The New Peruvian Food Scene

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What’s a blog on cities without mentioning food. And what’s a Peruvian writing about food without mentioning Peruvian food. For those of you who don’t know, in 2017 Lima was named the #1 food city in the world by Bloomberg, #3 by Forbes, and mentioned by many other reputable sources as Latin America’s culinary capital.

I’m not gonna go into detail on the deliciousness of Peruvian food because it’s kind of talked about a bit too much. The only thing I’ll mention is the fusion that is Peruvian food, which is what makes it so unique compared to other Latin American cuisines: Spanish, African, Italian, Inca, and (wait for it) Chinese and Japanese.

Feast your eyes.

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Now I’m gonna argue there’s a new food culture which, in the next 20 years, will probably be included in this fusion: Venezuelan. With 800,000 documented Venezuelans having fled into Peru as of August 2019 with an average of 1,200 moving into the country daily, they’ve spread out all over the country. In Lima, their presence is obviously recognizable since the cultures are so drastically different. Venezuelans’ food presence stands out for sure.

It’s mainly present in Lima’s conos, the northern and southern peripheries of the city, and not so much in more touristy areas such as San Isidro, Miraflores, Barranco, or the like.

Here’s what I saw on a visit to Mercado Ciudad de Dios in San Juan de Miraflores:

The food carts lining the street are easily 1/2 Venezuelan. It’s so odd but so cool (odd because it’s a new cultural phenomenon). You see the traditional Peruvian ceviche and churro stands along with the frutero selling very very Peruvian fruit – like lucuma and tuna, alternating with Venezuelan tequenos (BC there’s Peruvian tequenos but they’re nowhere near as good) , chicha (100% different from Peruvian chicha morada), arepas, and cachapas.

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Even though Venezuelans refugees have fled into every single Latin American country and their food will probably influence those cuisines, there’s absolutely no doubt that Venzuelan food will be a central part to Peru’s future cuisine. And it will be 100% unique than what happens in other country’s because of the very nature of Peru’s cuisine.

I’m calling it. There’s gonna be an Aji de Gallina arepa or suspiro a la limena chicha out in a few years and they’re gonna be my favorite food. Quote me on it. Rights reserved below!

Sources

Articles

1. Chua-Eoan, Howard. “Why Lima is the World’s Best Food City, By the Numbers.” Bloomberg, 2017. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-03-02/why-lima-is-the-world-s-best-food-city-by-the-numbers.

2. Lane, Lea. “The Top 10 Food Cities in the World (Three are in Spain).” Forbes, 2017. https://www.forbes.com/sites/lealane/2017/12/13/top-10-food-cities-in-the-world-numbers-five-seven-and-one-are-in-spain/#3362d36b1d7d.

3. Moss, Chris. “How Lima Shed its Dangerous Reputation to Become South America’s Greatest Food City.” The Telegraph, 2017. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/south-america/peru/articles/peru-food-guide-best-places-to-eat/.

4. Janetsky, Megan. “Fears Stoke Backlash Against Venezuelans in Peru.” The BBC, 2019. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-49156814

Photography

1. Dupre, Brandon. “The Best Street Food Markets in Peru.” The Culture Trip. https://theculturetrip.com/south-america/peru/articles/the-best-street-food-markets-in-peru/.

2. Rivera, Agnes. “Peruvian Street Eats: Lima’s Top 10 Meals on Wheels.” Lonely Planet. https://theculturetrip.com/south-america/peru/articles/the-best-street-food-markets-in-peru/.

3. “Cachapas with Queso de Mano.” Pinterest. https://www.pinterest.com/pin/531987774731723385/.

4. “Venezuelan Chicha.” hiveminer.com. https://hiveminer.com/Tags/chicha%2Cchichero/Recent.

5. Armario, Christine. “Venezuelan Migrants take Arepas to New Lands amid Crisis.” infotel.ca. https://infotel.ca/newsitem/lt-venezuela-culinary-migration/cp1285950497.