This restaurant was an amazing overall experience. The staff were extremely friendly and helpful, especially Matt. He was very attentive and made the experience that much more special. The only thing that exceeded that overall ambiance of this place was the taste of the food. We ordered both octopus appetizers and had the steak. Food was cooked to perfection and the taste was exquisite. We cannot wait to return here again! read more

El Mono - Peruvian Near Me - Berkeley, California

Excellent service from Cristian. Amazing food. Loved it. Everything I ordered was great. Thank you

Mateo and Christian we're awesome. The place is very nice and and clean. The food was great. Glad we came.

El mono is hands down my favorite Peruvian restaurant. My table ordered the mixed seafood ceviche - refreshing, tangy, hardy. For my entree I ordered the pescado frito - not oily, deep crunch, and I dipped it in the leftover ceviche salsa.... Heaven. My homegirls first time, she ordered Lomo Saltado with a fried egg. Demolished. It was flavorful, and had generous portions.. can't forget the miti miti tea - a blend of their passion fruit juice and blue corn tea. can't miss! Add a splash of your favorite alcohol to make it a real treat. We will be back 100 times over. Thank you Matt for walking us through the menu, and giving your expertise on how to experience each dish. Your attention to detail in each customers experience does not go unnoticed . read more

First time here! Place has a great vibe and is family-run which makes feel super friendly when you come in. Couldn't go wrong with the Pescado Frito and Lomo Saltado. The fish had a light flaky crust pickled with a nice pickled red onion slaw. Of course the main star was the Lomo Saltado! What I enjoyed especially is that the fries didn't get too soggy which tends to happen at other places. Important to note that our serve Roovan was super friendly and checked in whenever we needed something. Definitely will come back here! read more

Came out to try Peruvian food and it was delicious. The food was AMAZING and so was the service ! Christian was our waiter, extremely nice and always made sure to check in on us. We got the ceviche mixed and it was so flavorful. The food and green sauce were so good we we ended up buying a few to take home Will definitely be coming back ! read more

Right from my first visit (and now my second!), I've been so impressed by this place. The workers are extremely friendly, attentive, and welcoming, which really adds to the experience. And the food? Everything I've tried is delicious and makes me feel so nourished, like a warm hug. My absolute favorite is the shrimp creamy soup with poached egg and rice. It's a huge portion, so I always have some to take home. Now that I've gotten my fix of this incredible shrimp dish, I can't wait to try their lunch specials next! read more

El Mono - Peruvian Near Me - Berkeley, California

First time at El Mono! Grabbed the lomo saltado and it was great. Great service too! Will stop by again! read more

El Mono - Lomo Saltado - Peruvian Near Me - Berkeley, California

Had a wonderful meal and experience for dinner. All the dishes were excellent and ample. Space is very nice and easy parking in the lot. Service was good and servers all friendly. Our only challenge was deciding what to order as there was maybe a bit too much on the menu, but it all sounded good. read more

TAYA was awesome, she took care of us and has a nice manner about her. We laughed a lot she enjoyed us!

Christian and Adrian were amazing! Food was delicious!! So much flavor in the lomo saltado

First time at this restaurant and no experience with Peruvian food. Taya and Niurka explained the dishes very well and we both had excellent meals. As a vegetarian, I appreciated the options I'm now in love with the Peruvian pepper that is the basis of the Saltado dishes we had. (they sell the sauce!). Highly recommended. read more

Taya was a wonderful host helping us pick from the large menu, answering our questions and guiding our dining experience. The food was also delicious and if I lived closer this would be a regular spot. Highly recommend! read more

El Mono - Pella - Peruvian Near Me - Berkeley, California

Excellent food, it was our first time to try an authentic Peruvian cuisine.. Christian our server was very humble and accommodating... the Paella is the best, The best Flan there is! we will come back soon.. Absolutely I recommend! read more

We're so happy to see El Mono open a location in Berkeley! We can here for my mother-in-law's birthday (who's from Lima!) and Christian and the staff treated us very well. He even brought us a lucuma ice cream to celebrate. Definitely recommend to anyone craving Peruvian food! read more

OK i'm not Peruvian, and i can't tell you what authentic Peruvian food is, but i can say this is damn good! This place is off the beaten track, so unless you frequent Ashkenaz or something like that, you'd probably never know about it. It's worth the trek up there. Hey they have a parking lot, a truly RARE thing for any restaurant in Berkeley! Wow! You don't have to drive around looking for parking and then walk 3 blocks, or put money in the damn meter! Just drive up there and park! We ordered Arrroz con Mariscos, or as they call it, Paella Peruana, and it was delicious. It's basically like Mexican rice, orange rice with peas, and then they add shrimp, mollusks, i forgot what else. They serve it on a sizzling hot pan for show. The owner said get family size but i figured one order would be a lot of food and yes, it was, enough for leftovers. We got some bread for a very reasonable price, and a nice fresh green salad with hard boiled eggs and olives, very good. We didn't care for the dessert, maracuyá mousse. I thought it was just boring, hardly any flavor. I couldn't even finish my half (we shared it). I love maracuyá agua fresca, which has flavor that explodes in your mouth. Well, this doesn't. It's just a sweet creamy rather bland dessert. Our waiter was Cristián, and we enjoyed chatting with him. Service was excellent. It made the night. We also loved the decor, metal animals based on the Nazca lines in the Peruvian desert. That is refreshing, when other Peruvian restaurants all seem to focus only on Andean decor. Perú is very diverse, and has many indigenous cultures as well as African, Asian, Spanish, wow, really interesting, and the Andes are only one fascinating aspect. Overall we had a really enjoyable night. A friend i used to have opened a Peruvian restaurant in Contra Costa county. She said the Peruvian customers would gripe & complain no end about the food not being real, not authentic, no good, totally sucks, whatever. She commented that there are many Peruvian spices and chiles you just can't get here, so it was impossible to make real authentic Peruvian food. Also they couldn't find any Peruvians to hire as cooks so they hired Mexican cooks and trained them. Well, Mexicans may be fabulous cooks, but they don't know anything about Peruvian food, so it never really came out right, except the days my friend was there cooking herself. So the restaurant went under. I see many Peruvians here complaining similarly about this place, el Mono. Hey give them a break, for the above reasons. If you want 100% real Peruvian food, buy a ticket and fly to Perú. Anyway i asked, and the cook who made our food that night IS Peruvian. We'll have to go back some day, as the menu has so many options and it was hard to decide. We wish this place well, and encourage everybody to go try it out. read more

Food and service were good and I would recommend the food, but at the end of the meal, we were asked by the server to do a review of the restaurant right in front of him, in his presence. That was pretty creepy and turned us off to this place, which is why they got four out of five stars. read more

This was my first time at this restaurant, and I had a wonderful experience. The atmosphere was warm and welcoming, and Matt, who took care of us, was incredibly kind, attentive, and empathetic. The restaurant is beautiful, has convenient parking, and it's a comfortable place to relax and enjoy your meal. Congratulations to the team for creating such a great experience. I'll definitely be back! read more

Excellent Ceviche! The leche de tigre was on point, just the right amount of spice and the fish was incredible, fresh and cooked by the lime to perfection. The aji à la gallina was the best I've ever had, so warm and comforting. I can't wait to come back and try the anticuchos! Our server Christian was great, he had good suggestions and was very attentive. Highly recommend! read more

Taya and Cris were phenomenal. Both were warm, attentive, and clearly proud of the food they serve. After spending time in Peru, I have a high bar for this kind of cooking, and everything we ordered met it. The room feels welcoming from the moment you walk in, and the staff treat you like a regular on your first visit. Five stars. Ask for Taya or Cris if they are working. read more

Amazing food! Just like the other location with better parking! lol. Come and visit Christian and the team and the Berkeley location!

Good service and tasty and generous meals. I recommend the family meals like paella, etc for larger groups

What a wonderful find! We decided we wanted something a little different and found this delightful spot. Christian, our server, was so good, knowledgeable, and friendly. The food was out of this world. It was difficult to choose which dish to order. I ordered the Dirty Tuna sandwich (the olives made it "dirtyA") and it was so yummy. Others at my table ordered the Salgado de Champinones, the Aji De Gallina, and Chufa de Camarones --all were delicious. We will definitely be back. Thank you Christian for a wonderful meal and experience. read more

This was my first time trying El Mono. Bella was our server and is fantastic. The food was amazing! I'll definitely be back.

Been to El Mono almost a dozen times. Unique flavors abound. Had a few steaks now, excellent every one. Their Huancaina sauce is a winner. Christian has helped me deveral times, making sure my experience was flawless. Great location on Gilman where the Gliman Grill was for decades. Easy access and parking, clean bathrooms. Making this place my Saturday favorite. read more

Excellent service. Walked in and was greeted with warmth by Christian. We were on time at 7 pm for our reservation.We had been invited by our real estate client. Christian seated us .I told him we would be waiting to order food until our client who was soon to arrive came.He was right there to take our orders. It was such an enjoyable time.Christian was our main server but we were also attended by a nice gentleman in a blue and white shirt. The gentleman that brought the drinks and waters was also outstanding,My client had a fruit drink and he inquired if she needed ice .He was back with the ice like magic. It may seem like a small thing. The staff is very professional. The food was delicious .I had fish and onions. I will return. Gwendolyn Kilpatrick read more

Great lomo saltado and calamari! And awesome service. I will be back! Their chimichurri is good with the lomo saltado as well.

Christian, our server was great and the food was fantastic. This new restaurant, is a branch from the original in El Cerrito, and tucked in a quiet corner of West Berkeley. Its music lively, but not drowning, and it's 3 sided interior let's in a lot of natural lighting. The food was great and the portions were a good size, especially for the bay area. The steaks were very tender, chimmichurri fragrant, and lots of very fresh seafood. The trio de mar is a great choice to sample 3 of the Peruvian seafood appetizers. Definitely try their alfajores and lucuma ice cream dessert. That's a must get to finish the meal, with hints of maple, caramel, creamy, and decadent-lusciousness of a rich egg-yolk. read more

Definitely recommend this place. Service, ambiance, and food were all great! Shout out to Christian, our server, for good and friendly service! read more

The service, food and overall ambiance was great. we tried the aguadito, yuca fries, and tallarín de carne. The aguadito was flavorful! The yuca fries were on point and the tallarín de carne was the hit. Can't wait for their liquor license to enjoy some pisco sours. read more

El Mono - Peruvian Near Me - Berkeley, California

Nice local Resturant for date night. I like the remodel. Service was cool, took about 30 min are so to get food but it was close to when they opened. About 25-30 dollars an item. I would go back for special occasions. read more

The food was amazing, highly recommend! The servers were the opposite of attentive, which could be understandable if it were busy - but it wasn't and the three servers spent much of the meal chatting with each other at the front register while we waited for various meal milestones (taking the order, bringing the water, bringing the check) that proved impossible because they never checked in, never made eye contact from across the room, until we eventually sent a member of our party over to the counter to ask for whatever it was (a water refill, the check). There didn't seem to be a designated host or hostess, so there was a painfully long wait to be seated despite a room full of empty tables. I would definitely come back for the food but would make sure I allotted extra time and patience in case the same three servers were there. read more

2nd time eating at a Peruvian restaurant and I must say the food was great! Christian the server was really great at what he does and he also promoted the restaurant and the food well. Thank you for a great experience, we will be back for sure. read more

El Mono - Peruvian Near Me - Berkeley, California

Best causa acevichada I have tried so far in the Bay Area! Christian our server was extremely professional and informative about the Ingredients. Check the place out as it will surprise you and delight you! read more

Christian was amazing, we will be back! We loved it and are so happy a place like this is open nearby!

I was excited to find out that El Mono was opening a new location in Berkeley. The flavorful food as well as the excellent service definitely carried over. I can tell the cooks love their craft, and that the wait staff is really attentive. Our waiter, Desiree, really showed us what great hospitality in the food industry looks like. She checked in on us often, was always happy to be there, and made sure we were taken care of the whole time. They have indoor as well as out door seating. It's a very clean warm atmosphere, which I loved. I had chicken and shrimp anticuchos and loved how well seasoned they both were. The chicken was grilled to perfection. It tasted really good and was also very tender. I definitely need to come back to try some other dishes and desserts I was eyeing. read more

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Great food and service! Nice change of pace from ordinary. We can't wait to try more dishes.

We came on a whim and we had a wonderful dinner. Christian was our waiter and he was so friendly and gave us some great recs. We ended up going with the house specials, Lomo Saltado and Paella. Both were delicious. The woman that seated us recommended their house made mix drink (NA) which I can't remember the name of, but it was tasty! The restaurant is brightly lit, music was fun and everyone was super nice. Couldn't recommend this place enough! read more

El Mono - Peruvian Near Me - Berkeley, California

I had the lomo salteado and patacones and loved it! Service was phenomenal (thanks Matt). It was our first time here amd we"ll be back. Thank you! read more

This was my first time trying El Mono, and I only ordered for pick-up, but I was pleasantly surprised by how friendly and welcoming the staff were. You don't see that much anymore--great customer service and genuine kindness. The ambience inside is really cute too, which I loved. On top of that, the food was exceptional--fresh, flavorful, and truly delicious. I'll definitely be coming back. Highly recommend this place! read more