I want to preface this review by saying that I am Peruvian and grew up in Peru so my standards of Peruvian food are very different than other people who may not have tried or may not be Peruvian.
We came here on a Friday night and this place was very quiet, but they did get a lot of takeout orders so maybe that is their main business which is great for them ! They have enough seating despite being a fairly small place.
The service here is definitely much better than your usual Peruvian restaurants in New Jersey so that is the main reason why I am not giving them a one star.
We got their passion fruit juice, which was very good and so was the cancha they put for the table.
I ordered their tallarines verdes and my boyfriend ordered their jalea. Again, both of these dishes are what I grew up with and have tried not just in Peru, but also at other Peruvian places in New Jersey and, unfortunately, what I tried at this restaurant was not Peruvian food.
The tallarines verdes tasted just like pesto sauce, which is not what it's supposed to taste like, tallarines verdes has a very specific taste because it has not just basil but also spinach, queso fresco, evaporated milk, etc. all which gives it said Peruvian flavor - what I ate here was not tallarines verdes, it was pasta with pesto. The steak was OK, I got it medium rare and that's what they served me, but I do have to say it was a bit salty.
Now onto the jalea - this was basically just fried seafood, which is very disappointing. Jalea can look like fried seafood, however, it tastes very different, because we use different seasonings and sometimes even a different flour. On top of the food tasting just like Italian fried calamari rather than a traditional jalea, it did not come with salsa tartara, which further cemented us, knowing that this was not a true Peruvian place.
I think it is good that they are trying to put Peruvian food out to other cultures, especially in the area of Montclair, but this is not a good attempt at it.
It really breaks my heart to have to write a bad review for a restaurant that serves my country's food, but that is unfortunately what I have found here.
There are good Peruvian places in surrounding areas and even a good Peruvian restaurant in Montclair as well that gives a better alternative to what this place serves. read more