Lunch at San Pedro Marketplace

I visited Cusco's San Pedro Market around 1:30 PM during a Wednesday to grab some lunch. It is a bustling marketplace located about 10 minutes away from the Plaza de Armas. Here, you can buy a wide variety of things from fresh produce, to souvenirs, to cuts of meat, and most importantly, a cheap and delicious meal.

The food stalls in San Pedro Market are divided by the type of food they serve. There is one section for chicken soup (caldo de gallina), one for ceviche, one for juice, etc. For my lunch, I wanted to try tarwi, which is a traditional Andean porridge made from a species of the lupin family, so I went to a section of the market that served heartier foods and meats.

In this section, there were at least three dozen food stalls. These all seemed to be run independently with their own owners and cooks. The smallest stalls were the size of a table, two or three meters wide. Typically, most customers sit on a bench and eat their meal off the stall's counter. However, some stalls had a second row of benches where customers had to make do eating their meals off their laps. There were also some larger stalls with tables.

Walking around the food stalls, one thing I definitely noticed were the various stalls clamoring for my business. You could not go one minute without having someone trying to convince you to eat at their stall.

I eventually settled on a stall that was serving tarwi with lomo saltado, stir-fried sirloin. This was in a larger stall with tables and As soon as I sat down, a lady working in the stall took my order, and then we exchanged money. I was first served some chicken noodle soup and about ten minutes later, I received my entree handed out on a plate straight from the kitchen across the stall. The service was extremely quick and informal.

After that, I decided I wanted to try chuño (traditional freeze-dried potato) soup and I received that quickly too after it was scooped from the kitchen. In total, my meal cost 8 soles or about $3. Although food in Cusco tends to run cheap compared to the US, it was still significantly less than going to a typical restaurant.

Among the other people eating with me were some older Peruvian women dressed in traditional Peruvian garbs, including shawls and hats. They looked like they could be one of the ladies who sold souvenirs in the market or off the side of one of Cusco's streets. All of the other six people eating with me seemed to be working-class Peruvians who were taking a lunch break before returning to work. There was not a lot of talking, as people seemed to be more focused on completing their meal.

The vast majority of people walking around the market seemed to be local Peruvians, but there were some tourists who stood out. The most distinctive feature of tourists was definitely their fancy cameras. They looked much more apprehensive of the marketplace than the Peruvians, and most of them did not seem to be interested in eating.

Looking around the market, I saw many other customers huddled together on benches side-by-side without much space between customers. The vast majority of customers seemed to be Peruvian, though there were a couple of other tourists besides myself eating too. Most customers were eating alone and they were more focused on eating their meal than socializing. There was constant traffic as people moved in and out as they began and completed their meals. Overall, to me the marketplace seemed mostly like a place for working Peruvians to eat as opposed to tourists.

Going to San Pedro Market is definitely an eye-opening experience and a must-see for anyone looking for authentic Peruvian culture. It is also great for anyone looking to eat in Cusco for cheap. Overall, I loved eating at San Pedro market despite the bustle. I wish there were more opportunities to eat in such an informal setting in the US.