Lúcuma: Peruvian Speezy of the Week

A veces the need for fresh seafood calls and when it calls, Peruvian ceviche is the only answer in Buenos Aires.  The other week, I discovered the sweetest little Peruvian restaurant in Amalgro: Lúcuma.  I don't really want to blow the restaurant up because there are only 5 tables in the place and I'll be pissed if I start seeing a fat line outside next time I want some ceviche-socks.

Overall, the restaurant is perfect for a great, well-priced, good meal. The service was excellent, most notably from the 12 year old hostest/waitress/bar tender.  It's a family-owned spot and they go above and beyond to make the experience great.  Part of which included the FREE cocktail of chicha morada (peruvian fruit juice) and fernet.  I HATE fernet, but this was good!

We also ordered the quinoa, sun dried tomato, fresh farmer's cheese, and pesto salad.  Simple, bright, good.  Then we shared an abundant plate of ceviche mixto.  Besides the cilantro (kill me now) which I asked for on the side, it was great.  The best part were the corn nuts!

Conclusion: good spot worth a visit.

Fernet and chicha morada cocktail

Quinoa, sun dried tomato, cheese, pesto salad

Ceviche mixto

Sottovoce: Restaurant in my TOP 5

Lamb Involtini

Rabbit

A few people had mentioned Sottovoce in passing, but it seemed like a stuffy, italian food, foreigner haven and I never really had the ganas to test it out.  Last night, however, I tried to go to one of my favorite restaurants, Juana M, for its bomb-dig, endless salad bar, but it was CLOSED.  Devastated and starving, I went straight to the only restaurant I knew in the area: Sottovoce.

The restaurant had nothing going for it: a pasta-dominant menu, $100 pesos appetizers, a bunch of wealthy old people, but I needed to eat so I sucked it up and played the old "convert to dollars so as to feel better about the prices game."

We ordered the rabbit of the day (conejo a la cazadora) and the lamb involtini.  The rabbit was roasted with mushrooms, tomatoes, and the most incredible sauce EVER.  And when I say ever, I nearly took it home along with the rabbit bones to make a soup base.  The lamb was rolled thin, stuffed with mushrooms and grilled to perfection.  It came with fried polenta (key to my heart) and I loved it.  A little wine and pure happiness.  Sottovoce definitely gets my official stamp of approval.