One of my favorite restaurants to dine at is Fiesta Restaurant located at Av. Reducto 1278 in Miraflores. It opened in July 1996 with specially trained cooks in Chiclayo cuisine. There are also two other Fiesta Restaurants. The first Fiesta Restaurant opened in Chiclayo in July 1983 by Bertha Cruz Solis and her husband, Alberto Solis. One other Fiesta opened up in Tacna a few years ago. All of the Fiesta restaurants are family owned and operated. As an interesting side note, one of my favorite magazines, "Food and Wine", listed Fiesta Restaurant as one of the Top 5 restaurants in Lima in their November 2008 issue.

My husband "discovered" Fiesta at a business meeting over a year ago and came home raving about the fantastic food. He especially enjoys the food from the Chiclayo region since he lived in Chiclayo for a few years when he was a child. We have since dined on several occasions at Fiesta with family and friends to celebrate our wedding anniversary and the occasional family birthdays. Every meal we have enjoyed at Fiesta has been first class. The food and service have been excellent, the wine selection decent and the bar service offers a good variety of drinks.

When you enter the restaurant there is a comfortable bar area which seats 20...the perfect place to enjoy one of Fiesta's specialty cocktails while waiting for other people in your party or waiting for a table. You can also make reservations at Fiesta. There are two private rooms at Fiesta, one seats 10 people and the other seats 30. The main dining room seats 90 people. The restaurant has an eclectic atmosphere with extremely comfortable, plush orange chairs.

Every time we dine at Fiesta, we always order Pisco Sours. We find them to be some of the best Pisco Sours that we have had in Lima. We also enjoy the entertaining service of the waiter preparing the Pisco Sours at your table. The waiter comes to your table with a wooden cart where all the "fixings" to make Pisco Sours are to be found. You are offered a choice of select piscos and you are also asked if you would like your Pisco Sour more on the sweet side or more on the sour side. All of the Pisco Sours are hand shaken and absolutely mouth-watering. I like my Pisco Sours to be made with ORO Pisco.

The food that is served is sophisticated and vibrant, using the traditional way of cooking Chiclayo cuisine. Once you are seated, you are served an opener of a Choclo (corn) tortilla with a cube of mero (grouper) ceviche. It is a nice way of starting off your dining experience at Fiesta. On several occasions we have ordered as a starter the Fiesta "Hot Round" and the Hot Seafood Round which is a variety of dishes which include the stingray omelet, marinated pork, tamales, octopus with olive oil, shrimp gratinee, etc. Other standout appetizers we have tasted and enjoyed have been the Duck Omelet with Garlic, Ceviche of the House and Shrimp Cocktail with Avocado Slices. One of my favorite appetizers is the Causa de Mero Murique which is mashed potato filled with slightly cured grouper slices in salt with a shallot sauce. Absolutely delicious!

The cabrito (baby goat) main dishes are always fantastic and are house specialties. The Costillas de Cabrito (Baby Goat Ribs) con Tacu-Tacu and Cabrito de Leche are delicious and I am always very pleased when I order one of these dishes. The Arroz con Pato is a specialty of the house as well. A few other standout dishes are the Tacu-Tacu filled with Sirloin (Tacu-Tacu Relleno con Lomo Saltado) and the Seco with Sirloin (Seco de Lomo Fino Fiesta). Fiesta offers a full array of delicious desserts as well. I recommend you order a couple of different desserts and share them with your table. I have only listed a few of the many dishes offered on Fiesta's menu. I hope to try many more of their dishes on my future visits.

Fiesta is the perfect place to bring visitors to introduce them to Peruvian cuisine. I highly recommend you try Fiesta one of these days, you will not be disappointed.

Fiesta Restaurant is open Monday thru Friday from 12 noon to 11 p.m. (serving both lunch and dinner). They are open on Saturdays and Sundays between 12 noon and 6 p.m. (lunch only). There is parking and valet parking available. The phone number at Fiesta is: 242-9009.