• Choose a category
• All
• Classic-Fiction

By Root 1292 0

Sun) Famed chef Gastón Acurio arrived in Arequipa with Chicha. As with the astutely crafted menus he is celebrated for elsewhere in Peru, Chicha’s selections turn the freshest local ingredients and regional specialties into noteworthy flavor fusions such as the cuy laqueado (guinea-pig appetizer with Arequipan touches of corn and rocoto pepper) and the rocoto relleno (in this dessert version red peppers are stuffed with cream cheese and dulce de leche). The experience is rounded off with a tantalizing list of cocktails and service that leaves no detail unattended to.

El Gaucho Parrilladas (22-0301; Portal de Flores 112; mains from S30; noon-midnight) Not one for vegetarians: these guys are experts in steak and steak alone, and they don’t skimp on portions. On a lower level off the Plaza de Armas, the restaurant has a snug atmosphere. It’s popular with locals and tourists staying at nearby hotels alike, so reservations are recommended.

Zig Zag (20-6020; Zela 210; mains S33-40; 6pm-midnight) The upscale sister of Crepisimo, this European restaurant inhabits a two-story colonial house with an iron stairway designed by Gustave Eiffel. The expensive menu features decadent fondues, carpaccio, stone-grilled steaks and other South American game dishes.

Return to beginning of chapter

DRINKING

The nocturnal scene in Arequipa is pretty slow midweek but takes off on weekends. Many of the bars along Calle San Francisco offer happy-hour specials worth taking advantage of.

Al Krajo (40-2530; San Francisco 300; 5:30pm-late) Latin music blares through the barred windows of this hole-in-the-wall from opening until closing. It’s a decent place to sip a happy-hour pisco sour (grape brandy cocktail) and pester passers-by.

Déjà Vu (22-1904; San Francisco 319B; 9am-late) With a rooftop terrace overlooking the church of San Francisco, this eternally popular haunt has a long list of crazy cocktails and a delicious happy hour every evening. After dark, decent DJs keep the scene alive on weekdays and weekends alike.

Farren’s Irish Pub (Pasaje Catedral; noon-11pm) Tucked behind the cathedral, this touristy Irish-themed watering hole is the place to go for deliciously cheap happy-hour pints and sports on satellite TV.

Istanbul (20-5930; San Francisco 231A; 10am-3am) Owned by the same folks as El Turko, this Middle Eastern–themed bar with stained-glass windows and overstuffed couches offers exotic liquor concoctions, beers and jet-fuel coffee.

Return to beginning of chapter

ENTERTAINMENT

Live Music

Be aware that some places advertise a nightly peña, but there’s rarely anything going on except from Thursday to Saturday nights.

Café Art Montréal (20-6652; Ugarte 210; 5pm-1am) This smoky, intimate little bar with live bands playing on a stage at the back would be equally at home as a bohemian student hangout on Paris’ Left Bank.

Las Quenas (28-1115; Santa Catalina 302; closed Sun) An exception to the rule, this traditional peña features performances almost nightly starting around 9pm. The music varies, although música folklórica predominates. It also serves decent arequipeño food starting at 8pm.

La Quinta (20-0964; Jerusalén 522; 10am-10pm) Another good spot for local food and melodic folklórica music. Live bands are featured everyday during the high season (June to August) when the place fills up for lunch, but it’s potluck as to whether you get live music on other days.

Retro Bar (20-4294; San Francisco 317; 5pm-late) In the same alley as Forum Rock Cafe, this rock ’n’ roll bar is a good spot to get the night going. The drink menu offers old favorites to sip on, and the building pulsates with live ’80s and ’90s music Thursdays through Saturdays.

Nightclubs

For the spiciest nightlife, on the weekends head for the bars and clubs along San Francisco north of the plaza. Beyond the tourist haunts, the hottest local action is to be had at nightclubs strung along Av Dolores, 2km southeast of the center (a taxi costs around S3 one way) where salsa and cumbia (Colombian salsa-like dance and musical style) music and dancing predominate.

Dady