One of the world’s tastiest cuisines has found its way to one of the world’s greatest cities.

Wandering one afternoon last week in a fashionable neighborhood of boutiques and apartments not far from Prague’s Vltava River, I was surprised to find a restaurant serving Peruvian cuisine.

Not only dishing up staples from South America’s foremost fusion cuisine like papas a la Huancaína and lomo saltado, Casa Andina captures in its decor the spirit of the land of Inca and Nazca cultures.

In addition to artwork focusing on themes ranging from ecclesiastical to environmental (of note are playful castings, including the restaurant logo, that incorporate the mysterious Nazca Lines), the inviting, intimate dining room also features a trio of giant flat screens with regularly repeating footage of an excursion to the Peruvian treasure, Machu Picchu, mountaintop home to the ancient Inca civilization.

A variety of lively Latin music mixes with the chatter of the slightly less than three dozen customers this new Staré Mêsto (Old Town) dining destination accommodates.

I wandered into the equally attractive Casa Andina bar just after lunch, eager to learn how this Peruvian export came to be in one of my favorite cities. The tall, dark and handsome guy behind the bar not only produced a stellar cappuccino but was eager to share information about himself and the new eatery.

Seems Dusan Valenta is not Peruvian or anything close to it. He’s a Slovak who went to Marbella, Spain, three years ago for a vacation and wound up living and working there. He not only eked out a living but also became fluent in Spanish, so much so that on his return to Prague it made sense to sign on as barman/waiter at this new South American outpost.

For the back story on Casa Andina, managing partner Alejandro Sanders, a native of Costa Rica, said the concept belongs to his business partner, a Czech named Martin Stefanek. Although he has no previous restaurant experience, he studied gastronomy while he was in school. Business opportunities took him to Peru, where he spent several years prior to rerturning to his native country. So taken with Peruvian cookery, Stefanek decided to give Praguers a taste of it, opening Casa Andina as both restaurant and weekend club (there’s a downstairs lounge open on weekends).

While the kitchen crew is Czech, Sanders says several have prior experience with Latin American cuisine and one lived in Spain where he worked in a Peruvian restaurant kitchen. In addition, Sanders, with his knowledge of Latin American cookery, and Stefanek, with the experience of living in Lima, helped with menu creation and design of the dishes.

That brings us to the food. Following up on my initial afternoon visit, I returned for a most memorable dinner, starting with one of Peru’s best known dishes, papas a la Huancaina, a very attractive plate of sliced potatoes (the staple of Peruvian meals) topped with a piquant sauce built on the intriguing flavor of ají amarillo, the golden Peruvian chile that brings both bell pepper flavor and varying degrees of heat to the palate. The usual accompaniments included sliced hard-boiled egg, olives and, here, batons of fresh cheese. A tiny dice of fresh tomato scattered across the plate provided added color and flavor.

Continuing with the ají amarillo theme, I had to try Casa Andina’s rendition of ají de gallina, tender pieces of chicken napped with this special salsa, served, as the Peruvians do, with both potatoes and rice, plus more hard-boiled egg.

And for the nightcap — what could be better with an espresso than a shot of pisco? Ok, two shots of pisco.

Peru is also known for its distinct ceviche, and three versions are offered at Casa Andina — with a local flatfish, salmon and shrimp. Fried yuca, chicken escabeche, tacu tacu (traditional beans and rice dish with African roots) and anticuchos (that’s a skewer of grilled marinated beef heart with ají panca) are also traditional dishes offered on the daily menu. And, what would a Peruvian restaurant be without lomo saltado, tender beef sirloin — served with lots of sautéed onions that get a fusion kick with the addition of soy sauce — paired with both fried potatoes and rice.

Casa Andina also features a dish that all Peruvians love, causa, a potato cake stuffed with tuna, eggs, tomatoes and onions, topped with Huancaina sauce. A food writer for Prague’s English language newspaper, the Prague Post, swears by Casa Andina’s papa rellena de carne, a deep-fried potato stuffed with pork, egg, raisins and olives.

And what kind of Peruvian restaurant would it be without Inca cola, Cuzqueña beer and Pisco sours? Also, you can order up a glass of Chilean wine if you’d like. The coffee is from — you guessed it — Colombia.

So next time you’re in Prague — or if you’re planning an initial visit — make sure you sample tasty Czech cuisine. But when you’re in the mood for tasty AND picanté, drop by Casa Andina. It’s in Prague 1, just around the corner from the imposing Intercontinental Hotel. And tell Dusan, Alejandro and Martin the Napa Valley Register sent you.