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| - I have come here several times over the years, but for some reason it had been a while since the last time I visited. This is the most authentic Peruvian restaurant in Toronto, and coming here is a reminder of my childhood, and my grandma's and mom's cooking. My mom still makes authentic Peruvian at home, but its less often, and some dishes are so labour intensive that I very seldom get to eat them at home. If ever.
On a Monday evening, the place was fairly busy, there were maybe four other tables occupied (and this place can fit 8 tables at most) besides ours, but as the night went on the place cleared out, and it was just us and another couple. The restaurant is run by the owner of hte place and his wife (who does the cooking).
The Menu is extensive, and has a large variety of appetizers, and chicken/beef/seafood mains, plus some home style stews. We settled on the following:
Grilled Beef Heart
Grouper Ceviche
Stuffed Pepper
"Seco" ( Beef braised in a cilantro and white wine sauce)
"Saltado de Pollo" (chicken strips sauteed with onions,tomatoes and french fries)
Grouper Loco
Beef heart is Peruvian street food. Its the kind of thing you never make at home, but instead you purchase from street vendors late at night. The beef heart here was delicious. It wasn't served the traditional way (which is small pieces on a skewer), but it was still tender and super flavourful. It doesn't taste organy at all (its not supposed to) and the juices from the heart and marinade at the bottom create the most delicious sauce ever.
The Ceviche tasted very fresh and the fish was firm and adequately seasoned. Peruvian ceviche is served with julienned red onions, and slices of potato and sweet potato which you are meant to soak in the lemon juice that the ceviche comes in. Though the Ceviche was very good, I wish it had been more spicy. But we asked for it medium spicy because the two males at our table can't handle heat :)
The Stuffed Pepper was a disappointment. I'm used to my mom making this at home regularly, and in comparison this stuffed pepper was bland and puny.
The Seco was very good. If you hate cilantro you should stay away from his dish, as it is cilantro heaven. The sauce was flavourful, the beef was super tender and the beans and rice that come with it were great. You are supposed to mix the rice,potato,beans and stew and eat it all together to get the right flavour combination. I love this dish.
The Chicken wasn't very good. Once again, my mom's version of this dish trumps this. The chicken was dry and the dish in general needed more seasoning.
The Grouper Loco was delicious. It was grouper fillet that had been seasoned and pan fried, served with sauteed onions and tomatoes in a white wine sauce. The fish was flaky and soo tasty. I loved it!
We also had dessert which included rice pudding, coconut cheesecake and some "creme brulee" tart. Aside from the rice pudding, none of the desserts were authentic Peruvian. The rice pudding was served in a hollowed out orange half and sprinkled with cinnamon. Yum.
The coconut cheesecake was very tasty, and the tart just wasn't my thing.
All in all, a very pleasant dining experience. I definitely recommend this place if you want to taste some authentic Peruvian food. And don't be afraid to try the beef heart and seafood dishes, its where this guys really shine!
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