Casa Clara
There are two rooms downstairs and six upstairs at Casa Clara.
Casa Clara by Ananay Hotels
Casa Clara is a stately boutique hotel, with only eight rooms, created in a perfectly restored 18th century mansion in the heart of Cusco. It’s in a quiet corner of the Plazoleta Nazarenas, next to the Museum of Pre-Columbian Art and across from two Belmond properties.
Suites are large and comfortable.
My suite had a comfortable seating area, couch and desk built into a set of shelves displaying books and art that showcase some of the most fascinating and beautiful aspects of Peru: culture, history, flora and fauna. My king size bed was in an upstairs loft, with several pillows of different firmness to choose from. Though cars are allowed around the Plazoleta Nazarenas, what I consistently heard from my balcony was birdsong.
Breakfast is sumptuous.
The breakfast buffet has the best seasonal fruits, plus a wide array of savory options including olives, cheese and cold cuts. The kitchen is also open to make eggs and other hot breakfast options to order.
The dinner menu was very good.
For dinner, I ordered trout and my companion ordered the prawns. They came with a creamy quinoa “quinotto” and white wine. The trout tartare appetizer was perhaps not the best choice since it gave me two trout courses, but it was delicious and went well with the wine. Dessert was panna cotta, made with a fruit called lúcuma from the Peruvian rainforest and drizzled with chocolate sauce.
The best Peruvian wines.
Casa Clara prides itself on having an excellent wine list and many of the wines are unique vintages of Peruvian wines, including some made with grapes normally used only for pisco. The wine cellar is small, but still large enough for a couple to do a wine tasting inside.
Casa Clara’s Cocktail Class
The bartender and talented mixologist, Diego, showed us the many unique spirits in the bar, as all are made in Peru. That means he has created Peruvian versions of cocktails that require specific foreign ingredients, like the Campari used in a traditional negroni. Peru now produces many liqueurs like Amaru, a kind of fernet, and Andean gins, whiskies, vodkas and of course, piscos.
The bottom line on Casa Clara.
I don’t usually stay in hotels in Cusco because I live in Cusco and I travel so much that when I’m in town I just want to sleep in my own bed. I made an exception for Casa Clara, because this hotel is exceptional, for all the reasons listed above.
