The 5th edition of Lima, Peru’s annual food festival Mistura is now underway. Here is your primer for getting in, getting around, and getting something to eat:

Recently there has been some debate about the spelling of ceviche. In Peru, ceviche is generally spelled either cebiche or ceviche. Cebiche with a B is more typical in Lima, though with a V is more common nationally and especially internationally. Some think it should be spelled with an S, as Seviche. I don’t. Here’s why.

Peruvian Food & restaurant news fot the Summer of 2012: the Peru Sabe documentary premier, the opening of Raymi in NYC, La MarNYC opens a patio, Ricardo Zarate moves Mo-chica in LA, Mistura chnages locations, and Virgillio Martinez opens Lima London in the UK

Only an hour from the 24/7 buzz of Rio de Janeiro is a tranquil retreat, where you can slow down and breath fresh mountain air, as well as savor slow food prepared with loving care. In the introduction to A Cozinha da Alcobaça, author and chef Dona Laura Góes says the food served in her pousada in Rio de Janeiro state, is based on “refined simplicity.” The Pousada da Alcobaça is a pretty and cosy 1914 colonial-style mansion, with 11 individually decorated rooms, set in lush tropical gardens sloping down to a sparkling river.

Peruvian Food is becoming a global phenomenon. The culinary scene in Lima and the rest of Peru keeps improving. Food festivals, such as Mistura, are expanding. Young chefs who have trained in top kitchens in North America and Europe are returning home to open restaurants. In the same regard in North America and Europe Peruvian chefs are being called upon to a greater degree to launch new restaurants. Gastón Acurio is not holding back on his expansion plans. Culinary ideas are being refined from every angle. Here’s what to expect from Peruvian food and restaurants in 2012.

Delta Airlines has made a $100 million minority stake in Brazilian domestic carrier GOL Lihnas, a move that further shakes up South America’s airline industry that is dominated by two recent mergers, LAN-TAM and TACA-Aviacna.

The first review of Gaston Acurio’s La Mar in NYC are out. Here’s where they have got it right, and wrong.

Though I don’t need extra incentives to eat Latin American Food, I do wish I was dining at the latin fusion restaurant Nuela a couple of nights ago, and not just because of their arroz con pato.

It’s about time Gastón! Peruvian celebuchef Gastón Acurio will open a branch of his La Mar Cebicheria in New York sometime between March and May of 2011, as reported by San Francisco Weekly and later confirmed by Peruvian web portal Terra. The 8,000 square foot location is already chosen, on Madison Avenue and 27th street, near Madison Square Park.

For the past few months I have been pushing the NYTimes travel section to do a story on Peruvian chefs in the Amazon, but they had some similar story waiting to run. In last weekends travel section I discovered what that story was. Jay Cheshes, whose food writing I admire… Read More →