#eatPERU
So for today's meal we are going for more of an upscale dining experience.
We are having lunch at a place called La Rosa Náutica, which means the nautical rose.
And it is a really cool restaurant out on the water.
There is this pier built over the ocean and it just leads you all the way to this little
restaurant.
So you're like surrounded by waves, there is surfers, birds.
Perfect setting and the food here is really good.
I've been here once before many many years ago.
So I'm excited to come back with more mature taste buds.
So our food has arrived and we went all out.
We got a little bit of everything.
So I'm having the starter tasting menu over here which comes with three different types
of ceviche which I love.
And Sam is having the grand tasting menu and his appetizers have also arrived and they
are looking pretty fancy.
Okay, so first up this one is espagon and this one is flounder.
Made with flounder.
Is it a ceviche?
It is a cebiche.
Yes.
Let's just dip it in the sauce.
Mmmmmm.
Oh wow.
It is some of the best ceviche I've ever had.
The fish just, it is so so tender and the sauce it has a really strong kick of lime.
Like there is nothing subtle about it.
Mmmmm.
It's good.
Moving on to the next.
Have a look here.
This one is called colorado and it has also flounder, shrimp and a little bit of squid.
And it also has the yellow corn.
The choclo.
Let's grab some choclo.
I'm expecting this to be spicy.
It already has a lot of sauce so I won't be adding anymore.
Mmmmm.
Oh yeah.
Mmmm.
I
always expect squid to be a little bit chewy but this is great.
Made to perfection.
So yeah, I'm really enjoying this so far.
And we've got one more - the last one.
This one has flounder, octopus and a cilantro sauce and it has the canchita that we tend
to find in lots of places.
We love that.
That makes an appearance at most tables.
Salty corn.
Mmmmm.
It is a nice mix of soft and crunchy.
And the sauce is refreshing.
Really nice ceviche.
Alright, Sam so let's have a look at your plate.
Oh, exciting times.
So I've got a three portion appetizer sampler as well.
What are you starting with?
And we're going to start out with the causa.
The yellow mashed potatoes and this comes with a tuna tartar in a smoked chili peppers
and avocado.
I love tuna tartar.
So I'm going to be trying some of that later.
Wow.
I bet it is magic.
Magic in the mouth.
Like those are three really amazing things all at once.
Love causa, the potatoes, then you add that nicely sliced avocado and then the tartar.
Oh, yeah.
Oh yeah.
Okay let's move on.
Moving on, this is the classic ceviche.
Yeah.
So, yeah this is what we love to eat here in Peru.
And especially Lima.
The one meal that we've probably had more than any other is cebiche.
I feel like we have it every other day.
When we're in Peru it's just ceviche, cebiche, more ceviche.
That's the most tender ceviche I've ever had.
Yeah, isn't it?
I don't know what they do to make it this tender but it is just amazing.
You don't even really have to chew it.
Yeah, it has got a special touch.
And then the sauce is just - oh wow.
And then moving on to the last one here, this is the octopus salad.
And it also comes with toasted yucca which is a pretty unique thing to do.
It is kind of like a root.
Yeah, it is kind of like a root similar to a potato and it also comes with olive sauce.
Oh, reading the menu over there.
Sorry.
Kind of cheating a bit.
Kind of cheating a little bit here.
So the next course has arrived.
And now I'm going to be sampling three different types of causa.
So causa is a type of dish that is made with yellow mashed potato and it is usually served
kind of like a shepherd's pie but this is a bit fancier.
So we have a nice little swirls of yellow potato.
And I'm having three different types.
The one you see over here with the shrimp is called Arequipeña.
It has a nice ocopa, creamy sauce.
Then if we move over to the middle this one is made with poleveto so it is octopus and
olive sauce and at the very end you have one with tuna in a chili pepper cream.
Wow.
So which one do you start with?
Let's start with tuna.
I tried Sam's tuna.
You seem to be a big fan of tuna.
Yeah.
Oh wow, it looks like the tartar too.
Magic.
Look at that.
Getting it.
Mmmm.
Oh yeah.
Oh man.
There may not be any left over for you.
This fish just melts in your mouth.
It is so good.
Mmmmm.
Okay shall we move on to the next one?
Yes.
So this is our octopus here.
Let's see.
You know I've become a pretty big fan of octopus ever since we've been in Lima.
They really know how to prepare it well.
You didn't like it so much in Korea.
No but here totally different story.
So yeah that is good.
And you really taste the olive oil.
They've used it so smooth like it leaves a nice little aftertaste.
And this, last but not least, how shall I do this?
Just bite it off?
Yeah.
Just dunk it in and bite it off.
Okay.
Let's get the shrimp.
Mmmmm.
Wow.
That's fresh.
It tastes like the ocean.
So which of the three did you like the most?
The tuna?
Probably tuna.
I just loved tuna.
I can't get enough of it.
Mmmmm.
So what is next on the menu?
And the last of your sampler portion has arrived.
These are the Carpaccio.
Let's just take a look down at those.
So over here we have got salmon with green onions, vinaigrette with a quail egg.
Yeah, that is pretty fancy.
I would say.
Over here tuna in a mustard sauce with also soy sauce and sesame seeds.
You can see the sesame seeds there.
And finally we've got flounder with basil oil and black salt.
Oh oh.
So Salmon is pretty much my favorite fish so I think I'm going to try that one last.
So we will start off with the flounder.
Sam always leaves the best for last.
Yeah, that is my way of doing things when I eat.
Mmmmm.
It is good.
That's sour.
And it tastes actually quite similar to a ceviche.
Yeah.
It is the same fish they use for a cebiche.
Well, there you go.
That answers the question.
There you go.
Okay on to the tuna.
And what I want to make sure is that I get lots of this sesame sauce and sesame seeds.
What you want to make sure is that you leave some for me.
Oh.
That's the best thing I've tried here so far.
Like this the combination of that amazing tuna and then you have this tangy sesame sauce
which is really rich and creamy.
Oh yeah.
Oh yeah he says.
Alright, now your favorite.
Last but not least let's move on to the salmon.
I grew up eating a lot of salmon on Vancouver Island, where I'm from in Canada, so this
will be familiar and tasty.
Oh, woah.
That is fresh.
That is tender and that is just very high quality salmon.
I love this.
So the food just keeps on coming.
This is Sam's main, and again it is a sampler with three different dishes.
So have a look down here.
First up we're having Lomo Saltado, which is one of the national dishes I guess you
could say.
Um so it is kind of like a fried beef with onions, tomato and there is yellow potato
french fries underneath.
And then we are moving over to the shrimp with tacu tacu.
Now that is a big shrimp.
It is massive.
More like a prawn.
And the tacu tacu is basically rice and fried beans.
And last but not least we've got the catch of the day, a pan-fried white fish with some
potatoes in a creamy sauce.
So yeah, lots of food.
So you're going with the lomo saltado first.
The lomo saltado.
So we've got a little piece of meat, maybe let's grab a potato.
Oh my gosh.
I spilled.
Don't let them see.
I couldn't get the potato.
Let's just go for the beef.
Mmmmm.
Wow.
You know what?
That sauce it almost has a bit of a Chinese influence.
It is really interesting.
I don't think I've ever tried lomo saltado in Peru before.
This may be my first.
And my yellow potato fry.
Mmmmm.
Good stuff.
Now let's clean up my mess before they come.
There we go.
All clear.
Okay, moving on.
I'm just going to cut off a piece so you get some as well.
Please, that is the one I'm looking forward to the most.
A bit of shrimp, rice and beans.
Woah.
That looks amazing.
Mmmmm.
It is nice.
It almost tastes a little bit Mexican - the refried beans and rice.
It is good.
Good combo.
And I'm going to move on to the fish.
She's excited about the fish.
I sure am.
Let's get a bit of sauce.
I'm not sure what this sauce is.
What does it say on the menu?
A leek sauce.
That is what it is.
Leek.
There we go.
Mmmmmm.
That is so creamy and smooth.
That is good.
I think we're going to remember this meal, huh?
Forever and ever.
So I'm getting pretty sad over here because it is almost time to wrap up this meal.
I know.
We're already full but dessert has arrived and we will be making room for it because
everything at this restaurant has just been incredible so far.
So let's have a look at dessert.
So take a look down here and you're going to see first that this is a chocolate crunchy
mouse.
Okay.
And over here we pomme de raison which is kind of like a crispy pancake with vanilla,
manjar and strawberries.
So vanilla sauce.
And this is the one I'm most interested in trying.
This is a chocolate tart with lúcuma mousse.
And that is like one of my favorite local fruits here in Peru.
So we've got a nice spread of desserts.
It is time to dig in.
Dig in.
Which one is first.
Alright, I'm going to try.
Let's go over here first.
And we will try the crunchy chocolate mousse with berries.
I wonder if that is coconut on top?
Oh, I can definitely feel the crunch at the bottom here.
Let's try that.
Mmmmm.
Wow.
That mousse is really light and it is really rich.
And I have no idea what that crunchy thing, the crunchiness at the bottom is.
But it is tasty.
It tastes a bit like granulated sugar but I know it is not that.
Okay, time to try that pancake and I don't have a knife anymore.
Oh, it is crunchy.
So that broke off nicely.
Oh, you can hear happy birthday in the background.
Someone is having a birthday.
This is a great place for a birthday.
Yeah, I can of feel like this is should be both of our birthdays.
Hahaha.
In advance.
Mmmmmm.
Okay.
That is really crunchy when you first bite into it but then it is light and it disintegrates
in your mouth.
And the manjar sauce, the vanilla sauce, is just very light and the strawberries kind
of just add a nice juicy kick at the end.
Ooh.
And now on to the one you're most looking forward to.
So as you know by now I save my favorite one for the end.
And look at all of the manjar.
Oh, that is lucuma.
Sorry sorry what am I say.
Lucuma.
Lucuma filling but with maybe on the plate.
Lucuma.
Oh.
Oh oh oh.
That's the best.
Oh yeah.
That filling is almost like, it is a combination of tasting like the actual fruit, and it also
tastes like a creamy butterscotch pudding as well.
Oh, that is good.
Well, hello captain.
Time to resume my captain duties over here.
Hahaha.
So was that one of the best meals you've ever had or what?
Yeah, that ranks up there really really highly.
I mean it is certainly the fanciest meal we've ever had in Lima or in Peru for that matter.
And you know the price reflected that.
The price of what I ordered which included the appetizers, the mains and the desserts
was a hundred and sixty Soles and your appetizer portion which had three different things.
It has the causa, the ceviches and the other part that was 80 Soles.
So in total it was a 250 Sole meal.
That is quite a bit.
You're looking at you know 70-80 US dollars but it was so worth it.
It is a dining experience we'll never forget.