velliott@MiamiHerald.com

I suppose I could have saved this review for Valentines Day, but by then everyone will know about Adriana, a sweet new Peruvian restaurant in Surfside.

Its owned by a handsome couple from Lima who met in the early '90s while she was in culinary school and he was studying business to enter his familys garment trade. Instead, they opened a cafeteria that grew into a thriving restaurant and then another.

"Love has a way of changing your path, " says Mark Engelhard, who runs the front of the house while his wife, the eponymous chef, cooks. (These days their two elementary-age kids pitch in, too.)

They had plans for Adriana in the United States. It would be smart and sexy with a cool vibe -- right for a first date or a family night out.

Indeed, the place has been packed with just that mix of guests since it opened in mid-November. And though they couldnt possibly all be relatives, many are greeted with a hug, the gentle staccato of Spanish keeping a lively buzz in the air.

The cuisine is creative Peruvian with liberal doses of Japanese, Chinese, Spanish and Italian influences. Adriana likes to combine contrasting flavors and textures, and excels at silken sauces over snappy seafood. Her sensibility can be quirky, and sometimes she gets a bit ambitious with too many ingredients, but the food is mostly very tasty, and some of it is downright delicious.

What is consistent here is the incredible sense of hospitality. The service is both friendly and polished. A cheerful bartender mixes a chicha morada (spiced purple-corn and fruit juice), while the young wait staff keeps pace. The wine list could use some punch, but a nice young Valdamor albariño ($47) or a Navarro Correas Malbec ($25), a manageable 2½ times retail, can do the job.

The room is sophisticated but comfortable with its bright, backlit wall of banana leaves, geometric gray tiles, funky chandeliers and silver brick bar. Mismatched chairs in white or red surround well-spaced, white-dressed tables.

The reasonably priced menu is a virtual book, complete with footnotes (and a few misspellings), offering nearly 30 main courses and as many appetizers.

As you might expect, ceviche is a must. White and springy escolar in a tangy lemon marinade dotted with chewy kernels of toasted corn and threads of purple onion did the trick.

The signature appetizer platter brings nice chicken balls, crispy yuquitas (like yuca croquetas stuffed with cheese) and unconventional tequenos made of wonton-wrapped Gouda, all served in cute silver cones. It's fine for sharing if you like fried starters with divine sauces, especially the spicy huanciana.

Huanciana potatoes with more of the addictive yellow cream sauce is one of those dishes that always seems better in a home kitchen than in a restaurant, though here it satisfies a craving.

Lomo saltado, another Peruvian touchstone, is worthwhile with its supple tenderloin tips in a mild, soy-based sauce with onions, peppers and tomatoes alongside a steaming mound of rice. Craziness salad with fresh greens is like a spring kiss with its candied walnuts, lusciously ripe avocado and tomato in a sweet vinaigrette.

On the other hand, I'd take a pass on the clunky, overly breaded chicken cordon bleu. Likewise, the oddly textured dish "shrimp fish" -- mushy tilapia topped with snappy jumbo shrimp and nearly drowned in a flambéed pisco sauce. Pasta like a meaty papardelle Bolognese is well-executed but not worth a special trip.

It would, however, be worth a drive simply to sample the handmade sweets -- 15 in all. The alfajor -- a triple-decker sandwich of the butteriest shortbread cookies slathered with dulce de leche -- tastes like childhood.

I will be back to watch the sweet story of the Engelhards unfold.

Reviewed on December 27, 2007.