La Huaca translates roughly from Spanish into “the temple,”

which begins to make sense as one enters a world dedicated to one of South America’s oldest and most storied cultures: Peru. Reed music, Andean pillows and hardback books on Peruvian gastronomy and life greet guests as they walk through the door, and each turn of the head thereafter is delighted with a new decorative charm; ropes used as dividers, glass-blown hurricane ceiling lamps, a backlit wall replete with colored-water filled jars.

Although I’m a complete sucker for ceviche (and they offer quite a bit of it!), after spying another server carting out a long plate adorned with colorful offerings, I wanted something a bit more authentic, so my dining partner and I started with the Festival de Causas. A sampling of four of their five different causa options – citrus chicken, marinated octopus, fried chicken and shrimp – adorned the top of a mesa of mashed yellow potatoes and were drizzled with respective sauces.

Salmon del Sur

Photos by Dante Fontana, © Style Media Group.

The appetizer itself was pretty hearty, but our eyes still widened as the server presented us with our entrées. I had the Salmon del Sur, a seared fillet drizzled with chimichurri and resting over a citrusy quinoa salad made with broccoli, spears of crisp asparagus, artichoke hearts and cherry tomatoes. The salmon was delicate and cooked to taste at just opaque.

My partner chose a heartier plate, the Pachamanca Tres Carnes, an assemblage of chicken, beef and pork all slow-cooked in homemade Andean herb sauce and served over baby potatoes and baby corn. It’s the kind of dish that produces meat so tender one hardly needs the steak knife it’s presented with.

All of the dishes include wine suggestions, and the bar also offers authentic Peruvian drinks – both alcoholic and non. Vegetarians can also rest assured in this restaurant, since almost every plate can be made into a meat-free version.

La Huaca makes Peruvian cuisine accessible for all spectrums of palates and proves a refreshing change of pace in Roseville.

La Huaca, 9213 Sierra College Boulevard, Suite 140, Roseville, 916-771-2558, lahuacarestaurant.com.

---

Do you know that our editorial is not paid for, nor can it be purchased? In fact, our Introducing and Dine reviews are not paid advertisements. If you’d like your business profiled, please email Wendy Sipple at [email protected]. Once we determine when your business will be featured, we will contact you to schedule a time to come out and take a photograph. Thank you!