[dropcap size=big]T[/dropcap]he Vox Kitchen sits on the southern edge of Orange County’s Little Saigon, in a regional rivulet that dips into Fountain Valley. It’s tucked into the corner of a sprawling strip mall, but it’s no hidden gem—wait times can easily reach an hour if not more on weekends (that is, when there’s not a deadly pandemic floating in the air).
Secure a table and scroll through Its well-executed menu of Asian fusion delights like garlic spicy noodles and crab congee, and you’ll encounter the house special: “saltado” shaken fries. A glance at its description reveals recognizable elements: potatoes, onion, tomatoes, rice, and meat—either filet mignon, rib-eye steak, or chicken—served with a piquant, bright green aji sauce. Two things dawn on you the first time you see this. A.) It’s lomo saltado! B.) Why hadn’t I thought about lomo saltado as an Asian fusion dish?
“The Vietnamese community had no idea about Peruvian food,” explains Vox’s Owner and Executive Chef Viet Nguyen. “What I wanted to do was to open them up to its possibilities.”
Nguyen’s noble goal hints at a much bigger rationale. This venerable staple of Peruvian cuisine may initially look out of place here, but it more than belongs. To fully understand why, you must dig past the warm approachability that the dish brings at your neighborhood Peruvian joint, all the way down to its roots. There, you’ll witness lomo saltados transformation from a simple meat, potato, and rice dish to one of the world’s finest examples of cross-cultural culinary expression. It is a historic amalgamation of two countries and continents that demonstrates how a good plate of food can serve as the ultimate gateway to the world.