corn (chicha de jora) is the Andean drink that transcends time and space. It was present and formed a fundamental part of the diet in the Inca Empire just as it does in our nourishment today. Cuzco has a variety of chicherías (places selling chicha) that draw in its people every day.  Read the rest of this entry

Chicken Escabeche

By Jhon Carrillo Tito (translation by David Knowlton)

Traditional cuisine represents a community, city or country. In it we can discover their way of life as well as customs that continue from generation to generation in terms of gastronomic techniques to obtain dishes filled with flavor and smells. Whether the texture is soft of crispy each dish has identity and they stand out for the different flavors we can find in each. Without the need to use sophisticated culinary techniques traditional cooks make dishes that captivate the most demanding palates, even mine. Read the rest of this entry

Silverware, Limes and Hot Sauce

By Hebert Edgado Huamani Jara and Walter Coraza Morveli (translated by David Knowlton)

In Cuzco, people often talk about a warique (wah-ree-kay,) a favorite restaurant where ordinary people eat but that is not widely known.  They are found throughour the city of Cuzco.  The food they sell tends to be the common, or as we say, typical dishes of our region.  Read the rest of this entry

Eating at Braza Brava

By David Knowlton

Cuts of beef, redolently steaming as the server carries them on a spit through the restaurant. Stopping at each table to see if the chip is red or green, the server holds out the spit to tempt those with green chips and pull the meat off the spit and place it on their plate, before moving on to another table. This is the Brazilian rodizio, or churrascaria, and it has finally come to Cuzco. Read the rest of this entry

Door to Another World, Cafe Extra

By David Knowlton

Heads bow and lift as people whip thick conversation in Cuzco’s classic Cafe Extra (Espaderos 116.) Cups of local coffee or tea, mugs of rich hot chocolate, glasses of fresh-made juice, and plates of pastries or sandwiches listen in as they beat the themes of Cuzco’s intellectual life and politics. Read the rest of this entry

Fettuccine al Pesto

By David Knowlton

Popping up on menu after menu in Cuzco, pesto hits the senses with intensity. At the same time, it can confuse. You expect one thing and something else is served. Here we explore what pesto seems to mean and why surprising variants appear. Read the rest of this entry

Turkey Sandwich

By David Knowlton

A Peruvian response to hamburgers and fried or rotisseried chicken, drawing on the deep culinary traditions of the country, has been a dream of Peruvian chefs for a long time. In Lima Chefs have established Peruvian sandwich shops and other attempts to staunch the growth of international fast food. But in Cuzco such things have been almost unheard of, until now. Read the rest of this entry

Tabboule de quinoa

By David Knowlton

Cuzco holds many surprises. One of them are the many exotic, ethnic corners found in the old city. Many have little to do with the history of mass immigration to Peru, unlike ethnic enclaves elsewhere, but rather with the origins of tourists and the development of places for them and their culture that are neither exactly like their homeland nor really Peruvian. These corners of difference live somewhere in between.

La Caverne del Oriente, a charming French fusion restaurant is one of these. Read the rest of this entry

Orange Juice and Breakfast

By David Knowlton

Want some coffee and a place to sit in comfort? OK. There is a Starbucks in Cuzco. But it is noisy and anyway its coffee is bitter. If you like that, fine. Otherwise, where can you go while in Cuzco for some good, rich coffee, calm, and an ambiance that is well designed and soothing in the midst of a bustling, tourist city? Read the rest of this entry