Limeños will shake their head at Lima's many problems,
but they are extremely proud of their food. This is in large part justified, as Peru has a wealth of delicious traditional food for which Peruvian cuisine has garnered international attention in the past five to ten
years. However, this pride can be somewhat extreme at
times. If you mention a bad dish you had at a restaurant or point out the fact that fried pork and french fries are a tad unhealthy, most Limeños will rush to defend their country's cuisine. When Morrisey canceled his tour because he got very
ill from eating at a restaurant in Lima, everybody was up in arms despite the fact that he never said a single word against the food.
Alongside food, there were also parades and dancing from the various regions of Peru
Nonetheless, the best Lima has to offer is
most certainly its food, and for the past three years Lima has held a
week-long festival called Mistura in celebration of Peruvian cuisine. Well-known restaurants from various
regions of Peru as well as from Lima are invited. This year, the festival was divided into
twelve different “worlds,” such as The North Coast, Seafood, Jungle, and of
course, La Taberna (drinks).
The people came in droves, although that
might have been because we went on the last day. The line to get in was
enormous, and it took us an hour and a half just to reach the entrance. Once
in, there were people everywhere, and finding a table was difficult. Many
families camped out at the tables, hoarding chairs and guarding spaces while
the other members got in line for food. Some people were reminiscent of dogs guarding their territory: you could almost hear the growls if you eyed their tables.
The line for the entrance
Since there is an entrance fee of $10, the
point is to get there early and spend all day walking around and eating as much
as possible. Each dish cost either $3 or $5 depending on the size of the
portion, and all of them were delicious. The highlights were a peanut soup from
Amaz (Amazonian cuisine) and two traditional Lima dishes, seco de res from
Kamcha and ají de gallina from El Rincón Que No Conoces. The first is beef
slowly stewed in herbs until tender, and the other is a creamy sauce with
shredded chicken. We also had fusion sushi rolls, steamed fish with coconut rice, and clams in tangy lime sauce. Of course, I also really enjoyed the pisco sours. Jorge and I
had two each and our friends had three each.
Mango passionfruit pisco sours
Aside from the restaurant stands, there was
also a large farmer’s market and a chocolate and coffee expo. The market had
traditional and natural foods from all the regions of Peru, ranging from the
expected offerings to items like coca liquor, dried goldenberries, and
passionfruit jam. The chocolate expo was smaller but full of temptations. I
somehow managed to fit in two chocolate macaroons on top of all the food I'd already eaten.
Clams from the Ceviche world
Overall, the festival was very enjoyable,
but it did have some drawbacks. The hoarding and general lack of tables led to
a long and tiring day of walking around, and the dishes were a bit expensive
considering the portion sizes. In total, Jorge and I each ended up spending
around 100 soles, or $40. In terms of
local spending power, that’s a sizable chunk of money, and I thought the
entrance fee of 25 soles was
excessive. The amount of people led to long lines for just about everything,
and the line to get in could have been avoided with better organization and
more points of entry. However, we went home stuffed to the gills and very satisfied, and I would definitely go back. Next time though, I'll get a table early!
