SEMINARIO SAN LUIS PLAZA

 

Today's post is the third and final post of the changing restaurant scene around Parque Calderon, the heart of El Centro and the city of Cuenca.  The Seminario San Luis Plaza is the oldest of the changes to the restaurant scene, which  opened in 2018.  The site lies to the west of Parque Calderon on Avenida Benigno Malo adjacent to the New Cathedral, which is the name everybody calls the church.  The Cathedral  was actually constructed in the 1800's and its official  name is the Cathedral de la Inmaculada Concepcion. The seminary began in the early 1800's, but is no longer used as a seminary.  Today, the main courtyard has been renovated into restaurants and eateries, and began the trend that would spread around the Calderon Park square.

The photo below is a view of the New Cathedral, the domes of the cathedral seen behind the trees, and the frontage area consists of two mainstays.  Almost every tourist and Cuecano visits on the corner,  Tutto Freddo, the ice cream and pastry emporium, which has outlets all over the city.  To the left of Tutto Freddo is Ramipampa, and Ecuadorian restaurant with good food and reasonable prices, and is usually where many tourists get their first taste of Ecuadorian food when they visit Cuenca.

Balloons and vendors are found on the street 

in front of the restaurants.

To the left of Ramipampa Restaurant is
the entrance way to the courtyard of
San Luis Seminario Plaza. 

Below, in the courtyard is a musician
preparing
for an evening of entertainment. 

Almost all of my photos were taken from
the second floor terrace of the plaza.

Below, is a panoramic view of the 

south and west side of the courtyard which 

provides the best view of the domes.

The  renovation of the
domes was completed last year, and they
provide a spectacular view from any angle
of the city. 
Their color lighting also changes dependent
upon the festival season.

The plaza is resplendent with flowers and bougainvilleas.                                                                      

El Confesionario offers very good meals, and standout cakes, cappuccinos and mochachinos as well.  It is only fitting that the name of the restaurant,  located in a former seminary to train young men for the priesthood, would play off the Catholic theme of confession.

Below, the wait-staff is busy meeting the demands of 

Confessionario patrons, in what was a very busy Friday evening

throughout the Seminario Plaza.  

Below is an example of some of the art work along the walls of the terrace.

Below, these are just two examples along the terrace of art works  that are made from coffee beans.

The terrace is wide, and while there is indoor restaurant spaces.  It is the outdoor courtyard and terrace space which is valued for seating; and for gazing at the domes, the architecture, the shrubs, the flowers, 

and the people.

Courtyard seating is on the lower level, with a evening enjoyed by young people.

 

The next four photos below are of Mayu Bar and Grill, which is more of a hamburger, nachos place that attracts primarily young people.  I love the ceiling and the artwork behind the bar.

As we walk along the south side of the courtyard, we pass Felippe Italian Restaurant, which serves a variety of pasta dishes, pizza, and antipasti plates.  The photo below shows Filippi located on the terrace, and immediately below it are the eateries in the courtyard for some of the restaurants and coffee shops.  

Below at Felippe's are two photos of the Italian cheeses they also sell, while the pizza maker is busy at work.

Ah, but the spectacle of the evening is always the domes of the cathedral, located just above Mayu and Felippe restaurantes.

Above, the more dining type of restaurants are on the second floor.  The first floor includes more coffee and pastry shoppes, an ice cream shoppe,  restaurants that offer lighter fares like YAW, which includes a menu of sandwiches, various coffees and pastries,  Las Cruces (The Crosses) offers Ecuadorian dishes, and a French Bistro named Le Bistro is also featured.

Through YAW, one can walk out to another inner courtyard that is a garden and owned, operated, and maintained by the Catholic Church, as seen in the two photos below:

One afternoon, my friend Jerry Ramos and I were having a tranquilo lunch in one of the lower courtyard restaurants.  Jerry saw a young couple in the courtyard, who were attempting to take a photo of themselves.  Jerry got up from his lunch, walked halfway across the courtyard and offered to take a photo of the couple together.  When he returned, a reporter for one of the local papers witnessed Jerry's act of kindness.  He walked over to our table, and talked about how in today's world more such acts of kindness are needed, and we continued in a brief conversation.  Neither Jerry nor I anticipated that a photo of us would be in the local paper.  I heard about it from another friend who had seen the photo and article, although neither Jerry nor I ever saw the photo or article.

It was a beautiful day.  The type of day that makes me so thrilled that I live in Cuenca.  However, as taxi drivers will sometimes say about the climate in Cuenca, "She has the changing moods of a woman".  Before we could ever imagine a sudden change in weather, the sun gave way to an immediate heavy hailstorm.  The two videos below show the storm.  Cuencanos  get excited about  heavy hail storms, because they have to go much higher in the mountains then our 8,400 feet to see snow. 

https://youtu.be/OsmQfg-O0_s

https://youtu.be/tR1f3OL5lFQ

Adjacent to San Luis Seminario is the entrance to a narrow passageway, which the adjoining cathedral had walled off for years.  A few years ago, the passageway was opened to the public.  Some of the restaurants in the courtyard have entrances along the passageway, as well as an entrance to the courtyard itself.

The days of the $1.50 amuerzos (set lunches) when I arrived in my 2010 visit to Cuenca are gone.  Most amuerzos are now now $2.50 to $3.50.  Executive lunches can be more expensive.  Oftentimes, the lesser expensive amuerzo is heavy on a huge pile of rice, a small piece of thinly cut meat, a sliver of ensalada, possibly a glass of juice, and a small dessert.  When I first arrived, the dishes often included plantains and potatoes as well as rice.  The amuerzo was a diet very heavy on carbs.  So now the prices are higher with less variety offered, and rice is cheap.  

However, Ecuador is not experiencing a rise in inflation.  Gas, as government subsidies have been removed, has gone up considerably, and restaurant food prices in my opinion have seen the biggest increase over the last decade.  As President Lasso, our new president, has been removing many tariffs on imports, prices like liquor, cell phones, computers are all falling into range more with the United States. Apartment rentals are very inexpensive, and we have been showing more signs of deflation than inflation.

The passageway has a number of black metal art works along the way, which silhouette the various churches in El Centro.

To the rear of the passageway is outside eating both along the lower terrace and straight ahead, plus further patio seating--all provided by  the restaurant-lounge, Distrito,which is more of a lounge with limited seating.

One of the things I most enjoy about all of these new eateries is that they create many unique dishes      or twists to familiar dishes, whether they are soups, salads, appetizers, main courses, or desserts.

This blog post would not  be complete without a focus on the north side of the street across from Parque Calderon.  There is a fabulous upscale clothing store named Vatex galleries of four stories. The interior is done in the colonial renaissance style. On the rooftop is the restaurant, Negroni, which has terraces on three sides, where diners can enjoy fantastic views of the city.  There is an inner restaurant in the center.  Along with great views and very good food; we are also blessed with the administrator, Giovanni Gonzalez, who is very personable, enjoyable with whom to talk, very attentive to the diner's needs, and holds his waitstaff to the same high standards of service.

In the photo below, looking to the background behind Mathias, who is enjoying his meal on the terrace; one can get a glimpse of the interior restaurant.

Esteban, Maria Rosa, Mathias, and Jim with a background from the Negroni Restaurant of the New 

Cathedral domes.

The photo above is another striking view of Casa del Parque building taken from Negroni, which was presented in my last two posts.

The photos below are photos of the clothing galeria, under different settings and lighting, and a couple of brief videos.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y0lA7klVO78

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S2Wp1FvhNN4

All these spectacular changes of the last three years are centered around 

the focal point of Parque Calderon,  without the park such dramatic changes 

would not have taken place in one locale.  Just another feature, which makes 

Cuenca not only a walking city, but also one which is very convenient for tourists. 

The best way to end today's blog post is with a photo of a friendly St. Bernard. Considering all the Catholic churches in the immediate vicinity of Parque Calderon, the area can feel like a mini-Vatican City.  Therefore, it is only fitting that the park should have its only living saint.  St. Bernard is the patron saint of skiers and the Alps.  We don't have the Alps in Ecuador, but the Cajas Mountains are just outside our city of Cuenca, minus the snow.

                                                                        

Cuenca Perspectives by Jim: CASA DEL PARQUE

Cuenca Perspectives by Jim: CASA DEL PARQUE: In my last blog post, I presented the magnificence of  Mansion Matilde to you, which occupies the second floor of Casa Del Parque .  Today, ...

CASA DEL PARQUE

In my last blog post, I presented the magnificence of  Mansion Matilde to you, which occupies the second floor of Casa Del Parque.  Today, we shall explore the first floor food court, which is also an upscale myriad of restaurants, eateries, and bars.  Generally done in the same style reminiscent of sixteenth and seventeenth century Spanish architecture and design.  It has quickly become a gastronomical and cultural delight as a major addition to the food scene in Cuenca.

The exterior of Casa Del Parque

Below is the walkway of the exterior of the building.

Along this same east side of Parque Calderon on Calle Louis Cordero, is the location for the city bus tour, which is about a two hour ride and takes the sightseers to the heights of Turi, where panoramic views of the city can be seen.  

As we enter into the main entrance of Casa Del Parque, we are greeted with a sandwich vendor on the right, followed by this cheese vendor, El Bueste, which also offers sandwiches and wine.

Looking straight down is the longest open space in the food court that is not rambling through maze-like passageways to many of the other eateries.

This passageway, for lack of a better term, has comfortable seats where diners can sit and eat whatever foods they have purchased.  A little further down are tables and chairs.  The wall here and in some of the other passageways are decorated with historic photos of the city of Cuenca, of historical figures from Cuenca's past, and of past owners and  history of the Casa Del Parque when it  once was the premier private residence in Cuenca.

As we continue toward the rear of the passageway we come to a comfort spot where people can sit and relax.  Below is a photo of Esteban Rios, one of the joven (young men) residing with me.

                                                                                                                               

Above is Esteban's older brother, Mathias, who also resides with me.

Notice the luxury of the setting.

Mathias and Esteban Rios

 Mathias and Jim enjoying the evening.

                                   

Esteban and Jim in a photo.

Below is the trio of us. We agreed we would wear our "Panama" hats, which are really ECUADORIAN HATS and NOT PANAMA HATS!

Esteban and I had just watched a gangster movie the night before that took place in Los Angeles back in the postwar 40's, about Mickey Cohen.  In the fictionalized version, starring Sean Penn, Cohen thought he could come to control all of LA.  Needless to say, the movie made Mickey more powerful and ruthless than he was in real life.  

After we saw the movie, we three decided the hats were appropriate, as we do our best gangster interpretation minus the 40's styled tailored suits, minus the cigars, and, oh yea, minus the sidearms.  Definitely, we were stripped down to be bare-bones gangsters, but at least Esteban has an appropriate scowl on his face for this photo below.

As we come to the end of the passageway, restrooms are on the right, another eatery leading us in another direction on the left, and straight ahead is Consuelo, a restaurant which features Ecuadorian cuisine, in a very eclectic setting.

The bar is phenomenal and first catches the eye as one enters.

Vivid colors are quickly absorbed by the eye balls, which immediately enlarge by the breadth and depth of colors.

What makes Consuelo so eclectic is the fact that it is the first restaurant I have ever entered that chose as its motif, to be a replica of a Catholic Church.  Not that Cuenca is exactly hurting for a lack of Catholic Churches.  Once in Madison, Wisconsin, I ate in a restaurant that had been a church, but became an Italian Restaurant. Consuelo's was the first time I encountered the reverse.

The bar area and the restaurant's main dining room, in the photos above and below, have a tabernacle, altars, candles, shrines, and some rather unusual furnishings.  This kitsch style reminded me of my visit many years ago to House on a Rock in Spring Green, Wisconsin.

Not to leave anything out in this potpourri of surprises and colors are the portraits of past Cuencano military leaders and heroes who contributed to the independence of Ecuador; first from Spain, and then from Gran Colombia.

I suppose if one is Catholic, they can go to mass and have lunch or dinner at the same time at Consuelo.  They get to kill two birds with one stone.

Above my table was a mirror, as I took this shot of the space behind me.

The food is good, typical Ecuatoriano dishes.  For desert, we had a common dessert which can be found all over El Centro by street vendors, which is called Espumilla.  Espumilla is made from fruits like guayaba, strawberries, mora (blackberries), naranjilla, or lemon.  Add sugar and eggs, and whip it into a very light, fluffy, tasty mixture, which is fluffier and better tasting than meringue.  

At first glance, Espumilla can be mistaken for ice cream, since the fluffy concoction on the streets with cones sticking upside-down in it appear to be ice cream.  At Consuelo, the Espumilla, which is a shaped into the face of a clown, can be eaten in the cones or from a dish, with different toppings to add.

Next we move to the left of Consuelo's to an Italian eatery, Rocco Pizzeria, which serves some basic pastas and is best known for its hand-crafted pizzas.

An Italian restaurant, Rocco Pizzeria, is just the perfect backdrop for these two Mafioso strongmen below.  Hopefully, this will not be their Roman banquet meal before lights out permanently.

A Punta de Nieve Posteria (A Point of Snow Pastries),  which is one of my favorite pastry shoppes in Cuenca, that offers unique pastries not always found in other pastry shoppes in the city, and has delicious cakes.        

When I first came to Cuenca to visit in 2010, if I ordered coffee with cream.  They would universally bring out a jar of instant Nescafe, a cup filled half filled with milk, and a cup of hot water.  One was expected to mix the hot water with the Nescafe, and then add it to the milk in the other cup.  I found it mystifying.

Most Ecuadorians are supposedly tea drinkers, but coffee has become more popular probably due to Gringo influence and increased tourists from North America and Europe in cities like Cuenca over the last decade.  Ecuador also has some of the best coffee beans in South America, which come from the Loja Valley, and can rival many of the best coffee beans in Colombia.

Now in Cuenca, coffee and pastry shops are ubiquitous.  I'll bet on a per capita basis, there are as many coffee shops as one would find in Paris.  It is astounding how much this city has changed in one decade. Mochaccinos and Cappuccinos are a way of life.  Italian style espresso has a way to go in Cuenca, however.

Yes, among the food selections in Casa Del Parque is a Dunkin' Donuts.  Our first and only in Cuenca, and more upscale than the Dunkin' Donuts I remember back home, and which also offers sandwiches.  I can't recall eating a Dunkin' Donut, since my sons, as high school students, worked at one back in the early 2,000's.  They could bring the leftover donuts home after work in the evening without charge to them.  Just one of many reasons, why my life has been a roller coaster of dieting.

Here in Cuenca, I tried a lemon cream-filled one, and it was delicious.  I understand that a donut back home in the states runs about 95 cents now.  In Cuenca, be prepared to pay $1.75.  How Cuencanos can afford it, is beyond me; but it's doing great business, especially at a time when international tourists are still rare to find in the city.

Below is La Creme, the ice-cream shoppe.  Cuencanos really love their ice-cream. No matter where you go in Cuenca, you will find creamy ice-cream, and in some places good Italiano gelato. 

One of my favorite restaurants in Cuenca is Sofy Glocal Cuisine.  There are only about three restaurants at the higher end of dining that sport female chefs of which I am aware, and all three chefs can hold their own with their male counterparts in Cuenca.  The salads at Sofy's are unique.  Many customers love her steak or beef dish, which is very good.  Sofy's Thai Chicken is a favorite.  However, my favorite is the lamb ribs with Quinoa and the sauce is to die for.  The establishment is also known for its Golden Margaritas. 

If you are very lucky, now and then, Sofy's sister, Karen, helps out in waiting tables.  She is very lively, talkative, and a joy to have serve you.

Above is Esteban enjoying a bacon cheese burger and Sangria, with a vegetable other than potatoes that looks like fries at Sofy.

Across from Sofy, but which must be entered from the exterior of the building is the sport's bar, LATITUDE CERO , which caters to   the Ecuadorian craft beer by the same name, which has won a number of awards, and the pub is viewed in the two photos below:

Another entrance to the food court is on Calle Simon Bolivar on the north side of the building.  Sofy Glocal Cuisine is to the right, as we make our way down the corridor to the center courtyard.

The center courtyard of which all the eateries radiate is stunningly attractive, and where people can dine and they are served from the various restaurants and eateries.

The courtyard take some getting use to during one's initial visit.  A number of the eateries will suddenly have waiters converge upon your table leaving behind menus, and almost at once ready to take your order.  If one doesn't speak Spanish, it gets more complicated.

 

My first time eating in the courtyard, I had already ordered from the pastry shoppe, and chose to eat in the courtyard where the staff for that shoppe brought my order.  Meanwhile, I was suddenly converged upon by other waiters from other eateries with their menus.  I had no idea what was taking place.  

When a group of us are together,  we can find ourselves ordering from different venues, and hope in the end all of the checks come out correctly.  Once without knowing what I did, not that it mattered, but it can be confusing; I order pizza from one venue, and I unwittingly ordered mochaccino from a different venue, with two different  bills to pay as I got the various menus mixed-up.  

Sometimes where a restaurant is overfilled or customers just choose to eat in the courtyard, the wait-staff has their work cut out for them, as they move from customers in the restaurant and customers in the courtyard.

It is also on the second floor of the courtyard where the elegant Matildes encompasses the second floor, with its bar and many dining rooms, which I shared with you in my last blog post.

The courtyard is also where live music is performed on occasion, based upon weekly schedules.

This final photo is a decorative art piece in the courtyard, which was on display in June during the Corpus Christi Festival, which is a week of candies and pastries served from a hundred cabinas, which is a celebration that is either a sweet-tooth's dream, or an insulin nightmare.  I haven't covered all the eateries and plazas yet around Parque Calderon.  They is more to come.

Cuenca Perspectives by Jim: MATILDE MANSION RESTAURANT AND PARQUE CASA

Cuenca Perspectives by Jim: MATILDE MANSION RESTAURANT AND PARQUE CASA: A great many changes have taken place in El Centro in recent months.  When the lockdowns turned Cuenca into a virtual ghost town,  I thought...