Gourmet Food in Atacama

This post is for the foodies.

After a long day, we decided to head to the “best restaurant” in San Pedro de Atacama. It is called Baltinache, and it is just outside of town. I assure you that no one would just happen upon this place, as it is down a bunch of desolate streets, in the middle of nowhere. But, with my trusty guide at my side, we ventured on. When we finally found the place, they asked if we had a reservation, which was surprising, as the place was pretty empty. As we waited, we noticed that many of the tables had signs on them, which we concluded meant that the tables were reserved. But, they found us a table.

We started with a Pisco Sour Rica Rica. This is a Chilean Pisco Sour (no egg whites), which is sprinkled with rica rica, which is a green plant that grows locally. Quite yummy and refreshing.

Next, we had some type of local biscuit, and a mixture of tomatoes, garlic, onions — rather like a salsa. it is served everywhere, and people usually put butter on the bread first. Imagine a bruschetta, but without the grilling.

The rest of the menu was essentially fixed, with two options for each of three courses.

For the first course we both choose a quinoa salad, which had smoked salmon, goat cheese, and small pieces of apples and pickles. It looked beautiful, but there was just too much going on. The pickles, in particular, were totally out of place.

For the second course, we choose two options. Arie had pork ribs, with chimicurri sauce and roasted potatoes. The ribs were overdone, and a little bland. I had fish kebabs with three kinds of fish, puréed pumpkin, and fava beans. It was served with a mustard sauce that had some type of fruit (I didn’t catch the type.). It was tasty, although one kind of fish would have been sufficient.

For dessert, Arie had a Bavarian cream with “red fruit” (berries). It was quite refreshing. I had a brownie, with a quinoa caramel filling — it was terrible (dry and tasteless).

The service was kind, but inattentive, which is par for the course in Chile.

But, the total bill, including drinks and service was $60. All in all, not bad for a little place in the middle of the desert.Read more