3 stars for Peruvian eats at Mixtura on Miami Beach

Victoria Pesce Elliott1/17/2012

There is much to love about Peruvian cuisine, from its bracing ceviches to its bountiful potato dishes, but it is the exquisite sauces made with the uniquely flavored ají chile that most captivate me. My introduction, a dozen years ago at the home of a Peruvian friend, was ají de gallina, a chicken dish that takes on the color of the slightly spicy yellow pepper. The creamy sauce is thickened with walnuts, Parmesan cheese, white bread and heavy cream or evaporated milk until it has the texture of an alfredo.

Mixtura is a bright and bustling new Peruvian fusion spot in North Beach. Its dining dining room with its crisp, white tablecloths, fresh flowers and highly polished blonde floors is as handsome as the attentive, multilingual waiters. The setting, with its wood accents and historic black and white photos, is surprisingly upscale considering the reasonable prices. Lunchtime, especially, brings deals — filling soups and generous main courses for just $10.

What Works

• Ají de gallina - tender & juicy shredded white-meat chicken, soft & earthy potatoes and bright & picture perfect slivers of hard-boiled egg and Kalamata olives
• Excellent ceviches
• Excellence Chinese-inspired Chifa dishes 
• An addictive basa ceviche with cashews and crispy noodles
• Fresh, tasty & beautifully served makis, Japanese-inspired rolls with potato
• A respectable wine and beer list is respectable with well-priced international options
• A classic chicha morada, sticky-sweet juice the color of grape juice but with more tang
• Fresh lomo saltado - tasty strips of flash-fried beef, large, uniformly cut sweet onions, firm tomatoes and garlic
• A biitey risotto enhanced with a velvety orange-yellow huancaína sauce
• Recognizable dishes  served in their classic form but also offered with variations for the more adventurous
• Papas huancaína with an expertly executed delectable sauce
• A tiny cup of caramelly suspiro of cappuccino with a smooth, light and sweet coffee-sparked taste
• The lucuma tiramisu with layers of fruity, juicy, cakey cream

What Didn't Work

• Kooky multicultural ceviches like raw fish with Parmesan cheese slivers
• Plump and attractive, but too salty ravioli stuffed with a cabra goat meat