Herbs and spices abound at Caravana

Doug Tabbert

You can actually taste the mesquite charcoal that your chicken is

roasted over at Caravana Peruvian Rotisserie. The chicken is

marinated in a blend of herbs and spices, and not overwhelmed by

fried or oil inundated skin. There are also plenty of Peruvian

condiments like yellow-jelly hot sauce to mix it up.

It is pretty easy to order here. White or dark is the main

question and dinners can choose from several of scrumptious sides. I

suggest the baked mesquite yams, which are steaming and wrapped in

tinfoil. They could challenge the best of Thanksgiving sweet

potatoes.

You can’t go wrong with some of the deals here either, such as the

grilled boneless chicken breast served with two sides for $4.99. But

it’s about more than the economy here: it’s the south of the equator

atmosphere that makes it special.

There are a few small tables in the narrow space, which boasts

crafts and paintings that give it an authentic foreign aura. There

are actually no Inca artifacts on the wall, but there is Inca Cola, a

citrus flavored carbonated sugar water that is pervasive throughout

Peru.

My quarter chicken dark with three sides ($6.50) was fantastic.

Next time I am going for the garlic and parsley mashed potatoes that

look eminently satisfying. There are also garlic green beans, black

beans and French fries available.

After ordering at the sleek, black, stone counter, I sat down with

my Hawaiian salad. This house salad with a sweet dressing is

initially disconcerting. It contains carrots, peas, celery and

raisins blended with mayonnaise. If I wasn’t a professional I would

have avoided this concoction, but I pressed on and it was better than

tolerable.

The Peruvian juice I tried was a chalky fruit punch, and the fries

were crisp and seasoned. There are both chicken and steak sandwiches

available. The chicken is fresh and still cooking as you sink into

that first bite.

If you can’t pull anything together in the kitchen one night,

remember that you can bring home a whole chicken and your choice of

salads, house or Hawaii, for less than $10. In fact, for a couple

more bucks you can bring home another half chicken.

The restaurant opened in 1966 in South America, and the owners

eventually opened four more in Lima, Peru before sending the

tradition over to Surf City.