Lima Day 5: A Fine Day it Was

Monday, December 14

Since I was working in the morning, it was good thing that I had pre-purchased a Tamale from the Tamale Lady and some bread from the Supermarket. I had a Tamale Sandwich for Breakfast.

That was half the Tamale. I ate the other half without the Bread.

For Lunch, I met David at El Escondite del Gordo in San Isidro. Usually, I let David pick a new (to me) place, but this time, when he mentioned El Escondite, I jumped at it. I had been here before, but not for a long, long time.

To start, I had a Rocoto Relleno. Shocking, I know.

This Rocoto Relleno was different than most, in that it was stuffed with Seafood, rather than Meat. I knew that my friend, Javier, would appreciate it, so I ordered and ate one. For his sake.

For our Main Courses, I ordered their 'special' Ceviche (Ceviche del Escondite del Gordo). When I asked the waiter what made it special and worth almost 20 Soles ($6) more than the regular Ceviche, he told me that, "it had everything in it." Well, that was good enough for me.

And it did have everything... Shrimp, Scallops, Fish, Clams, Sea Urchins, Snails, Calamari, and some Unidentified Stuff. It was delicious.

David ordered a Jalea, which is assorted fried Seafood.

The strange part is, they also make a dish that they call Assorted Fried Seafood here in Peru. Everyone tells me that they are totally different; I don't see it.

Regardless, David said that it rocked, and he polished it off.

For Dinner, I headed over to Astrid y Gaston. I was there two weeks ago with Ed, and I could eat there all the time, if I wanted to weigh 400 pounds.

Last time, Ed & I had the Chocolate Bomb for Dessert. When I sat down, I explained to my waitress that -- no matter what I told her or offered her -- she was not allowed to sell me the Bomb. She giggled and agreed.

For my Appetizer, I ordered the Shrimp Croquettes. Ed had them last time, and inexplicably, they also came with a hunk of Meat that he said was exceptionally wonderful. It must have been -- Ed hardly ever finishes everything on his plate, and he all but licked his fork when he was done. That was good enough for me.

The Croquettes (which he let me taste last week) were excellent, but the Meat -- wow! I have no idea what it was or what they did to it, or why it is on a plate with Shrimp Croquettes, but OMG, delicious. You can see the Meat peeking out at about one o'clock.

They have two types of Main Courses: Individual, and Big Enough to Share. Because I wasn't getting the Chocolate Bomb, I ordered a Whole Fish. They reminded me that I was there alone, and once we were on the same page, they allowed me to order the Fish.

When it arrived, we got off the same page for a minute. They really, really wanted to de-bone and serve me the fish, but I insisted on them just giving it to me. Finally, despite them being horrified at the thought of a customer doing their own heavy lifting, I reminded them that I was already suffering from no anticipated Chocolate Bomb, so they agreed.

They told me what kind of Fish it was, but either I didn't understand them, or it was some South American Fish that we don't know about back home. Regardless, it was steamed perfectly, and the Vegetables and Potatoes were really good, and I did that Fish justice.

Much to the relief of the staff, I did not lift the Fish by the head, insert it in my mouth, clamp down on the meat, and pull. It just looked that way.

After much begging, they held firm and did not sell me the Chocolate Bomb. I showed them by not having a different Dessert, and was on my way shortly after.

That was it for the day.