Cuisines:
Peruvian
Andean restaurants in the Pacific Northwest are as hard to find as a pisco sour on the trail to Machu Picchu. Andina is not only a rare destination, it aims for the peaks, with high-end Peruvian fusion cooking not often seen outside of Lima but with enough local ingredients to keep it grounded in Portland. Yet the real brilliance here, and what keeps Andina packed with daters, business folks, and tourists, is a savvy embrace of approachable adventure. You can tuck into an unusual lunch, spend the evening gazing at elaborate entrées stacked into visual theater, or eat casually, sharing small plates with friends. The kitchen is not the revelation it was when Andina opened in 2005 as a showcase for Peru’s “New Andean” cooking, but the colorful pepper sauces over hunks of beef or lamb, fanciful ceviches, and quinoa “risottos” appeal to a wide range of appetites. The bustling, jewel-toned bar is a perpetual Pearl District hot spot, with playful Latin-inspired drinks and one of the best cocktails in town: the Sacsayhuaman, a seductive dance of sweet, fire, and passion fruit. Forget trying to sound it out and just order it by its nickname: “sexy woman.”
Updated 04/17/2013
Sign up for Our Free Email Newsletters
