Lima

Ever since we got to Peru, we had two really good meals. Ceviche in Trujillo, and ceviche in Punta Hermosa. The rest are mediocre restaurants, and catering from our hikes and hostels. But then we got to Lima.

Lima is known as the culinary capital of South America. Here, there are restaurants that Michelin routinely ranks in the top of the world. And that talent bleeds out to the surroundings, as every restaurant tries to out-compete each other in flavor.

We arrived mid afternoon from Punta Hermosa, ready to eat and sleep. The entire drive into town we had one thing on our mind: all you can eat sushi. We had found a restaurant just for that, and made a beeline for Ohashi Maki. We got a little crazy with our ordering. Teryaki wings, a ramen bowl, and rolls of various similar sushi’s with all sorts of sauces and toppings were our meal. On a less hungry stomach, we might have diversified the rolls we ordered, but not today.

On full bellies, we now had time to take our surroundings in. We were staying in Miraflores, which is also known as the swanky district of Lima. Here there are police directing traffic at every semi-important intersection, and sanitation workers everywhere. The vegetation is manicured with intent. We strolled through John. F. Kennedy park, which is home to a large population of stray cats. This is also the park where all the annoying sounding birds hang out. The smaller streets are filled with beautiful songs, but not in the park. Here its the frankensteined cousin of the magpie shrieking.

We started our next day with a couple convenience store empanadas, cheap and decent, and then went on a walking tour of the historical centre. Our group was fairly large, so it took a while to get downtown on the metropolitano (express bus). Many of the buses were too full for us. The historical center had clear evidence of Spanish colonialization. There were gothic style churches everywhere. The main square had the presidential palace right next to it. The building was in a similar style to that in Madrid we thought. The main shopping street was cool, but nothing unique.

The main square, Plaza de Armas, was unique. It was entirely closed off. The political situation in Peru has been somewhat volatile for a couple years now. So for what’s cited as security reasons, nobody can go in the main square now. Its all fenced off with police everywhere around it, but clearly well maintained though. Our guide, Dyane, was very careful in describing the political situation in Peru, only offering the fact that there have been five presidents in two years, and left it at that.

We had a quick Pisco tasting on the tour as well. Pisco is a grape spirit. The strawberry one was our favorite. We then bought a coconut crema pisco liqueur to enjoy at a later time, whenever that may be. Dyane then got permission from some police for us to enter a side street near the presidential palace to visit Desamparados Station, a literacy museum based out of an old train station. We had nowhere near enough time to take in the museum, but the building was nice.

We ended the tour by going to Parque la Muralla, which was closed because it was the parks anniversary. Not sure I get the logic, but whatever. That didn’t stop the attendant from letting some people through the gates though, not just us.

Still tired after the tour, we went back to Miraflores for a nap and food. Dinner was shawarma’s at a nice little hole in the wall. We were still hungry, so we decided to stop by a grocery store for some snacks. And then we discovered the best place in Peru.

Metro. In big white letters on a yellow background, a nondescript name for food heaven. The first floor is pretty standard for South American grocery. Dry goods, alcohol and cleaning supplies. We’re quite used to these by now. If we are lucky, there’s a small meat and produce section at the back. But then we discovered the upstairs.

A large produce section. Greeting us were baskets of all sorts of fruit. The wall had a large refrigerated section with lettuces and pre-cut stir fry veggie packs. Crates full of potatoes, avocados and onions. There was a bakery in the back corner with fresh bread. A deli! With all sorts of cheeses and meats. There was a whole dessert section to the bakery. Its a good thing we had those shawarma’s before we came to the grocery, or else half the store would have been bought. We got sandwich supplies and the best mango’s we have ever tasted.

Objectively, this Metro is similar to a small Safeway back home. But to us, it was our first opportunity to cook a good meal in a very long time. And that was something that we were greatly missing.

Our second full day in Lima was all about resting. We went to a little café for breakfast, picking up an empanada and sandwich. We then walked along the cliffs of Miraflores, overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Little surfers dotted themselves in the water, each with some sort of home beach to come back to. The surfers here are really good.

We found a cliffside mall, directly across from the Hilton. It had every outlet store possible at inflated prices. We checked out a few stores, and then left empty handed. The rest of the walk was slow, but peaceful. Even though we have spent every day together for the past three months, we’ve been spending a lot of our time doing stuff. We haven’t found enough time to talk about that stuff. So the slow walk was a much needed catch up and reflection session.

We passed a love park, a Chinese garden, some statues and many viewpoints on our walk. The path reminded us of the Edmonton river valley, due to the scenic views walking on top of a steep hillside. Of course, you would have to swap the river for an ocean.

Lunch was had at La Lucha, a sandwich shop. We had a chicken breakfast sandwich, and a nice pork shoulder sandwich. It came with fries and Chicha Morada, a spiced purple corn beverage, which is quickly becoming our favorite drink.

For the afternoon, we went back to Metro, and analyzed our options to make a great dinner. Still weirded out by raw meat, we opted for a rotisserie chicken, and got everything needed to make a cold Greek chicken pasta salad. Our hostel had a decent enough kitchen to make or dreams a reality, and we had our first quality cooked meal for the first time since Cuenca (which was a nice veggie ramen soup).

We got up at a reasonable hour the next morning to do a Lima food tour! We met up with our guide, Jorge, and a group of 10 or so and headed back to the city centre. We first stopped at the central market. The meats were still a lot for us, especially the cow organs and chicken feet, but the fruit area was lovely. Jorge has a deal with one vendor, and we got to try a ton of different fruits. We don’t remember the names of most of them, but the lucuma was really good. All of them had a nice flavour though.

We then took a pit stop to Chinatown, to try some dumplings and steam buns. This street food was really flavorful. The history of Chinese food, or Chifa, in Peru is quite interesting. Many Chinese were brought to Peru as slaves. When they were freed, their cuisine and ingredients slowly integrated with traditional Peruvian ingredients. One such Peruvian dish, lomo saltado, is essentially a stir fry.

Part of the group, including us, went to one of the oldest Chifa restaurants in Peru afterwards. It was decent, but very overpriced. We had our pasta salad for dinner again. The highlight of the tour was definitely when some local dude came up to me and said I looked like Brad Pitt. A young one I hope, not the 60 year old version (Is this trip aging me that much?).

Our next morning was spent quietly. We poked around Miraflores running errands and planning our next moves through Peru and beyond.

During the evening, we went on a walking tour of the neighborhood of Barranco. This neighborhood is another richy-rich neighborhood in Lima, known for its street art and night life.

We started at the central square, and made our way down to an ocean lookout. On the way we learned about a few famous Peruvians, whose portraits ordained the sides of buildings and bridges. We stopped at an art gallery of Jade Rivera, who was the painter of many of the murals around. The last stop was a market, where we got to try some lucuma ice cream. This stuff is the real deal. We got lost in the market watching the love music, and everyone had to wait for us before returning to the starting destination. Sorry gang.

Feeling tired, we decided to opt out of the night out the rest of the group decided on, and went to bed early.

We had one final day in Lima. So we set up a cooking class with Sandro, a cooking instructor at Le Cordon Bleu Lima, though we didn’t know that when we booked it. We were his first clients since COVID, and had a really nice time.

The class started with a trip to the market, where Sandro got all sorts of ingridients for the day’s menu. A nice beef, trout, quinoa, and fruits and veggies. This market was a smaller one, and we enjoyed it a lot.

Back at his apartment, Sandro got to work preparing the dishes for us. We sat and watched, asking questions and learning from him. We now know how to cook quinoa (rinse it, and start it in cold water and bring to a boil for 15ish minutes. Quinoa has a acid acid in it which makes it taste bitter so it needs to be removed. [Brilliant tip: If you want the flavour in the water (broth, or removal), start the cooking in cold water. If you want it in the ingredient (potato, etc.) start the boiling in hot water]). We know not to overcut onions, cause the flavour will run out. Smash your ginger and garlic. Chantilly powder is delicious. The type of salt you use matters for different things (Flaky salt for garnish, coarse salt for seasoning, fine salt for mixing).

The menu was a passionfruit ceviche for a starter, and lomo saltato on creamy quinoa for a main. Dessert was made by Sandro’s girlfriend, Anna, who is a pastry chef. She made a delicious tres leches cake for us.

We spent the afternoon in a artisan market poking around. I picked up a bracelet and a new wallet, replacing the old wallet I got in Peru 14 years ago.

That was our time in Lima. Lots to do while resting. It quickly became one of our favorite cities on the trip! But we can rest no more. More adventures await us in the south of Peru. We just have a 18h bus ride before we can do it. See you on the other side!