The Gossiping Gourmet:

Four thousand miles down the coast from Huntington Beach is another beach town called Miraflores on the outskirts of Lima, Peru. It has inspired the cuisine at Casa Inka, which is famous for its fish and seafood. Peruvian food is an interesting mélange that also reflects the presence of its large Japanese and Italian population, as well as that of the indigenous peoples.

The décor suggests a beach shack with dried grass and bamboo. The light, open rooms with pale-colored wood walls, tables and chairs are all dominated by a giant photo of Macchu Pichu. The general effect is bright and cheery.

Very good, crunchy, warm garlic bread arrives immediately, along with two crocks of spicy sauce for dipping and for seasoning your food throughout the meal. The aji, a green cilantro sauce, is the milder of the two, while the yellow chili rocoto has a bit more zip.

Six different raw fish selections arguably reflect the influence of Japanese sashimi or Italian crudo, as well as the native ceviche. Ceviche is cubed fish or seafood with onions, marinated with lime juice and salt. Tiradito is thinly sliced fish and no onions.

We tried the trio of tiradito, aji-flavored, rocoto-flavored and plain with cilantro, all swimming in a pool of seasoned lime juice, accented by giant, starchy Peruvian corn kernels. The dish was simple, clean and bright, with a lovely flavor and different layers of heat.

Parihuela is Peruvian bouillabaisse: a light tomato and seafood broth filled with very fresh fish, baby scallops and shrimp, all perfectly cooked. The seafood was excellent, except for the New Zealand mussels, which were chewy. The broth was too light in flavor, but we added the rocoto sauce, which improved it some.

Shane, our personable and very helpful waiter, recommended cau cau de mariscos, one of the specialties of the house, a seafood mix with diced potatoes, simmered in a sauce of pureed yellow chilies in cream, dotted with peas and carrots. It was a gently flavored cream sauce and not overly rich. Once again, all the seafood was good except the mussels. It was served with excellent aromatic white rice for soaking up the sauce.

The specialty of the house is the very popular lomo saltado, flambéed strips of steak wokked with French fries, onions and tomatoes. The fries do get soggy, but that’s the dish. Italian influences appear in pasta dishes and in both beef and chicken Milenesa (breaded fried filets).

Another not-to-be-missed Peruvian classic is jalea, mixed, breaded-fried seafood served with salsa criolla (onion, lime juice and chilies).

Casa Inka also features a list of mesquite charcoal broiled entrées, including steak, ribs, chicken breast and a variety of fish. Then there is the rotisserie chicken menu, popular for take-out, with your choice of quarter, half or whole and two sides.

Being fans of this fowl preparation, we wanted to try theirs and ordered a quarter with black beans and yams. The chicken had a lot of smoky flavor but was too salty. However, the simply prepared yams and the delicately seasoned black beans were especially delicious. They tasted very good together, while the beans and the rice were another flavorful combo.

The two house-made desserts were not available.

We would have loved to try the mazamorra and arroz con leche (purple corn gelatin and rice pudding).

We had the lucuma ice cream and an alfahor. Lucuma is an Andean fruit with the texture of egg yolk.

The ice cream has a slightly grainy quality and a subtle, interesting flavor a bit like sweet potato.

The alfahor is a sandwich of butter cookies filled with dulce de leche (caramel), which was way too sweet for us.

If you’ve never tried Peruvian food, this is a good place to start. It’s familiar and yet different enough to be tempting. The atmosphere is casual and comfortable, while the staff is very pleasant and helpful. It also features live music on the weekends.

Casa Inka

Where: 8610 Warner Ave., Fountain Valley

When: 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday; 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday; noon to 9 p.m. Sunday

Prices: Appetizers $2.50 to $12.50; entrées $6.99 to $28.99; desserts $2.50 to $7.50

Wine: Bottles $16 to $30; by the glass $4.50 to $7; corkage fee $10

Information: (714) 847-7555 or www.casainkarestaurant.com

ELLE HARROW and TERRY MARKOWITZ owned A La Carte for 20 years and can be reached at themarkos755@yahoo.com .