Quito doesn’t yet have the foodie allure of Lima, but this South American capital is getting increasing attention for its cuisine. More gastronomy-focused tours of Ecuador pop up each year and the country has great domestic coffee and chocolate to top off the array of produce growing locally.

The newest and grandest hotel in the city center, Casa Gangotena offers guests a walking gastronomy tour to get a feel for the local ingredients and see how they are prepared. A morning walk with one of the hotel restaurant’s chefs skips the tourist district and heads to local shops and markets that are used by locals instead.

Stops include the Colaciones de la Cruz Verde shop preparing traditional sweets in a swinging metal bowl over a charcoal fire, the Molinos de San MartÌn shop grinding grains for various flours and corn meal and spice shops that have dried and ground ingredients familiar and strange. Most enlightening is a visit to a real locals’ market, where Ecuador’s wealth of fruits and vegetables is on display. With a climate that goes from equatorial tropical seaside to high in the Andes, there’s little that won’t grow here in the rich volcanic soil.

Guests can choose to join the chefs in preparing a big lunch of typical local dishes or just show up later for a multi-course meal.

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