a restaurant run by one guy who is the chef/server/cashier etc. The food is Very Good and the…read moreportion sizes are solid. When I walked in he said the soup they had today was lentil soup. Very flavorful with a good variety of vegetables in there. Guava juice was in a large cup, and this wasn't one of those situations where the cup is 80% ice. Chicken arepas are great. Keep in mind that all this is made by One Guy and food may take a bit to come out depending on how many people are in your group.

It is, for sure, just one dude holding down this whole joint all by himself: cook, waiter,…read morebartender, all. Very basic dining room for sure, but it's really all about the food. The food is good and authentic. Took a friend who knows Colombian food well and this guy is doing it just like they do down there. I've never had arepas so good. We had the reinas pepiadas: really really tasty. I could see how some people are a little alienated by him, but also remember that he's there alone. You can go a little off the rails at places that have more people on staff to manage those kinds of patrons. When you walk in, you know that you can't push beyond what's offered and make special requests. This place is one of the more interesting places to eat around here; let's appreciate his/its strengths and not dwell on what this place isn't.

I've been curious about this place for a long time so I finally tried it for dinner tonight with my…read morehusband. Like probably most Americans, I haven't tried a lot of South American cuisine so I didn't know what to expect. I guess I was expecting something like Mexican food. Well, it's definitely a lot different than Mexican food. Peruvian food isn't very spicy and the seasonings are different, yet still tasty. There a big Chinese influence on Peruvian food, too. I got the Lomo Saltado, a popular Peruvian dish with stir-fried beef, onions and tomatoes served with rice and French fries. My husband got the Chaufa al Wok, an oriental Peruvian fried rice with chicken. The fries kind of threw me at first. I wasn't expecting that. The dish was very good and had a nice flavor. My husband loved his dish and thought it was delicious. With both of our dishes it was interesting to see how much of a Chinese influence there is. What my husband absolutely loved the most is their homemade horchata. It tasted different than Mexican horchata so he asked what was in it. Our server said it was made was cacao beans instead of just rice and cinnamon. It had a pale brown color to it, too. I also liked the seasoned corn nuts that came with two different sauces--a sweet one and savory one. We both thought the prices were a little high but not so much that we wouldn't come back. The service was very good. Our server was friendly and helped us decide what to order. She was very knowledgeable about the menu items. At the end of our meal both she and the owner (I think) asked us how we liked everything and if there was anything they could have done to make things more enjoyable. I mentioned that my food came out much earlier than my husband's so I was almost done by the time his came out. The owner apologized for the wait and we really appreciated that. They also serve empanadas, pupusas and tamales. We're going to try these the next time we come back. Someone at the table next to us ordered the pupusas and they looked yummy. We were pleasantly pleased with how tasty the food was despite being a lot different than what we were expecting.

Every time we pass through Des Moines we have to stop here…read more A small family run restaurant that is excellent. Great food and great service. Don't miss it! The Arroz Con Mariscos is excellent and has a lot of seafood in it. Awesome flavor. My husband loves the Chaufa Al Wok too. The Strawberry pop is a don't miss.