In a shopping mall entrance surrounded by PF Changs and TGI Fridays, Le Perla Del Pacifico truly is…read morea gem. On day one in Chile, my friend and I wandered over to the shopping area on a recommendation from our Concierge at the Renaissance Hotel. We wandered over because the high concentration of restaurants, not because our stunning interest in mall food. We found Le Perla and found it plenty authentic compared to the neighbors, plus it was gorgeous outside and we were seeking patio dining. We posted up at La Perla and were very happy with our decision. The servers were english-speaking and they had the menu translated into many languages. We started with two pisco sours and were delighted with how tasty and strong they were! They still remain our favorite pisco sours from the entire trip (and trust me, we drank a lot of them)!
For dinner, I ordered the quinoa and avocado side, sauteed vegetables and a chilean salad of tomatoes, onions, peppers and cilantro. B ordered the sea bass and I offered him to help me on my pleathora of sides. We started with some complimentary bread that was fine and simple. It was accompanied with a variety of dipping/spreading options including a salsa of sorts, a butter and some type of aioli.
Our dinner came our in a timely fashion and we were thrilled with the large portions and delicious looking food. The quinoa could have been cooked slightly longer, but the flavor was amazing and again, the portions were generous. The sauteed vegetables were exactly what I expected and hoped for. The chilean salad was the favorite by far, with its amazing flavor and juicy, ripe tomatoes. B was very happy with his fish and also helped make a large dent on the salad. We couldn't finish all our dishes (we did however, polish off two more pisco sours...) and left very satisfied.
We went back a second time this trip and has, yet again and outstanding expereince. I am sure this is not the most authentic selection, but when it's across the street and the food and drinks are this good, it's 5 stars in my books!