La Parada, at Recreo
#94, has a chef that is Cordon Bleu-trained and a native of Peru. I can tell you now that's a great combination
because this was one of the best meals I've had in San Miguel.
Alexandra Gutt worked
in Naples, Florida and the Cayman Islands before coming to San Miguel. The menu
she created is Peruvian with international accents. It's limited but the food
is superb.
In fact, if I had my
eyes closed I would have sworn I was sitting in a 4 star restaurant in downtown
Chicago...it was that good.
La Parada’s most
popular dishes include their Ceviches which are "cooked" with Leche
de Tigre which is a marinade of lime, onion, chile, and garlic. I had the
salmon with snow pods, seaweed and cucumber. I got the small portion (35 pesos)
and it was the perfect tease.
Main Courses? Yes,
there were two.
The Higaditos
Asaltados -Chicken Livers are stir-fried with soy sauce, chile paste, and a
chile cream sauce and served with fries and a side salad. Even if you don't
love chicken livers like me you should get an order because they did not taste
like liver.
The Ribs - Costilla de
Cerdo were marinated in mirin and soy and served with garlic mashed potatoes
and a Sautéed Salad which in my opinion was the best hot salad I've had. It was
a combination of snow peas, green beans and corn stir fried and had the perfect
crunch. The rib meat was fork tender and the sauce was slightly caramelized.
Talk about melt in your mouth good. But then, I've always been a fan of
caramelization. It's the epitome of stovetop alchemy.
When I ordered the
Crema Helado for dessert, I expected ice cream but it came with a topping of
caramelized crunchies and bananas and was so delicious I no longer had the
"guilts" for ordering a dessert. See, doesn't take much for me to not
feel guilty anymore about eating...especially dessert.
Of course, I could not
have a Peruvian meal without a Pisco Sour. Made with their in-house fruit
infused piscos, mine was an infusion of orange, tangerine, chicha morada,
ginger, pineapple, pepper, lavender, grapes, and berries. Chicha Morada is a
juice made of Jamaica, pineapple, orange, cloves, cinnamon, and apples.
This was no ordinary
drink and I would make one at home but I'm sure it would be lacking without the
in-house infused Piscos.
Last fall, Conde Nast
Traveler named Lima the Culinary Capital of South America so it's only fitting
that you should indulge in all the great foods of Peru in what they named as the
Best City of the World...San Miguel de Allende.
Buen Apetito!