Lackluster kitchen = uninspiring food
DESCRIPTION: They serve Peruvian beers which are similar to German beers although lighter and without the full flavor. The waiters are friendly enough, but the kitchen is unable to follow simple instructions. Maybe it's lack of awareness, but how difficult is it to produce a plate of fried fish without sodium? That fish came with a salted batter, salty canned mushrooms, and sliced, canned, salty olives. To top it all off, it was not hot but merely tepid! They have tea although it's Lipton which is fine if you like that. The alfajor dessert was singularly disappointing: it was two discs made of cookie dough about four inches in diameter and dusted with confectioner's sugar. Between those discs there's supposed to be some manjarblanco. There should be enough manjarblanco to make that "cookie sandwich" at least a half inch thick. How much manjarblanco did El Chalan's alfajores have? Not much. It was mostly all cookie and no manjarblanco. Maybe Sunday was not a good day to go, but I wont get a chance to find out because I'll never go back ever again.
DATE: 2003-05-07
FOODRATING : 2
SERVICERATING : 8
AMBIANCERATING : 4
OVERALLRATING : 2
RECOMMENDED DISHES : The tea was the best thing although it's not on the menu.

DESCRIPTION: My favorite plate is "Lomo Saltado". They have some other tasty and delicious plates. The best of this restaurant are the main courses, I never order dessert. Service might not be the best, but it is acceptable.
DATE: 2003-11-04
FOODRATING : 6
SERVICERATING : 6
AMBIANCERATING : 6
OVERALLRATING : 6
RECOMMENDED DISHES : Lomo Saltado and Anticuchos

Service at Peruvian restaurants
DESCRIPTION: Being pPeruvian and having eaten at many Peruvian restaurants over the years I know something about service at Peruvian restaurants. Very often the main courses come out staggered so some people in a table are eating while the others are waiting for their food. Even when I've told them to bring all the food out at once it still comes out this way. Oh well, Peruvian food rocks so I always go back.
DATE: 2004-01-04
OVERALLRATING : 6

Not-so bad dining
DESCRIPTION: The service was excellent, and that's as far as excellent goes. The wait was longer than necessary due to the lack of customers...the food wasnt bad but not genuine peruvian. Lomo saltado was great though..no complaints there.
DATE: 2005-07-06
FOODRATING : 6
SERVICERATING : 10
AMBIANCERATING : 8
OVERALLRATING : 6
RECOMMENDED DISHES : lomo saltado