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Categories: Latin American, Steakhouses [Edit]
Neighborhood: LakeviewIrving Park (Brown)
Mon-Thu. 12:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m.
Fri-Sat. 12:00 p.m. - 11:00 p.m.
Sun. 12:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.
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Mmmm!
I bought one of those http://restaurant.com dealies (it was like $1 for the $25 certificate! And the minimum purchase was only $35). My friend enjoys trying new things, so we used it the day I bought it.
From the outside, Machu Picchu looks a little..drab, I suppose. The big, tacky sign had me a little skeptic. Don't let it fool you! The food is delicious!
We started off with papa rellena. My friend said it was different than the other ones she has had. Delicious, none the less!
For beverages, I had the passionfruit juice and she had the purple corn drink (blanking out on the name). Again, both were tasty.
My meal was one of the steak dishes: Fries topped with a steak topped with a fried egg, rice, and fried plaintains. Each item had a ton of flavor, including what looked like boring white rice! That was unexpectedly pleasant!
My friend had one of the tilapia dishes, which she says was fantastic as well.
All you could hear from our table was 'mmm. That tastes soo good! mmm..' Inappropiate? Maybe..
Either way, we both left with enough food for atleast one more meal. Plus we only had to pay $13 each after the gift certificate. I'll take 2 meals for $13!
Highly recommended. I'm sure I'll be back!
Went here a few years ago and was not that satisfied with the food. This time the service and ambiance was worlds better.
We ordered the civiche, which I liked but the GF was just ok with and Papa rellena - a deep fried potato mashed potato with beef concoction. I mean really... that just sounds like too much deliciousness. I think we also ordered the Arroz con Mariscos - Peruvian version of paella. This is a two month retroactive review so I can not remember exactly how the paella tasted, but I suppose you can take that as an indicator of how impressed I was with the dish.
Overall, very yummy and a nice experience! But be prepared to wait! Food comes out slow from the kitchen and servers are a bit slow - that's my biggest complaint. Very easy street parking, and cannot beat the free BYOB!
Atmosphere - it's very cozy inside, only about 20 tables in the whole place but they're spaced nicely. First time I went on a Wed night and they had live music. We sat 2 tables away from the band and were yelling across the table all night. For such a small place, they do not need microphones!
Service - I've been 2x in the past 3 weeks and had the same server both times. He was very nice and gave good recommendations and was patient with us. However, service here is s-l-o-w. I think it's a combination of the slow servers plus slow service from the kitchen. While the appetizers came out quickly, it took a long time for the entrees to come out. Also took a while for the server to take our dessert order, and finally bring us our check both times. Additionally, the last time i went they brought out 4 of 5 entrees, and told my friend they'd bring his steak out in 2 minutes as the cook as not their regular cook and was a bit slow. His steak comes out over 5 min later, and the steak is undercooked AND the mashed potatoes were ice cold. boo. But at least I had a good meal :)
Food - YUMMY. For the most part, everything was very good and very flavorful. They serve complimentary white crusty bread with this awesome spicy green sauce. It looks creamy and tastes like pureed peppers, cilantro and other spices. Super spicy, but very flavorful. Had the Papa Rellenas for an app, it's very big, but for $8 I expected more than 1 ball. It tasted decent, but was COLD in the center. I think the Papa Rellenas at Habana Libre are better.
Entrees - first night I had the Steak with the Fettucini in the basil pesto sauce. OMG sooo good. It's a HUGE portion for only $14! I only ate half and had a lovely lunch the next day. Steak is very thin, but very big. I wish I had tasted the pasta first, as the steak was so flavorful I had to heavily salt the pasta. Second time I had the Arroz con Mariscos, their version of paella. For $16 it's a helluva deal. It's a huge pyramid of rice and a TON of different seafood items. There were about 3 mussels on the shell, 1 clam, not too many scallops or shrimp, but a lot of calamari and peas and cilantro. Oh, and 1 crab leg on top! Very flavorful, didn't need salt. YUM. I still have leftovers in my fridge.
Dessert - Alfajores is awesome. It's 2 shortbread-like cookies with dulce du leche in the middle. YUM. Pass on the chocolate cake, it's just so-so and I've had much better choc cake out of a box mix.
Price - I used http://restaurant.com $25 off $35 purchase gift certificate each time I went, and went with 4 other people each time. The gift certificate helped a little bit, but would be a better deal with only 2-3 people. Oh, and they add an 18% gratuity if you use the gc. Fine by me since I usually tip 20%
Dinner #1 - 5 entrees and 5 desserts = $105 including 18% gratuity = $21 per person.
Dinner #2 - 3 appetizers, 5 entrees, and 1 extra side = $112 including gratuition = $22.50 per person
Wonderful value, everyone left STUFFED each night.
Had dinner - pretty good. Heaping portions. Comfortable, family-run atmosphere. I'd go back.
Totally agree with Colleen C.! This place puts Tango Sur to shame! BYOB with a $50 off coupon from http://www.restaurant.com is the perfect deal for people on a budget! Thank you yelp for suggesting this place - great call!
We brought Tim's dad and both of his sons (11 & 13) here on a weekend night. We didn't have reservations but they quickly accommodated us which I was grateful for (I suggest making reservations just in case). Even though it was busy, our wine was corked quickly and our appetizer order was taken without us having to wait. Dad's a calamari fan so he chose that while we got the mussels. The boys wanted the fried and stuffed mashed potatoes which was an excellent choice. I tasted all three appetizers and while the mussels were my favorite, everything was very good. (I'm not a huge fan of fried anything.)
Dad had tilapia and he was very happy with it. That means a lot coming from a fisherman who lives on a farm. Tim had the sirloin and he thought it was wonderful. He also agrees that this place is no comparison to Tango Sur. The boys had fettuccini and chicken fried steak. They're picky eaters but put a good dent in their meals. The portions are HUGE so we ended up bringing some of theirs home. No complains out of either of them. Per the waiters suggestion I had the filet mignon topped with a seafood combination sautéed in its own sauce & served with broiled potato and white rice. Excellent! And the potatoes were some of the best I've had. Great recommendation - thank you Mr. Waiter! We're not big dessert people but the boys wanted chocolate cake. Of course I had to take a bite! Yum!
From start to finish we had wonderful experience at Machu Picchu. If I remember correctly I believe the whole bill (including the tip but minus the $50 coupon) was about $100. Seriously, where else can you feed five people all that food, drink whatever you want and get excellent service for $100?! Wonderful establishment, food and service MP, keep up the good work! We'll see you again soon!
The food is outstanding! Went with a group of 4. Our wine was opened and put on ice immediately after is was set on the table.
Started with appetizers - Papa Rellena and Anticuchos Brochette (chicken). Couldn't get enough of the Papa Rellena and chicken Brochette.
Entrees - Had the Pollo Saltado, some had the Lomo Saltado and someone else had the Ceviche.
Desert - Had the Alfarol, some had chocolate cake or flan.
My friends who have never had peruvian food were delighted. The portions are huge and full of flavor, great price for what you're getting. The wait staff are attentive to your needs. I've since gone back and am looking forward to a third time.
A friend of mine and I had dinner here the other night and it was, overall, fantastic! We began with the Chicharron de Calamar. Far too much crunchy coating on it which detracted from the calamari itself, but thanks to the grilled red onions and this aji sauce that came with our bread, it made for a delicious combination (Machu Picchu - you should SERVE aji sauce with the calamari!). Our next appetizer was the Causa Rellena de Pollo which was absolutely to die for! No matter what you order from here, definitely have this as an item on your list! Scrumptious! Our third appetizer was the Sopa ala Criola which, although it was excellent, seeing the "fat cells" from the oil swirling around on top (olive oil, if I'm not mistaken) was a little odd.
For a main course, I ordered the lobster and shrimp dish (don't see it on their present menu and I can't recall the Peruvian name for it) which was absolutely delicious! My friend had the Lomo Fino Machu Picchu which is filet mignon and besides being cooked perfectly medium rare as requested, the flavor was outstanding and the potatoes and grilled veggies were excellent!
For dessert, we received the Alfajor which is this shortbread like large cookies with a fruit type filling in between them. I took one bite and said "No more"! Not just because I was stuffed, but it completely melted in your mouth and I would have wanted to order one just for myself!
HIGHLY recommend this restaurant to everyone! Ask to be seated in Patricio's section, though I have no clue what his worknights are there! He was a very attentive and informative server!
I will DEFINITELY be going back in the near future! I see they have delivery now...hmmm...not sure delivery is the way to go with this kind of food; I say it's gotta be eaten IN the restaurant!
We ordered the Papa Rellena, Ceviche Mixto, and Seco de Cordero.
Obligatory (copy&pasted) food descriptions, plus my own commentary:
Papa Rellena: "Deep fried mashed potato, stuffed with seasoned beef. Served on a bed of lettuce with Salsa Criolla (marinated onion salad)." Delicious! The fried coating around the potato was thin, and lightly crispy, just perfect, in that it didn't feel too unhealthy, yet it added just enough texture.
Seco de Cordero: "Lamb with cilantro, green peas and Aji Panca (sun-dried red chili) cooked with red wine. Served with white rice and beans."
The bf didn't enjoy this as much - he thought it was gamey. I've never been a huge fan of lamb, so this met my expectations. The beans were sooo good, and tasted somewhat like coffee, which sounds gross, but wasn't.
Ceviche Mixto: "Variety of seafood marinated in lime juice and Peruvian Rocoto chilies. Accompanied by lettuce, potatoes, sweet potatoes, finely sliced onions and corn."
This was what impressed me most. This ceviche was close to ceviche that I've had in Peru and Ecuador. It had that tart citrusy zest to it, but it wasn't overpowering (especially compared to the ceviche at Ay Ay Picante in Chicago). The seafood was also fresh.
Get a http://restaurant.com certificate for this place and save big! ($25 off of a $35 purchase!)
Most underrated BYOB on the North Side!
*Ignore the ugly sign. (seriously, it needs some work, but trust!)
*Don't waste your precious time at Tango Sur.
*Head West (of Clark), dear friends...STEAK awaits you.
*Obviously, BYOB.
Ummmm. And, the food is...delightfully unexpected. The ambience is pretty bare bones, but adequate. The service was A+, 5-star, fantastic, etc.
Food:
Chicken Brochettes-$8
Mixed Salad-$8
Seco (with Beef): $14
Filet (with veggies) and potato: $19
Wine: $0 (duh)
Dessert: $0 (NO ROOM at the inn, folks)
Even the freakin' bread basket was noteworthy. (hello, jalepeno mustard like spread, I love you).
Just go. And bring wine. Now.
Went here last night with a buddy and a http://restaurant.com certificate.
Service: Very attentive. There seems to be only one waiter (who is also the manager?) but he did his best to make sure we were attended to. There were lapses where we wouldn't see him for a bit, and there was a long period before being seated and being able to order but that didn't diminish from the experience. Also, one of the plates spilled some sauce on the table, and he gave us a free dessert!
Food: The food I ordered was delicious. We started with the "Papa a la Huancaina" which we agreed was both amazing, and completely dependent on the huacaina sauce. My friend described it as a sort of "spicy hollandaise" but I found it to be a bit more rich. Regardless, it's worth going there for that dish alone. That being said, the dish could have used more than one half boiled egg as the combination of egg and sauce was the best tasting portion of that experience. I ordered the filet, which was rather standard but as it's a filet I definitely enjoyed it. My friend, however, got the seafood combination...I think he was so-so about it (except for the crab) but as I don't' especially enjoy seafood I'm going to steer clear of any critique.
Ambiance: Better than expected. It had a sort of weird Latino house mix in the back that kind of reminded me of the Texas De Brazil song they loop in that place...very simple design but had an upscale feel.
Price: The prices were good considering the type of food you're getting. That being said, with the http://restaurant.com coupon I ended up splitting a delicious appetizer and getting a good sized filet with quality sides for $19 out the door. Yussssssssss!!!!!!
Oh right, BYOB. Do it...
Compared to Tango Sur (which shares both a similar location and offering) I would have to give Machu the edge on food, and Tango the edge on ambiance. Personally, I'll take food over environment any day...
4 stars.
My Peruvian cherry has been broken and I'm a better person for it.
With that tidbit out of the way, let me talk about the food. Oh goodness, the food.
We started with the gigantic mixed salad. When we asked the server if it was big enough for two to enjoy, he casually replied "ah, I suppose." Don't let his reaction fool you. The size of the salad could have easily pleased a table of four. It was a basic mixed salad with tomatoes, cucumber, onions, red peppers and what I'm guessing is an oil & vinegar dressing. The ingredients were very fresh.
Along with the salad we ordered chicken brochettes. It arrived on two skewers with a medium sized potato. The seasoning on the chicken was perfection.
I indulged in the filet with vegetables and seasoned potatoes. I could only polish off half of my steak and what I had of it was wonderful. It was tender, and again, seasoned to perfection. I had a bite of the potatoes and they are a bit spicy for my Northern European palate. They are probably great for someone else.
Our server was was fantastic. He was very helpful with our order. My dining companion at first wanted to order one of their tilapia dishes. He informed her it was prepared raw which gave her the opportunity to order something a bit more cooked.
I may have found my new favorite South American steak house.
Get there. Now.
We really wanted to love this place especially after reading all of the great reviews on yelp and getting such a great deal from http://restaurant.com (bought a $25 gift certificate for $1).
Although the food was good, it was nothing spectacular. I got the Lomo Fino al Pacifico which is a filet mignon stir fried in red and yellow bell peppers topped with calamari, shrimp and mussels. I love steak and seafood so getting the two in one dish was like a dream come true. However, I felt like I was eating chinese stir-fry dish topped with seafood drenched in gravy. My bf had the Aji de Gallina, similar to a chicken curry over rice (made with milk and cheese) which he thought was okay.
The passionfruit juice here was unbelievable. For $2 a glass ($6 for a pitcher - definitely should have gotten the pitcher!), you get a HUGE glass of juice. Definitely recommend trying it.
This place is a good deal if you have the http://restaurant.com certificate because the food is decent but otherwise I would try Las Tablas for south american steak.
A friend and I went here on a Thursday evening because I have been wanting to try this place for a long time and I had a http://restaurant.com coupon. Before I even sat down, I placed the alcohol on the table (it is BYOB) and the waiter immediately asked what we wanted to mix it with (I am not much of a wine gal, so we went with spirits). There was a really spciy sauce served with the bread that my friend loved (I am a spice wimp). We started out with the popa rellena (I picked out the meat and gave it to my friend because I don't eat beef) which was pretty good. Then we had the Yuca a la Huancaina. This was not so great, some of the pieces were undercooked and I thought the sauce was too bland. For our entree, we shared a special which was shrimp and lobster with rice in a garlic sauce which was so delicious it made us regret that we had given back the bread basket--we wanted to sop up every last drop of the gravy. We were so stuffed we could not finish the side of fried plaintains, but they were also very good.
I was very surprised the restaurant was so empty. I would definitely go back, there are a bunch more seafood dishes I want to try.
If you're looking for something different I'd definitely suggest this place. Food is wonderful (and unique!), service is great and prices are reasonable.
Try the Lomo Saltado or the Arroz con Pollo as both were delicious.
What a great place!!! The food was excellent. We had a party of 12 people and they were great in seating us and making sure that we were taking care of. Love it here.
This is a special occasion restaurant with prices so reasonable that we could eat there once a week! Most recently, we went to Machu Picchu to celebrate our anniversary. We brought two bottles of wine with us, and we ordered a dessert to split. Yet, our grand total was under $40 because the restaurant sent us a buy one/get one free coupon for our anniversary. (We're on their email list.) The food was beyond good. It was luscious! Our waiter offered to take photos for us, and he talked to us a while about life in Peru. The Peruvian music duo that performs on Wednesday nights were fantastic too! It was an absolutely perfect evening, and Machu Picchu is now in my top five restaurants in all of Chicago!
It had all the classic ingredients for the making of one hot mid-summer night. We were graciously served with adventuresome, highly-seasoned food, the absence of a corkage fee allowed for the delicious (over)indulgence of two fantastic bottles of red, and the quiet charm of my handsome dining companion easily drowned out the mediocre background music. Yes, you could say the stars lined up just so.
So I guess I'll always remember this night, I think maybe I fell in love... with the food, the restaurant, all of it.
We started with the Choclo con Queso-- Peruvian corn with fresh cheese and accompanied by Huancaina sauce. At first, I was a bit intimidated by the huge size of the kernels, and the dilemma of eating straight from the cob or to nudge off with a fork. The fork won, and so did my 10,000 taste buds. A palate pleaser for sure, and the texture is wildly fun!
Next up-- the Lomo Fino Machu Picchu for me and the Lomo Fino al Pacifico for him, both grilled perfectly to our requested medium. My Aji Panca-seasoned (sundried red chili) filet mignon was so good that I unintentionally gave my diced potatoes and steamed veggies the silent treatment. I had a taste of my friend's filet topped with a generous array of seafood and I admit, I was slightly green with envy: I had been out-ordered. Highly recommended!
We tried to skip dessert but the call of dense chocolate cake was just too overwhelming. A sweet punctuation of an end to an even sweeter evening.
Bring a http://restaurant.com gift certificate to further maximize the value. It's all here: fantastic yet unobtrusive service, a modest staff, colorful murals, BYO sans corkage fee and bold food. ¡Buen provecho!
I went on a Sunday night so the restaurant was pretty empty. I wish I knew ahead of time it was BYOB. That would've made the trip even better
I'm not sure how they make the heavenly green sauce at this restaurant but it's without a doubt one of the best sauces I've ever had. I think I must've asked the server for 4 or 5 refills on the sauce.
The paella was pretty good, but the chicken and potatoes dish was really interesting! A thick, hearty sauce that was delicious mixed with the rice!
I definitely want to go back, but this time I'll bring a bottle of wine!
DELICIOUS!! The steaks are shockingly good & cheap!!!
If it wasn't for http://restaurants.com and yelp I would have never gone to this place, and I would have missed out on a gem.
So this was the first time we've gone to Peruvian food, and it was delicious. The server was very nice and the person who filled our water very attentive. Started with the Ceviche de Pescado, the cold potatoes and corn were alright, I wasn't as interested in them when there was fantastic tasting tilapia to eat. The portion was HUGE, I was thinking it would be like Nacional 27 size ceviche, it definitely could have been an entree. It was heavy on the cilantro, which my husband didn't like, but I didn't mind. I would have eaten it all if we didn't have more food coming.
I had the Lomo Fino Machu Picchu my husband had the Aji de Gallina, both were delicious. The fillet was cooked perfectly, but I couldn't stop eating the potatoes that came with it. We decided that his chicken would be good reheated but if we didn't finish the fillet, that would have been a huge waste, so he split that with me and we wrapped most of what he had. If the leftovers taste half as good as they did in the restaurant I will be happy.
A relaxing and straight-forward approach to dining! I could not get enough of the Jalea Mixta, and the portion size was plentiful- more than enough for dinner and a take-home visit:)
The Choros a la Chalaca (mussels on the half shell) were divine!
Owners/management are on-site and overall service was just right. The B.Y.O.B. option works out quite well!
I came here with my girlfriend on a saturday night courtesy of a http://restaurant.com coupon. The server recommended an appetizer of mussels, which we enjoyed. I'm a big fan of the green sauce that is served with the bread.
The decor is nice, but not outstanding. Our waters were refilled regularly and we had no issues with the service.
On to the main course. I ordered Bistec a la Pobre (steak, white rice, fries, and plantains) and my girlfriend had a seafood medley (actual name escapes me) in white wine sauce. We were very satisfied with both. The portions were big, and even the rice was full of flavor.
This place is definitely worth a visit
Good: BYOB, helpful waitstaff to explain the menu, variety of dishes - the Pescado a lo Macho (fried tilapia) was outstanding! Great for groups and the restaurant called us to confirm our reservation, which is always nice.
Bad: decor leaves much to be desired, very dim lighting and the music at times bordered on techno club
The food makes me want to go back to try more, but the overall ambience isn't motivating me to want to return and bring friends
The food here is delicious!
I'd never tried Peruvian food before, so I didn't know what to expect. First I tried the Chicha Morada, which is a drink made from purple corn, cinnamon, and clove. It was delicious, and not at all what I expected from a corn drink.
I didn't know what to order, so the waiter helped me pick something. I settled on the Lomo Saltado. It's little slices of sirloin and veggies in sort sort of spices. Even the rice that comes with it was delicious. I'm not certain what my fiance ordered - it was some sort of chicken dish. His was great also.
I've seen other reviews mention poor service, but our service was great. The waiter was really helpful and refilled our water often. Granted, we were there on a slow night, so it might be different when it's busier.
I will definitely be trying this restaurant again and bringing friends.
BYOB, no corkage fee..that an automatic +1 star right there, especially with a liquor store just a couple blocks to the south. Also, the birthday girl brought in her own bottles of Pisco brandy in and they made us pitchers of Pisco Sour (a Peruvian eggnog/kamikaze hybrid, I'd call it).
Don't let the kitschy sign of the actual Machu Picchu turn you off to the place...the decor inside is simple. Nothing bright or stand-out, and it did kind of feel like a basement, but not too bad.
Having never had Peruvian food, I was a bit overwhelmed by the menu. Yelp recommended the seafood ceviche, yet nowhere on Yelp or the menu did it say that ceviche was a cold dish! I guess it was ignorance on my part, and my friends all seemed to know this fact, but I wasn't going to let temperature stop me from trying something new.
The ceviche turned out to be pretty good, though a little to citrus-y for my tastes. I wish they would've cut back a bit on the juice and let the seafood speak for itself, but maybe that's how it's supposed to be. Tried some of my friend's steak, but didn't notice anything distinctly Peruvian about it.
Like my previous review, I was just happy this place could accommodate a lot of us and we all had a good time. I could definitely consider coming back and exploring more of their cuisine.
Oh man, I don't know how much filet mignon they eat in Peru, but they sure know how to grill one. I had the Filet "Machu Picchu" style and it was spectacular, served with Machu Picchu potatoes and veggies. It's only $19, too, which ain't bad at all for filet.
They also bring out this green sauce with the bread that is amazing. We also tried the Ceviche Mixto, which was also delish and also a value. Huge mound of fresh seafood and delicious sauce for $14. Fried yucca--yumma!
With a http://restaurant.com certificate, this place is a total steal.
Super nice service, went there on Monday night, 15 min before they closed and they still treated us well even thought we were the only people there. Fried Tilapia was fantastic. It's lightly breaded and almost feels like it's pan-seared. So don't be afraid if you are counting calories. I liked the decor, it's simple and charming. Generous portions, dont forget to try their Peruvian soda, it's delish! And of course, bring your own booze!
So how many people drive by this place, think it is probably shady and have never gone in? I was one of those people until last Friday. So I went here with my girlfriend for dinner and we were thoroughly satisified. We started off with the seafood ceviche, and the portion that you get, you could probably get that and the free bread and walk out. The ceviche had great flavor and a huge amount of seafood. My girlfriend then got the paella which again was probably portioned for at least two people and I got the Vacio (basically a marinated flank steak, was on special) and we both thought our meals were outstanding. My steak was very flavorful and cooked just as I requested it. Our waiter was extremely friendly and the staff was very attentive to all our needs. Oh yeah and BYOB...we will be back for sure.
Went there on a Monday night. There was about four other tables in there. We sat, our waiter came over and opened the wine that we had brought. We got the ensalada mixta to start to split. Well thank god...it was HUGE! Plus, they brought out bread. The salad was really good. Then we ordered, I got the mixed seafood soup and by bf got the filet. The service was excellent. They were on us all of the time. The soup was HUGE and delicious. My bf said his filet was good, just undercooked on some parts...overall, it was a great little place to try. It was super cheap and the service was great. They also had a pretty good ambiance going on.
The arroz con mariscos had a novelty effect of being molded into a shape of an Incan pyramid. How cute. However, as a traveling yelper I thought it was more like an Incan ruin. Ok it didn't taste that bad, but I'm going to take my snapshot and move to the next tourist site.
My next destination was the aji de gallina recommended by my Machu Picchu guide. I have to say the first few bites of this shredded chicken was FUNKY, might be due to the aji pepper and cheese. But the more I tasted the more I liked. This funky chicken is in my good books.
The only complaint I have is that the server was friendly, but it took forever to get my check.
Very interesting. I find Machu Picchu very interesting. Prior to going to this restaurant, I had a very vague idea of what Peruvian food was. I love Latin foood and Latin flavors of all sorts and figured that Peruvian food would be just as good as any other Latin regional fare. I was right, though a bit thrown. Upon viewing the menu, I was a little confused as to why they had dishes with soy sauce, pesto sauce and a dish that was parenthatically named "Peruvian Chop Suey".
Inlight of my confusion, I ordered the breaded steak with pasta and pesto sauce. Wow! It was delicious! It was truly sinful: a chicken fried steak crisp to perfection served over an enourmous bed of basil and parsley pesto with a potato on the side. Fried meat and carbs...YUM!!!! For an appetizer, I split the stuffed fried mashed potato that was stuffed with beef, raisins, onions and other fun stuff with fresh pickled onions on top. I could easily become addicted to those things.
As for the service, it wasn't as good as the food. The restaurant is BYO, so we brought a bottle of wine. Our server did not bother to poor our glasses, didn't bring us a chilled bucket (it was Vidal) and never bothered to watch our glasses to see if needed refills. I know that Machu Picchu is not exacty fancy schmancy, but an initial poor would have been nice. Also, I'm not quite sure our server was all too keen on the English language, as I told him that I was allergic to dairy so he pointed to the vegetarian dish and said "no" to me asking if the chef could simply remove the cheese sprinkled on top of a few of the dishes. Oh well, food was still great.
Though, the food was pretty darn good, we were not quite interested in paying the extra fifteen bucks that they had thrown on our bill that we had noticed once we got home. Upon calling to double check, they did recognize their error and told us that they would just take the tip off the credit card. The tip was eight bucks. ???? Nice try, Pals...we made them take off the extra fifteen bucks.
Later on, to clear up my menu confusion, I Wikied Peruvian food and learned that there is much Chinese influence in Peru, and Italian as well. Now I know. One thing that I am not confused about is the great food. Though, the service was a little weird, to say the least, I'll be back for some of those yummy meat filled fried mashed potato bombs and I look forward to trying some of their fish dishes.
Visited this restaurant last night, once again, a great dinner. Very consistent.
For starters I had the "tiradito de pescado". Very good, but, for my taste, needed a little more spice. And some salt. I asked our waiter to bring some extra hot stuff. Of course, it had to be "rocoto" (the Peruvian hot pepper of preference). After having dined here a couple of times, I was expecting to be blown away by the tiradito, but wasn't. Oh well. What was really great was the tamal. Man was it good! Good thing my companion could not eat all of it! Yummie!
Our entrees were: arroz con pollo: very very tasty. A well done dish. A bit risottoish for my taste (in texture) but the flavor was just right. I had a pescado a lo macho, which is fried fish topped with seafood, onions, and a tasty sauce. It was good, but not great. Maybe fish is not their strength. Specially for dinner.
Had "flan" for dessert. Very very good....Service was very good. A busy night, but hardly waited for anything.
A very nice dinner at Machu Picchu again...
PS. Just had the arroz con pollo leftovers: delicious!
This was my second time here and having nailed it again, I had to write a review. Peruvian flavors… Read more »
I do not recommend this place, at all. There are many other BETTER peruvian places in the city.
Went here with a group of ten, and left 4.5 hours after we were seated. OMG, the service was sooooooo slow!
The food was nothing special. The tilapia ceviche had scales. The meat in my lomo saltado was really fatty and gross. The arroz con leche dessert was crunchy. Yuck!
Go to Ay Ay Picante, this place just doesn't cut it.
Wow. Great food and amazing mix of flavors. Never had Peruvian food before but have driven past this restaurant a few times. After reading reviews here and seeing that it was BYOB, my husband and I decided to give it try tonight (Sunday). We loved it!
Interesting decor and murals. Large table set-ups which are perfect for groups. They give you free bread (freshly toasted) and this green spicy dip (made with jalapenos) which was delicious.
Our waiter was very helpful and gave us suggestions on typical Peruvian appetizers and entrees. We ended up going with most of his suggestions and for appetizers ordered the corn with cheese dish and the papa rellena (mash potatotos stuffed with meat). Didn't care for the corn (not your typical corn-on-the-cob) but LOVED the papa rellena. Really interesting flavors. Then we shared the fried red snapper topped with garlic for our main course which was amazing. I've never really gotten the hang of cooking fish at home, so this was a treat. They seasoned the fish before frying it so the skin was crispy and full of spices.
For dessert, I couldn't decide so our waiter recommended a 1/2 and 1/2 of two of his favorite desserts -- the rice pudding and the one with purple corn. I wasn't sure about the purple corn since we didn't like his corn appetizer suggestion, but said okay. Well, we were pleasantly surprised! The purple corn was sweet and had a consistency similar to apple butter. The rice pudding was good too if you like rice pudding.
Will definitely be coming back and bringing friends along. I asked about the BYOB policy and he said that you can bring anything - wine, beer, and even liquor! He even suggested bringing a bottle of Peruvian liquor (can't remember the name but said you can find it at the liquor store on Devon & Clark) and said they'd mix it with sour mix for you. Sweet! I'm definitely sold on coming back.
We left there quite satisifed with our meal and not feeling over-stuffed. Great first experience to Peruvian food and can't wait to try the other dishes.
Thanks to my AWESOME http://restaurant.com discount, I was able to go out and have a lovely meal for a very reasonable price. Being a huge fan of Las Tablas and Tango Sur I was thinking I might find some similar items at this Peruvian steakhouse. I loved seeing that it was BYOB and has no corkage fee- BONUS!!
The place was nearly empty. And it's a big space. There are a couple of cool murals on the walls- large photos of mountains and girl with a lama. Very colorful. The ambiance could use a little kick though. It's just so sparse with tables packed into the room, covered in white table cloths. I was thinking how cool it would have been to have live music playing or something to add a little flavor.
Fortunately, the flavor came with the meal. Our server brought out a bread basket with a small silver dish containing what looked like mustard. I dipped my fork in it to taste it and soon realized it was not mustard. At all. Be prepared people! This yellow chili sauce has some KICK! Yowza. Don't get me wrong.... I love XXX hot flavors that make sweat beads form on my face as I am eating. It was a nice, chili-flavored dipping sauce I ended up putting on everything else that came our way.
Let me first focus on a phenomenon called "Choclo con Queso," which is Peruvian corn with fresh cheese, served with Huancaina sauce (a buttery sauce for corn). I say 'phenomenon' because this corn was unlike anything I have ever laid eyes on. Each kernel was the size of a small grape. We were joking that it was genetically engineered or from Willy Wonka or something in a bizarro type world. Truly, unreal. I guess it is simply corn from Peru. But it blew my mind. Be sure to order this appetizer when you go.
I shared a salad called Ensalada Mixta, which was tomatoes, cucumber and avocado. It was a very large potion and perfect for two to share. The tangy dressing was very refreshing and the large pieces of avocado were meaty and fresh.
The two entrees we had were the Tallarin Saltado con Camarone, which was sautéed fettuccini with shrimp, onions and tomatoes, cooked with soy sauce and the Lomo Fino Machu Picchu, Filet Mignon cooked on the grill, served with Machu Picchu diced potatoes, seasoned with Aji Panca (sun-dried red chili) and steamed vegetables. I substituted the potatoes for yucca fries. The shrimp fettuccini was WWAAAYYY to big for one person. As in, probably 3 lbs of food. I only tried the shrimp from that plate and it was great. The size of the whole thing was very overwhelming and felt a bit gluttonous. My filet was delightful for the most part. It was a tad unevenly cooked, being more pink on one side than the other. But it was a very nice cut of meat and seasoned well. The steamed veggies that it came with were my favorite part though. They were more grilled than steamed, with char marks on them. Whatever seasoning they used was magical and I could have eaten a whole plate of these tasty morsels (carrots, broccoli, peas, corn, onion, tomato).
I'd love to bring a large group here one night and try a bite of everyone's entrees to get a better idea of what else is on the menu. Some of the combinations were unfamiliar to me, including lots of egg, soy and olives in the dishes.
Our service was just right and I really liked all the food. The place, like I said, could use some spice. But that dipping sauce made up for it!!
Went here last Saturday, and it was great!
Had the fried yucca and friend plantains as appetizers, followed by a great chicken dish for dinner.
Very hearty, very filling.
The BYOB is a great plus too.
This makes a good date spot.
I don't know anything about Peruvian food but this was a good place to try it with the average entree price at about $14, byob, and good service (and we had a 20+ party)
Food was pretty good. We tried the papa rellena, which everyone on Yelp has raved about -NOT as awesome as everyone says. It was what it was: crusty mashed potatoes stuffed with beef. I prefer crispy tator tots.
My fiance and friends enjoyed their steak w/egg dinner (everyone I know gets excited about an egg on top of their meal haha!)
I ordered the fried whole snapper: cooked perfectly but I thought the garlic cream sauce was too thick. Even so, it was the best meal on the table (and the most expensive by a few dollars).
This place is really great! It is BYOB with no corkage fee, really nice servers, and great food. And it's a block away from our apartment.
Myself, my wife, and a friend went here, got full, got buzzed, and went home w/ leftovers for just under $40. Our server answered any questions we had (as we were not familiar w/Peruvian food) and was very attentive. Highly recommended!!!
This place is amazingly good! I went there today to celebrate my mother's birthday and I have to say I enjoyed every bite of my meal was delicious. I had the chicken soup (it was homemade). Fried plantains and I had the seasoned chicken with rice and fries. The price was pretty sweet too! For dessert I had the flan. Best flan next to my mom's! The staff was friendly and helpful. The decor made you feel like you were in Peru. I'm going back again. I highly suggest you go to this Peruvian gem and enjoy the great food.
I heard about MP through word of mouth, I think I caught a few reviews about it and then I was able to score a gift cert off http://www.restaurant.com. Stopped in on a lazy Sunday afternoon, this restaurant is far different than what I expected from what I'd heard. It is not one of those fast food type of places like, what you might find when going to the Mom and Pop churrascarias. It's not a churrascaria either. It's Peruvian fine dining. In the past I'd also heard some chatter about their food causing grumblings in peoples tummy's after having meals. I found all of their food to be flavorful and enticing. Note: if spicy foods give you the grumbles, ask for your food to be toned down. Some of the entrees and appetizers hit close to home and reminded me of Indian food. If you like one, you'd love the other (Indian / Peruvian), there are some similarities with some of their entrees. I had this lamb dish, chunks of lambs meat with a sauce which reminded me of lamb curry. Then this appetizer which was like a turnover, to me like a samosa, except the insides carried their own flavors so that you didn't need any sauce to accompany. MP makes their own hot sauce, I can't place my fingers on the flavors, it's like a green salsa, perhaps made with guacamole or some other vegetable. It's got one of those slow heat feelings, the flavor grows on you and the heat slowly but surely creeps up on you. Watch out. They serve theirs with lightly toasted buttered french bread, it was good, I could've sat and had that as a meal. You can take some home for the price of $6 for 12 oz or 32 oz for... can't remember. (12 ounces goes a long way, they give it in a Solo cup, make sure you transfer it to a container as soon as possible so it lasts longer. The solo cup bleeds after a few days) Servings are large enough to require takeout after. Cost is above average depending on your entree. Entrees are about $13-$19 and the more expensive dishes may be seafood. In case you have people not interested in trying Peruvian food, they have a standard steak or chicken and potatoes option.
The flan was awesome & fresh, it wasn't something that came prepackaged.
New Vegetarian Plate $8.99
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