My wife and I have lived in Cuenca for many years after discovering it by accident the Rick Steves way.
I began traveling with a backpack a few days after graduating from high school, using a first edition copy of Rick's "Europe Through the Backdoor" as my inspiration. Those first places I visited over several months, including Gimmelwald, Cinqueterra, and others, are permanently etched in my favorite memories and led to many trips by bike across Europe and the US. That led to employment as a backpacking and cycling guide for the American Youth Hostels during college, where I got to take groups of ten teens all over Europe and the US.
I'm writing to tell anyone interested that the local food in Cuenca is amazing. The city has half a dozen open farmer's markets, including one of the best open markets in all of Ecuador: Feria Libre. Street food is diverse and great. Lunches here, called almuerzos, range from $2.50 to $4.00 and include two main courses (soup and main) plus fresh fruit juice and sometimes dessert.
A great resource for Ecuadorian food and the food particular to Cuenca (with some solid restaurant reviews) is the book, Cuenca Eats. It describes many of the traditional dishes, including seafood and exotic fruits, that I've not found elsewhere in my prior travels all over the world.
So if anyone comes to Ecuador, be sure to check out the food scene in Cuenca!
James Li