You never know what you're going to get at a media preview event. But I guess that's the whole point.

Still, as a food writer, it's difficult to be free of expectations when you enter a new place. Especially if you've noticed a certain amount of buzz about the restaurant before showing up to the preview. With that in mind, I was surprised that reporter extraordinaire Matt Davis and I were the only media people to show at the preview for Alberta Streets new Peruvian restaurant, del Inti. Granted, it was a luncheon, so it might have cut into people's schedules. Still, it was a curious thing to walk into what I expected to be a large media event, only to find that Matt and I would be working through a lengthy tasting menu with a single PR rep for company. I wondered if my colleagues had missed something in the press release—del Inti is, after all, owned and operated in part by Ignacio Solar who had held a position as chef de cuisine at the much beloved Peruvian joint, Andina. Or maybe I had missed something. Either way, it was with some slight trepidation that Matt and I sat down to eat our meal.

Del Inti will undoubtedly be compared to Andina, but in terms of atmosphere the two could not be more different. Located in what was once the cavernous Alberta Arts Pavilion, del Inti has gone a long way in making itself a visual presence. There is a large all-weather outdoor area, colored a vibrant blue and white, partnered by an un-sheltered zone with a large copper fire pit where patrons can wrap themselves in woolen blankets and sip cocktails. Inside, the dining room is earth toned and airy. Cork floors and acoustic padding on the ceiling will likely go a long way in reducing the acoustic nightmare that could hinder dining conversation in such a large space. A lovely copper-topped bar across the dining room from the open kitchen offers a smallish space for happy-hour goers and drinkers. Where Andina operates a dining room that feels very high-end and slightly intimidating, del Inti felt open, relaxed and down to earth. But who knows what the place would feel like in the full swing of a Last Thursday dinner service.

From what Matt and I experienced during our luncheon, it appears as if del Inti is taking a three pronged approach to their Peruvian style offerings. Each course offered a traditional Peruvian dish, a more adventurous (and more local) take on the same dish, as well as a seasonal offering.

We started with a selection of three ceviches. One included thin slices of razor clams and a thin, yet robust, tangy chili sauce. The traditional ceviche was much more simple and subtle, but both included large kernels of toasted corn which provided an interesting textural element. Choros a la Chalaca, mussels served on a half shell, were first steamed and them combined with citrus, red onion, corn and tomato. They were bite sized portions, easily tipped into the mouth. Along with these offerings, the cold appetizer course included a kind of scallop sashimi. Called Tiradito al Tamarindo and presented on a bed of thin sliced Asain cucumber with tamarind sauce, this scallop dish, we were told, speaks to the Asian influence on Peruvian cuisine. Apparently, it's not uncommon to find a wok in a Peruvian's kitchen. We were curious as to how this came about. We asked Solar, who hesitated before explaining that Peru had once had a robust slave trade, the influences of which (African, Chinese, Japanese and Mediterranean) are readily apparent in the cuisine.

The hot appetizer course continued the Asian/Peruvian reference with hangar steak skewers and a red pepper puree dipping sauce. Also, hot, wok-fried clams arrived at the table on a cast iron skillet with a thick and spicy yellow pepper sauce to be sopped up by chunks of crostini. Unfortunately, the clams were a tad gritty, but the sauce seemed to be the main component of the dish.

The entrees featured two fish dishes and a stir fried steak dish. Here, it became clear that Peruvians (or at least Ignacio Solar) really like their sauces. Swordfish came prepared on a bed of assorted peppers with a black olive aioli, and the hangar steak Saltado was presented in a serving bowl with a thin smoky sauce to be poured over accompanying rice. The standout of the course was a traditional and simply prepared square of Halibut on a bed of yucca root, topped with salsa nortena.

Desserts, which are mostly under the purview of co-owner and Ignacio's wife, Erin Solar, departed from Peru. They included a molten chocolate cake filled with dolce de leche and a peach cobbler. The traditional Peruvian dessert, Arroz con Leche, consisted of butter cookies coated in powdered sugar sandwiching a layer of creamy dolce de leche.

Throughout the meal, the wine pairings from del Inti's fairly extensive list, which include some Peruvian selections, were quite astute.

It will be interesting to see if del Inti is picked up by local media. It certainly is attractive to passers-by on Alberta street, who were continually peering through the front door. Although it's absolutely impossible to say how the place will fare based on my insular and intensive lunch, if I were pressed, I'd probably say that del Inti will likely make a splash in the neighborhood, if not in the city. I doubt it will suffer from the comparisons with Andina because the Solars are taking their own approach to the cuisine of Ignacio's homeland, which, I understand was partly why he had left Andina in the first place. At any rate, I'll look forward to seeing how del Inti fares.

I'll be sending someone to review del Inti in a couple of months. Look for a full review in Last Supper sometime in November.