Cusco

"Cuzco, the heart of the ancient Inca Empire, is a longtime favorite, claiming the No. 1 spot for five years. It offers unique local cuisine, historical landmarks, and magnificent architecture." - Travel + Leisure Editors

"There are a number of Cuzco restaurants that offer traditional Peruvian, served buffet-style, along with music and dance. One of the best is Ayasqa, specifically because they limit the number of dishes on the table and focus on providing the highest quality and freshness. Foodies with a greater sense of adventure can order à la carte at lunchtime, where the traditional delicacies on offer include specialties like cow’s tongue or pig’s feet that are rarely found at tourist-oriented restaurants. The ambience is bright and cheerful; there’s a tasting menu with a solid chichas , or fermented corn beer, selection."

"Chef and restaurateur Virgilio Martínez is a man on the move. Along with his wife, Pia León, he’s the vanguard of Peruvian cuisine's global spread with one-Michelin-starred restaurant Lima in London as well as Central in Peru, has penned two hit cookbooks and has several new projects, including a new restaurant in Cuzco, on the horizon." - Azimin Saini

"Queens neighborhoods like Jackson Heights and Woodhaven, as well as the West Side of Manhattan, are dotted with Peruvian chicken places, offering wonderful rotisserie birds at bargain prices, and Long Island City among other neighborhoods abounds in cocktail-oriented establishments with ambitious menus. But let’s go to Staten Island just west of Clove Lakes Park to find Cuzco, an inexpensive and informal Peruvian restaurant that goes beyond the usual roast chickens, to jalea (a humongous fried-seafood assortment), tallarin saltado (Peruvian-Chinese lo mein), and papas a la Huancaina (Andean potatoes in cheese sauce)." - Robert Sietsema