Inthipak

On any given night in Ossining, you can enjoy different kinds of Latin and South American food, Swiss food, Portuguese food, Mexican food, Italian food… almost anything you can imagine, and no need to go to the city. Inthipak, like Ossining’s many other ethnic restaurants, transports you to another place entirely– in this case, Peru (although they also have Ecuadorian specials). PS: Why isn’t Peruvian food an option on Unilocal when categorizing?
I guess we were on the early side for dinner (6), since we entered and got some blank stares, but the pleasant waitress led us to a table, assuring us that they were serving dinner. We pored over the menu for about 20 minutes, ordering a mixed seafood ceviche de la casa ($ 13.75) for an appetizer while we mulled over our choices. In my quick research of Peruvian food (yes, I know, I’m a huge dork, I wikied Peruvian food before we went so I would know what to order), I learned that Peruvian food is hugely diverse and reflects the flavors of many different countries due to immigration. So we ordered arroz con mariscos to get a taste of the Chinese influence, and the picante de mariscos, which promised a fiery hot sauce.
The place looks like nothing much from outside, but inside it is clean and decorated with some, I assume, Peruvian artifacts and art. There is a lively bar (only Corona and «warm» Heineken, the waitress informed us) and tvs with sports on. There’s a corner of the place with artfully graffitied walls that looks like it might transform into a dance floor after hours. Indeed, the music got us in the right mindset for our meal.
The ceviche arrived, and we agreed that it was unlike anything we’d ever tasted (I’d never had it before!)– a huge pile of seafood in a very limey kind of drizzle. The calamari was excellent (not rubbery at all; the lime served it well), as were the shrimp. Chunks of corn and sweet potato and a pile of nuts adorned the plate. There appeared to be bits of raw fish and other unidentifiable sea life in the mix (Nemo?).
C claimed the picante de mariscos when it came, which was obviously the superior dish, with a creamy sauce (not as fiery as promised) that actually tasted slightly Indian to me. The arroz con mariscos was basically fried rice with lots of seafood, a little disappointing compared to the two other dishes. The portions are huge ($ 13.75 each) and we could have easily shared.
They were out of dessert (a crime in Lex C. land), though I would have loved to try the arroz con leche or the pudding made from blue corn… with our $ 10 coupon (I’m a coupon whore) it came to $ 45 for a huge feast with leftovers for at least 3 meals. The waitresses are sweet, but it probably would be helpful to know a little Spanish to read the menu as I asked about one word I couldn’t understand in a dish and she couldn’t translate it for me. No matter.
Inthipak, I’ll be bak!