What & Where to Eat? Such is Life

May I Offer You A Drink To Start With?

Before I sip my tea (pinky up) and start writing/blogging, I think really hard about a topic, but yet I don't think hard about the actual content to follow.  I guess you can call this free spirited writing.  I almost feel like Julia Roberts in the movie Eat, Pray, Love and how she also related her life experiences to food, but for me it's without all the international traveling and humorous fortuneteller Ketut.  Sigh, as I digress and open my fortune cookie from the other night.
Bon Appetit!

Appetizer

In my professional life and most of my personal life, I am such a controlled, think 16 steps ahead, have a bomb shelter plan, overly organized and decisive person, but hunny, when it comes to picking a nail polish 

color, what shoes to wear and what I want to eat.....I'm totally clueless!  With that being said, my pallet for food is enormous and I can never decide if I want a simple arugula salad, tabbouleh, drunken noodles, p&j, saag   paneer, brie, a Pepsi (can of course) or a glass of gewurztraminer wine.  In these cases I have found it's best I just go with my gut craving...I mean gut feeling.

I'm no food connoisseur, I just know what taste good to me and for the past year, I have wanted to try this Peruvian spot, but I would either end up at my favorite Thai place or this sushi bar around the corner.  The other day I was taking a stroll downtown with my cousin (Tegan), and if you think one hungry indecisive person is bad, try two hungry hippos...smh.  We literally walked into two restaurants and walked back out after viewing their menu.  Then we strolled passed the Peruvian spot and went to another place AND walked out of there too.  On the way back we walked by the Peruvian spot again, but for some odd reason this time the sun was shining on its awning and the aroma of fresh seafood, saffron and cilantro hit us like a bag of bricks so we stopped, took a step back while accessing the menu hanging in the window and IN WE WENT!

Quechua

Cuisine: Peruvian

21 N. Main St., Norwalk, CT

203-810-4480

Price: $$ ($10-$16)

The Entree 

I'll go back to my dining experience at Quecha in a minute:  This experience kind of reminds of that good guy women sometime pass up, over and under-look for the playas, hustlers and busters, when MR. RIGHT is staring in our face.  Let's be honest, we tend to ignore listening to our intuition/gut feeling & God about many life choices.  (Ummm yea, if you just felt some type of way about those last few sentences, then yep it relates to your current situation).

I'm not perfect, I always had to fall on my butt not once but twice before learning my lesson because I'm a leo and a leo woman.  I can see my Mom's face now projecting this out her mouth sounding like Kevin Hart "You don't ever listen, but you gone learn today".  I will admit (mom close your eyes for a sentence or three please. ughhh, I know she's reading) it's also good sometimes to take WISE ADVICE from others (Mom).  Not, from someone who's traveling the same road or just loading up their car for the journey, but someone who has already lived it, experienced it and has a testimony to share.

Women do it all the time, for example, a woman in an actual relationship some where right now is taking advice from her veteran single friends. Child please!  You can't always listen to what others say, BUT you can take their advice into consideration.  At times you have to just stop, pray, take a step back, watch and access what's in front of you and make a move.  I did it picking my career and the journey isn't always easy, but like the GOoD book says in Philippians 4:6 "Be anxious for nothing..." because in the end the reward, peace of mind and feeling of self you have is so amazing!

 

Back to My Dining Experience at Quecha: When you walk in, you feel like you're at a modern yet intimate cross between Spain by the Aztec art pieces on the walls and music playing and Japan by the modern design of the bar and lighting decor.  Peruvian food is influenced and a fusion of those various countries, including Africa, Italy and China so they did a pretty good job  capturing all of that.

 

Fannie our waitress was a doll! She suggested we try the Pisco Sour and I am happy we did because it was so refreshing...it almost gave my mojito a run for its money. It was created by Victor Vaughn Morris in the early 1920s in Peru. The drink includes Peruvian grape brandy, lime, sugar and egg whites and some type of brown garnish on top(cinnamon or bitters maybe?).

Then we had the chicken and beef empanadas.  They were hot, flaky and the meat inside was well seasoned, like someone had their Abuela (grandma) in the back making the dough from scratch. Whatever that secret dipping sauce was that accompanied it, needs to be a kept a complete secret from me because I would tell all my Din-HER Club readers.

For dinner I will admit the food did take a little while to come out, but I had to remind myself in countries like Spain and Jamaica they don't rush or think about time like we do...Plus I'd much rather my food be well prepared, hot and flavorful and INDEED IT WAS!  I had the Peruvian style paella and it was absolutely to die six times and consider going to hell for.  It had the saffron rice, peas, red onions, corn cilantro, mini crab legs, shrimp, chicken, calamari, clams, mussels and Abuela's (grandma) whole foot in it (it was that good).

I forgot the name of the dish, but my cousin (Tegan) had a lightly battered fried fish that was smothered in this creamy clam sauce, topped with shrimp, mini crab legs and a side of saffron rice. It was so divine...I know because my fork mysteriously made its way to her plate.

 Dessert

We were so content and full, we had to sit there for 10 minutes before we gathered our things to get a brownie sunday at the place next door. Pause! I can see your reaction through the computer screen...don't judge us! If you're going to be a Din-HER Club member you have to do three courses and then three spin classes the next morning. lol

Overall, I am typically a non believer of any restaurant until my third visit, but Quecha was so good I have to give them a first time rating of  4 out of 5.  Great service, fabulous food, generous portions, soothing ambiance, but the meal did take a little long to come out. Nevertheless, I am happy I finally stopped, took a step back, accessed their menu that was in front of me and made my move towards the aromas of

Quecha's Peruvian Restaurant.

Thank you for dining with me fellow Din-HERs!