Christina and Harry Caldera adore to try to eat. Precisely, they adore to take in Peruvian food items, as they learned all through quite a few food stuff-pushed excursions to Queens. Peruvian food is “so colourful and lovely,” explained Harry Caldera, who owns a lights company in Centereach.
About a year and a 50 percent back, Caldera noticed that a close by space on Middle State Street was vacant, and proposed to his spouse they convert their passion into a organization and open a Peruvian restaurant.
“She said I was ridiculous,” he mentioned, but possibly in a mad-excellent way, mainly because right after a 12 months-in addition of organizing, Picchu Cafe opened in January, in the very same small plaza that retains Sesame Corner and a Shah’s Halal.
The cozy space has about 20 seats, a small bar and a modern day, crisp experience punctuated by pops of art, murals and, of class, exclusive overhead lighting. The kitchen establish out — there was none right here prior to — facilities all around a rotisserie oven wherever dry-rubbed birds spend two several hours spinning to a deep burnish ahead of staying split and served with aji (a creamy environmentally friendly scorching sauce) and a black-olive sauce. (A whole hen prices $14, or $19.95 with sides half and quarter variations ring in at $15 and $10, respectively).
Peruvian delicacies has been on the increase on Extended Island, even though mostly even more west, all over destinations this sort of as Hicksville and Commack. Caldera claimed his two primary chefs are Peruvian and put their have spin on to the pantheon of Peruvian cuisine, identified for its lively fusion of Andean, Spanish, Italian, African, Chinese and Japanese flavors. Among them is Peruvian-fashion ceviche, which Picchu serves in a several diverse variations that range combos of basa, shrimp and calamari marinated in citrus and organized with crunchy Peruvian corn, sweet potato and fried plantain ($19 to $26).
Other starters consist of salchipapas, the Peruvian combo of French fries and sliced incredibly hot puppies ($9, or $11 for an egg-topped “tremendous” version) and anticucho, beef hearts that are marinated and grilled, for $14. A $30 “Picchu piccada” sampler melds a number of different Peruvian applications on a person platter, which includes leche de Tigre, a form of liquified ceviche.
The weighty emphasis on fish consists of the seafood soup parihuela or arroz con mariscos, the Peruvian spin on paella. Meat- and bean-primarily based dishes array from the stir fries lomo (beef) or pollo (rooster) saltado chaufa rice (a Peruvian-design fried rice that can be threaded with meat or seafood) and tacu tacu, or egg-topped rice and beans. On the carb entrance is the Peruvian-type spaghetti termed tallarines, which comes tumbled in a inexperienced sauce that preferences like pesto but lacks basil or nuts. Key programs start at $14, for chaufa rice, and best out at $45 for platters for two. Caldera claimed that in spite of creamy sauces right here and there, almost the total menu is dairy-free of charge.
At the stop of January, Picchu received its liquor license and started pouring sangria, margaritas and Peru’s signature drink, pisco sours.
Picchu Cafe opens day by day at 11 a.m. for lunch and meal at 1245 Middle State Rd., Selden 631-320-0206