Julio Calvo-Perez and his wife Zoila arrived in California from Peru in 1978 with their eldest son Julito. Their formidable immigrant experience encapsulated all the strengths of his family and his embedded appreciation for his culture.
Always imprinted in Julio’s mind are the many enriched aromas of his childhood at his grandmother Maria Olinda’s home located in the bustling town of Lima. In her colorful home, populated by kids and ancestral spirits, her love and devotion to each of her thirteen grandchildren always radiated from the warmth of her pots baking in the kitchen. Those familiar emotions will be forever associated in Julio’s mind with the essences of cilantro, cumin, cabritos and huacatay. The succulent flavors of aji amarillo, aji panca, as well as the heated spirit of the rocoto pepper and the velvety taste of the lucuma fruit are eternal.
While Julio was learning his way around the kitchen with his grandma Maria Olinda, Zoila was in Lima with her mother, Dora, organizing Peñas. Her mother was the owner of the first Peña Criollas, El Inca. A Peña was the optimal way to enjoy authentic Afro-Peruvian music and dishes known as Penas Criollas. Their place was where the most famous musicians of the Penas Criollas often united to enjoy the soulful dishes prepared by Zoila and her mother.
Fresca and Pasion are Julio and Zoila’s conceptual restaurants and embodies all the love and tender memories rooted on the fundamentals of traditional Peruvian cooki