My First Alpaca at Creperie Patrick in Huaraz, Peru

 

I splurged on the better cut of alpaca, because you kind of have to when you only have one chance to try to meat. At Creperie Patrick in Huaraz, Peru, Maureen and I really wanted the cuy special, but it was breaded. It ended up being two tiny pieces of deep-fried leg or breast or whatever little chunk of the guinea pig that it was – aka not much at all. So I was happy to have my relatively expensive cut of alpaca in an overly sweetened aguaymanto sauce (sweet and sour gooseberry, mostly sweet, so I cut it with fresh lime) with steamed vegetables and boiled potatoes. We skipped wine. And the service was awful and I didn’t trust the requisite hot sauces to be made with clean water and without dairy and gluten (yes, crackers count as gluten, I’ve had to tell more than one server after they insisted everything was gluten-free but then happily listed the ingredients. Peru is not food intolerance paradise).

Why was I ordering alpaca at an awfully French-sounding creperie in a small mountain town in Peru? Well, the thing is, we asked everywhere where we could get good alpaca and it was both an off day and late. Lunch is the main meal, so we had to head somewhere touristy. And a couple guidebooks recommended this place. there’s a lot of French, Californian and Swiss influence here, where travelers have come, fallen in love, set up shop and never left. That means there are granola-heavy cafes serving all day breakfasts, others offering fondue for two, cute brewpubs and sandwicherias, and a creperie whose lunch specials include guinea pig (cuy) and alpaca.

The ambiance was sort of nice, but the place was empty when we arrived. 7pm is early for supper, it’s true, and to be fair, the restaurant wasn’t drafty (a small wonder in a town with no heating a lot of cold air.

So a definite 1 1/2 thumbs up for this little restaurant, but only if you order the expensive cut of alpaca (I think it was something like 17 or 27 soles. That’s a big difference but I really don’t remember. 17 soles =$7, 27 soles = $11-$12, which is almost highway robbery in Huaraz. Wine will feel like a mugging by comparison).

And the address rhymes. That’s a selling point:

Luzuriaga 422, Huaraz, Peru
Dinner for $7-$15 if you’re a tipper (not mandatory, but servers expect a little in touristy restaurants)