Foodie report #2 - Chile

Dia 31 del proyecto
Entre de Madrid y San Sebastián 

Unlike my sky-high expectations for Chilean wines, I had no clear picture of its cuisine. It's neighbors have their claims to gastronomical fame: Argentina has its steaks and Peru has its trendy Peruvian fusion foods. My best guess was that Chile would deliver something in between. I was sort of correct.

What I discovered was a lack of mid-range restaurants. There were plenty of mediocre sandwich and fast food chains at rock bottom prices. One could also find a decent meal at a food stall in the mercados centrales of the larger cities. However, to experience truly good food, one must be prepared to pay a staggering rate for international-style cuisine. Peruvian fusion is trendy, as is Japanese sushi. And despite the mountains of fresh produce in the mercados, it required an act of god to find a restaurant that would use vegetables in any significant quantity. In the end, I had two great meals worth mentioning.

Comida con musica

The first was in San Pedro de Atacama and came at the recommendation of the hostel receptionist. A tiny establishment appropriately named Barrito served good carmenere by the glass and gigantic pizzas with (gasp) vegetables for a great price. But perhaps the best part was the live local musicians who performed diligently each night on a cramped stage. The atmosphere was festive and transformed it from a meal to an experience.

The verdict on San Pedro de Atacama - 3 stars

Mariscos

Valparaiso was an improvement over the desert, as it offered access to fresh seafood. So I splurged on a local favorite perched precariously on the side of a hill. It was a gorgeous day for a patio lunch. It was a robust menu with a good selection of local specialties. I selected the Chupe de marisco--a seafood stew similar to San Francisco's cioppino. The stew was good and the sauvignon blanc was outstanding. It was a little on the expensive side, but for the the ocean view and departure from carbohydrates, it was definitely worth it.

The verdict on Valparaiso - 3 stars

Postres, pasteles y helados

My experience with the the sweeter side of Chile made up for the lack mind-blowing meals. The liberal use of manjar (Chilean version of dulce de leche) on just about every sort of pastry known to man was a great place to start. From there, I moved onto ice cream...specifically the helado de manjar y chocolate. Thick, creamy and yet not overly saccharine, the chocolate was bittersweet and evened out the sugars in the manjar. I did eventually try other flavors of ice cream...a raspberry mint sorbet that was incredibly good and a perfectly balanced chocolate orange. I also had the best chocolate cake in my life in Santiago. It was mostly thick ganache frosting sandwiched with manjar and a suggestion of cake.

The verdict on dessert - 4.5 stars

I cannot say I was disappointed with Chilean food. Though I suppose that makes sense when one has no real pre-determined idea of what might arrive on your plate.

The final verdict on Chile - 3.5 stars