La Nueva Palomino, run by chef Mónica Huerta, is the picantería most frequently mentioned by Lima food writers and the one with the most carefully thought-through menu. The restaurant occupies a sprawling collection of patios in a side alley of Yanahuara, with rough wood tables under thatched roofs and a soundtrack of conversation and clay-oven cracking. The food is unapologetically arequipeñan — heavy, complicated, and dependent on long-cooked stews — and it is consistently excellent.
The chactado (flattened, deep-fried guinea pig) is a specialty if you want to try cuy in its most authentic form. The shrimp dishes, when the river prawns are in season, are the other reliable choices. The chicha de jora and chicha morada are made on site. Lunch only; busy on weekends.