El Norte Grande Restaurants

The food of El Norte Grande is simple but quite good. Along the coast you can enjoy fresh seafood and shellfish, including merluza (hake), corvina (sea bass), ostiones (oysters), and machas (similar to razor clams but unique to Chile), to name just a few. Ceviche (a traditional Peruvian dish made with raw, marinated fish) is also available in much of El Norte Grande, but make sure you sample it in a place where you are confident that the fish is fresh. Fish may be ordered a la plancha (grilled in butter and lemon) or accompanied by a sauce such as salsa margarita (a butter-based sauce comprising almost every shellfish imaginable). As you enter the interior region you'll come across heartier meals such as cazuela de vacuno (beef stew served with corn on the cob and vegetables) and chuleta con arroz (porkchop with rice).