More of a 3.5 for me, but I'll round up for the good vibes.
We came here for dinner on a Saturday night. We arrived a little before 6pm and the place was packed! This was the place to be ~ we actually had to get on the waitlist. They quoted a 15-20 minute wait, but we were seated in about 10 minutes.
The ambiance really highlights Peruvian cuisine. There was Latin music playing and they were projecting a sports game (some fight) on the wall. Tables were jammed together - it's not a large space, so it was a bit cramped. We had a party of five and they essentially squeezed an extra chair into the table of four. With the music playing over the speakers, full house, tight space, and lively conversation, it is loud in the restaurant.
They displayed Peruvian cookbooks on the counter, colorful peppers and garlics decorated the kitchen space overhead, and the wall above the kitchen listed out popular dishes. There's an open kitchen, and every time a dish was ready to be served, they ring the bell.
Service was slow to start. After we were seated, it took a while for a staff member to greet us/acknowledge us at all. Since it was our first time visiting, an introduction to the restaurant and overview of the menu would've been extremely helpful, as many of the people in our party were not familiar with Peruvian food. The menu does provide adequate descriptions of the dishes, but it is in a small font and the menu titles weren't translated in English to easily understand the different sections. It took a while for the waitress to get situated and take our drink orders. After we placed our orders and waited for our food to come out, Peruvian corn nuts were randomly and silently placed on the table by another staff member; an explanation of what was being served would've been nice.
As a cevicheria, of course, I had to order the ceviche. I ordered the ceviche mixto because I liked the variety of seafood that it offered. While there is a variety of seafood in the dish, it is still primarily fish. Yes, I was able to find A shrimp, A scallop, A mussel, A cut of octopus, and bits of calamari (all as advertised), the ceviche is mostly a mountain of fish. I stuck with the traditional tilapia and you can customize the heat level - I requested not spicy ;). The ceviche comes with sweet potatoes, Peruvian corn, corn nuts, red onions, and seaweed. Presentation was great - every dish that came out of the kitchen looked amazing. The inclusion of the scallop shell and mussel shell gave the dish a striking presentation. However, they really should give you an extra plate or bowl to discard the shells (the shells get pretty clunky in the dish after you eat the seafood out). Portion size of the ceviche was good - I would say that this dish is good for sharing. I enjoyed the dish overall - the seafood was fresh and the flavor was good, but I do enjoy a brighter, more acidic ceviche.
I'm not sure if they prioritize the seafood for the ceviches, but while my scallop was nice and plump, the scallops on other cooked seafood dishes were much smaller - about a quarter of the size of my beautiful large scallop. Additionally, mussels on two of the other cooked seafood dishes (one was a stir-fry and one was the stew) were served closed. After notifying the waitress, she had us put them on a plate, the kitchen pried them open, and then she brought them back. I'll also note that for our spicy seafood stew dish, the clam shell was served broken which left some sharp remnants in the bowl while eating... the seafood could have been treated more delicately in this instance.
A lot of the dishes are heavy with the starches - the ceviches come with corn and sweet potatoes, and the Saltado de Mariscos (seafood stir-fry) and Pollo Saltado (chicken stir-fry) come with both rice and french fries. While the menu is extensive (12 pages!), there are limited side options. We asked if there were any substitutions available, and the other option was yucca fries :D.
The bistec a lo pobre (grilled steak) was a giant platter which comes with steak, a fried egg, rice, french fries, fried plantains, and a salad. The steak was thin and fatty... not exactly a prime cut, but then again, this is a cevicheria, not a steakhouse.
Service did pick up as the meal progressed. We were checked on multiple times, and the waitress was attentive enough to notice that the napkins needed to be refilled without us having to ask. Tables were provided with their own drink pitcher for DIY refills. Since the restaurant was packed, service was hectic and chaotic at times. Timing of the dishes was also off. My ceviche came out about five minutes before any of the other dishes, which is always an awkward thing when it comes to etiquette.
Entrees averaged between $20-$30. All staff members were friendly. They're definitely doing something right to have a packed house on a Saturday night. It was a satisfying taste of Peru overall, but there is still some room for improvement. read more