When the World’s 50 Best Restaurants list of the world’s top restaurants was released in 2023, the city with the most entries, including the city ranked number one, was Lima, Peru. This food capital is known for its pisco sour bars, ceviche spots, and Chino Latino restaurants. But if you ask Peruvians where they travel for a memorable meal, many will choose Arequipa, the country’s second city.
Located 1,000 miles southeast of Lima and nestled beneath three fertile volcanoes, this high-altitude agricultural center has a unique mestizo cuisine that blends indigenous and Spanish influences. Its cuisine is completely different from that of Lima. In Arequipa, instead of ceviche, causa, and lomo saltado, you’ll find alpaca steak, chupe de camarone (river shrimp chowder), and ocopa (potatoes in chili sauce).
If Limeño values innovation, Arequipeño respects tradition. In fact, UNESCO designated Arequipa a Gastronomic Creative City in 2019 (the Baroque Spanish colonial center, built of white volcanic stone, is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site).
In this growing city of 1 million people, many chefs cook over open fires and grind their ingredients with oversized mortars and pestles. Arequipa is also known for its traditional restaurants called picanterias, usually located on the outskirts of town and most run by women who inherited them from their mothers or grandmothers.
This explains why travelers rarely see Arequipeño cuisine in Lima, much less abroad. That is why this intangible cultural heritage is under threat. Arequipa had about 3,200 picanterias in the 1800s and about 2,000 picanterias in 1900. Today only about 80 remain.
Learn how to experience the city’s traditional cuisine and taste the following dishes:
Rustic tavern in Arequipa
Picanteria’s origins date back to the 17th century, when rustic taverns called chicerias poured chicha de guiñapo, a pre-Columbian alcoholic drink made from fermented corn. The Spanish colonial government forced watering holes to serve small plates similar to Spanish tapas to prevent customers from overeating. To keep customers thirsty, the owners added spicy rocoto or ajipanka peppers to their dishes.
By the 19th century, snacks became more popular than booze, so taverns became known as picanterias. In the early days, they depicted (mainly male) musicians, writers, and intellectuals. Now all kinds of people gather around long communal tables. “We eat at Picanteria to feel Arequipeño,” says Sergio Salas, who led the Arequipa Creative City project with UNESCO. “It has a soul, it has an essence, it has a history.”
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The cuisine is a testament to Arequipa’s location on an ancient trade route between the Pacific coast and the Amazon basin, with seafood from the former, fruit from the latter, and quinoa and corn from the surrounding Andean valleys. , potatoes, peppers and other produce. The Spanish introduced beef, garlic, onions, lima beans, and dairy products, creating mestizo dishes such as rocoto relleno (chili peppers stuffed with beef and cheese).
Located in the Peruvian Andes, Arequipa is surrounded by four volcanoes, including El Misti (pictured). The city’s white buildings are made of silar, a stone taken from the surrounding hills.
Photo by Lepretre Pierre, Getty Images
Served in a 1.4-liter (about 6-cup) glass, the alcoholic chicha de guiñapo is called El Caporal (“The Chief”) and is still served with Picanteria dishes, including traditional stews for each day of the week. The atmosphere continues to lean toward rustic, and guests may end up sitting near an outdoor enclosure where guinea pigs, the staple meat usually on the menu, squawk.
Salas said the UNESCO certification strengthens the city’s restaurant industry, which supports thousands of jobs and accounts for a significant portion of the city’s GDP. The women of Picanteria also attracted attention.
Why women are dominating Arequipa’s restaurant scene
The female restaurateurs known as Picanteras have kept Picanteria alive. “Becoming a Picantera wasn’t a decision, it was more of an imposition,” says Monica Huerta, owner of Picanteria La Nueva Palomino. “You were effectively obliged to follow in her mother’s footsteps.”
Huerta initially resisted joining the family business because she knew how difficult her mother and grandmother’s work was. “Society often did not allow them to take responsibility for their own lives and be financially independent from men,” she says. Even now, Huerta estimates that 90 percent of her colleagues have never been married.
However, picantella is increasingly seen as a symbol of female empowerment and upward mobility. “He has to be strong, intelligent and able to lead a large team,” said Saida Villanueva, owner of Picanteria La Caucau II. She says, “Picanteras are born leaders in their communities.”
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Villanueva’s four sisters are also picantellas, but she worries that younger generations will not carry on the tradition. She is also concerned about Huerta. “Our mothers and grandmothers were givers of culture and were able to convey our region and our mixed-race history through their plates,” says Huerta. “If this culture is not continued, a large part of Arequipa’s history will be lost.”
Arequipa food updates
One member of the younger generation who is stepping up is Roger Falcon, owner of Victoria Picanteria Democratica, which opened in 2018. Falcon is one of only five local men to follow his mother into the business. He considers Victoria to be “Picanteria 2.0.” Not in the suburbs, but in the historic center of Arequipa, Plaza He is located in San Francisco and offers an “anthropological menu” inspired by everything from pre-Columbian cuisine to modern trends . At Falcon, he uses dishes and ingredients based on specific historical dates, such as his 18th-century pork adobo with vinegary chicha sauce.
The city’s food is constantly changing with the times, especially in the historic center, where Lima-based stars (such as Gastón Acurio’s chicha) and picanteria-style restaurants (CIRQA’s Salon) and other fusion cuisine They are lined up and changing shape again. There are pots such as Indigo and Mumis, the latter turning Arequipa’s icon rocoto relleno into cappelletti with rocoto peppers.
At Victoria, in addition to chicha, guests drink pisco sours blended with Sancayo cactus fruit, Peruvian wine, and mojitos infused with Andean herbs such as muña. “I think we can look to the future and look back at our heritage at the same time,” Falcon said. “If we do not place the picanteria harmoniously in the modern context, we risk extinction.”
if you go
How to get to Arequipa: There are no direct international flights to Arequipa, but it is easily accessible with several daily flights from Cusco (1 hour) or Lima (90 minutes).
When to visit: Arequipa, known as the “City of Eternal Spring,” experiences high temperatures in the 70s F year-round, but rains most from December to March. Several food festivals take place from August to November, including Fiesta de la Chicha, Mestizo Festival, and Festisáboles.
Where to stay: CIRQA is a luxury hotel housed in a converted 16th-century convent with a fine-dining Picanteria-style restaurant. QASA by Nomad is a food-focused hotel with a fusion restaurant and rooftop cocktail lounge.
Gourmet Tours: Several local companies offer gourmet experiences, including Arequipa Food Tours and Food Tours Arequipa.
Mark Johansson is a Chile-based travel writer and frequent contributor to National Geographic. Follow him on Instagram.
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