Caleta 111 Cevicheria

PERÚ 🇵🇪

It is hard to imagine Caleta 111 in a couple months from now, after the predictable New York Times review comes out and this tiny corner space under the J train in Richmond Hill is bursting with humanity. Will the sea-blue walls be able to contain everyone hungry for some of the best ceviche in town?

The colorful walls are the new home of Chef Luis Caballero, who has previously cooked in Lima and most recently in Williamsburg at Llama Inn. He still wears his chef coat from Raymi, an upscale Peruvian restaurant in Midtown. No doubt he did excellent work at all of them, but he seems at home and completely at ease in his new Queens cevicheria, leading a small team in the execution of everything.

While small is definitely a theme that comes back again and again here, forego any open tables in the back and grab a seat at the bar. The kitchen is right in the front window, so all of the action is right here. But better yet, this is a guaranteed way to get involved, as Chef Caballero is a very talkative man and will make sure you are happy.

Despite having opened on the 21st of September last year, the restaurant still has that new car smell. Rhythms and moods are not established yet, they are still selling themselves to newcomers. Everyone is friendly, but by the end of the meal, the chef will have asked you about all your travels in Perú and any previous experiences with the food.

For now at least, the limited menu only focuses on the sea. There is no chifa food here, nor are there rotisserie chickens, but you will not miss either. Even the desserts which do have a spot on the menu have not quite arrived yet, although were promised soon. What is on the menu and what you will come here for first is ceviche, available in three individual ways (fish, shrimp, and seafood) and two mixes, one of which is customized by the patron if desired.

To get your taste buds kicking, a dish full of roasted Peruvian corn (above) will arrive before the main attractions. As you would in Perú, pair this with a glass of their house-made chicha morada ($4, not shown), by far the nicest in the city. This Andean-origin drink made from culli, or purple corn, is just the right amount of sweet while full of the tastes of fruit, cinnamon, and cloves.

For the standards of New York City, a place where you usually must spend ungodly amounts of money for seafood that does not seem old or from a freezer, this ceviche de corvina ($21, above) is damn near perfect. The thick chunks of of corvina, a fish found in the Pacific waters of Central and South America and beloved for ceviche, are "cooked" just right. Not too little, not too much. You could almost tell before putting it in your mouth how good it was going to be.

Chef Caballero's special sauce blend is sometimes served in shot glasses on the side, more as presentation than anything because the liquid would travel to other parts of the plate, but this ends up being a great way to eat. Some bites can be dipped for more lime tartness, some can remain more basic. Paired with pieces of a lovely sweet potato, crispy plantain chips, and big pieces of hominy, it is hard to go wrong. Even the seaweed garnish is from Perú, and delicious.

There is an option to pair your ceviche with either one of three seafood causas, a dish prepared with what becomes something of sculpted mashed potatoes, or arroz con mariscos ($21, above), which can in a pinch be compared to a seafood paella. Even the big, meaty clams are as fresh as ever, again requiring a re-grounding when remembering you are eating this in New York City.

Besides the rice, clams, mussels, octopus, and shrimp, the entire bowl is spiced throughout with ají panca, a deep reddish-brown pepper beloved in Perú. This mild punch is balanced with a bit of Peruvian beer as well, but the rice is still much less "wet" than most paellas.

The prices listed above are for individual orders of each dish, but the combos are a flat $35.

Chef Luis Caballero in his comfort zone.

As you can see with the logo, netting, a ship wheel, and serving dishes shaped like whales, the point here is to remain safely away from dry land. The maritime theme is duplicated on almost everything. Despite the J train rumbling overhead, when summer comes, the front of the shop is open to the street, and warm humid air makes it way to your table, life might seem like it is headed in the right direction.

Don't despair if you have found yourself seated at the back with those "premium" seats at the bar full. When the chef has a moment to spare between orders, he quickly makes his way back to hear from his customers, whether they be friends or strangers.

🇵🇪🇵🇪🇵🇪
RICHMOND HILL Queens

111-27 Jamaica Avenue

I COULD USE YOUR HELP

Eat the World NYC is and always has been free. No advertisements block the content or pop over what you read. If this website has helped you explore your city and its wonderful cultures a little better and you have the means to contribute, please consider doing so. Eat the World NYC is a labor of love, but also takes a lot of money and time everyday to keep running.

You can Venmo me @JAREDCOHEE or click here to send PayPal donation, no account is necessary. Thank you!

La Cabaña Peruana

PERÚ 🇵🇪

Most outsiders who come on day trips to the beaches of the Rockaways do not have much sense of the demographics or lay of the land in various neighborhoods, but there is plenty to explore north of the boardwalk. There are pockets of urban New York City from Belle Harbor to Far Rockaway, where besides the salt in the air you would never know a beach was nearby.

The pocket of commercial businesses in the neighborhood called Rockaway Beach is one of the largest west of Far Rockaway, stretching from Beach 86th Street down to Beach 102nd and encompassing one of the major vehicular entry points from Cross Bay Blvd. Beloved Dominican restaurants like Brisas Del Mar are found in this area, as well as this Peruvian favorite. Most beachgoers from other parts of the city stick to their own coolers and some of the expensive hipster-leaning summer stalls, but better food is on these urban streets where Rockaway residents eat.

One afternoon's "fresh catch"

La Cabaña Peruana advertises itself as a pollos a la brasa restaurant, and on any given day you are likely to find most if not every booth lining the bright orange walls full of folks tearing into this rotisserie chicken with glee. The rest of the menu spans the usual back and forth between chifa, or Peruvian-inspired Chinese, and plenty of seafood dishes.

Various forms of chicken, ready to be eaten by hand, work well around the world for beach food, but the mood on this particular day was for some of this seafood on offer.

It is always a bit of a risk in New York City and along the east coast to order shrimp dishes, but the big, high grade juicy shrimp used here in the ceviche de camarones ($16, above) warranted the relatively high price for a modestly sized dish. These are worth it by leaps and bounds, as is the slightly spicy marinade.

The pickled onions that are an instrumental part of this mix also come in a side dish to add more if necessary. It is served with a couple sweet potatoes and a good portion of hominy which has also been soaked in the same sauces.

The pickled onions and tomatoes also go well on top of the jalea personal ($18, above and below), the ultimate Peruvian bar food that does well to make your beach blanket heaven. Coming in two sizes, the "personal" is the small but was massive enough to fill two plates when transferred from its to go container.

The offerings in this dish included shrimp, squid, meaty hunks of whitefish, one large clam, and some strips of yuca, all fried. It should be stated that the batter here could win awards for not only being light and airy but delicious enough that nothing extra is requisite. But two containers of the yellow pepper wondersauce Peruvians call aji amarillo is included in the bag and should not be skipped for a real kick in the teeth. The onion, tomato, and cilantro topping also adds just the right amount of tartness to balance all the necessary flavors.

This is a dish that is always taken seriously by Peruvians, and the love from this small kitchen on a stretch of Rockaway Beach Blvd. is no different. Sitting here in the sun enjoying the last scraps until almost popping, it was tough to imagine how the chicken at La Cabaña seemed to be even more beloved than this by those customers dining inside.

For a next visit, both might be in order. When you have this little secret of Rockaway dining next time you come for a daytrip, you can snicker at all the folks eating overpriced burgers, burritos, and arepas.

🇵🇪🇵🇪🇵🇪

ROCKAWAY BEACH Queens
91-17 Rockaway Beach Blvd

Map of Eat the World NYC:

El Sabor de Mi Barrio

PERU 🇵🇪

The working class neighborhood of Paterson, New Jersey just northwest of the Great Falls is the best place to stroll around and get a sense of what inspired the recent film by Jim Jarmusch named for the city. While the bustling downtown and more Middle Eastern neighborhood south of I-80 see more outsiders, it is this area that truly represents Paterson old and new, giving a sense of what has been but also sticking to its nature of being an incredibly diverse place. Peruvian and Bangladeshi share the street with small Dominican, Chinese, and pizza spots that look like old standbys.

If you came to Paterson to read William Carlos Williams' famous epic poem of the same name, of course read a little bit near the Great Falls, but enjoy most of it here on Union Avenue and up the Passaic River following the light and heavy industry that the falls have always powered.

A spot at the bar of El Sabor de Mi Barrio might also be a good place, at one of Union Avenue's most popular Peruvian restaurants. As with a lot of places in New Jersey, this establishment has had a nightmare with the state's liquor laws and does not have alcohol, but it is comfortable and open early for breakfast. Three TVs make me think that Peru's first time in the World Cup since the 80's coming up this summer will be thoroughly enjoyed here.

The menu here is overwhelming to say the least, meat and fish options both feature full pages in small type. Entrees are in the $12-15 range, but gigantic and at least two meals apiece. This makes sharing a little more difficult, but order a bunch and expect leftovers. Everyone in our lunch group of three each had a takeaway meal ready for dinner.

To start things out, we ordered one Peruvian tamal ($5, below), a large yellow corn creation wrapped and steamed in a banana leaf. Also available in chicken, this order was pork, juicy pieces of the meat that must have tenderized for hours.

I usually cannot eat a Peruvian meal without something smothered in huancaina sauce, the creamy sauce made from cheese, milk, and aji amarillo, the ubiquitous yellow peppers of Peruvian cuisine. Instead of potatoes, we chose yuca a la huancaina ($7, below), fried sticks kept separate from sauce. Dipping or dousing is up to the customer. If anything on the table could have been chosen at a bit of a disappointment, it was unfortunately this dish.

Despite its name, the lomo saltado ($14, below) is free from extreme saltiness and relies on all of its other ingredients to create a complex savoriness. The stir-fried pieces of beef, onions, and tomatoes are thrown over a bed of fries and served with rice.

We had another chance to try aji amarillo in the very nice aji de gallina ($13, below). This kind of pepper has been used in cooking in this region since ancient times, and adds the bulk of the heat for any Peruvian cuisine nowadays. This particular dish was only slightly spicy, but again had layers of subtle flavors.

The standout of the meal was the massive plate called El Clásico ($22, below), a combination of a jalea and ceviche. Jalea is a type of typical Peruvian drinking food made up of many types of fried seafoods. This plate had thick cuts of white fish, calamari, shrimp, and crab.

We asked for the ceviche spicy, and it came through slightly in this regard, but thoroughly in that it was delicious. One of the best to be found in the area, the combination plate was massively satisfying.

For future reference, you can bring in your own beers. Paired with this beauty and a World Cup match, life would not get much better.

🇵🇪 🇵🇪 🇵🇪

PATERSON New Jersey

360 Union Avenue

Los Nisperos Seafood

PERÚ 🇵🇪

Besides possibly a branch or two of the ubiquitous Pio Pio chain, Los Nisperos might be the only outpost for Peruvian food in the Bronx. (That is almost certainly false, but hey I only have 7 days per week). Stopping by recently, we were happy to report that the food is actually quite good, so uptown and Bronx patrons do not have to head out to neighborhoods in Queens or Paterson, NJ for their fixes anymore.

The absolute best way to start your meal is with a cup of delicious chicha morada (below), the distinctly Peruvian sweet drink made with purple corn. This drink traces its heritage back to pre-Columbian times and is spiced with cloves and cinnamon after the corn has been boiled with pineapples. Wildly popular now, it is available throughout the country and luckily for us in any Peruvian restaurant here in NYC.

Another feature of most Peruvian restaurants in the area, although not as much in Paterson, is having dual focuses for the menu. Peruvian-style Chinese (called chifa) is just as popular as some of the traditional foods, and has blended itself into many dishes rather seamlessly. Los Nisperos offers chifa as well, and a plate of lomo salteado (below) is probably the #1 seller.

Served on a bed of fried potatoes, the juices soak into both them and the accompanying rice. The beef is not quite as flavorful as normal, and might signal that the restaurant tends to concentrate their energies more on traditional foods and seafood as the name suggests.

This meal did not call for seafood though, with a plate of anticuchos and papa a la huancaina (below) winning out. The marinade of this beef heart was miles better than the lomo.

Traditionally you find skewers of anticuchos on the street in Peru, groups of vendors will cluster together in parks selling this most-cherished of foods, plumes of smoke sending signals to hungry folks nearby. A typical night out might include a skewer of this and another of fried donuts called picarones. Unfortunately Los Nisperos does not offer the latter, but their huancaina sauce more than makes up for it. That sweet tooth will need to be satisfied elsewhere.

Right on busy East 149th Street, this restaurant is also a calm reprieve from the bustle. The friendly staff and Peruvian beer make it even more enjoyable in case you have a little bit of time to spare in Mott Haven.

🇵🇪 🇵🇪 🇵🇪

MOTT HAVEN Bronx

500 East 149th Street

La Brasa Peruana

PERÚ 🇵🇪

When walking the streets of Lima, a resident or traveler is more likely to find a branch of the many different chains of pollo a la brasa before finding a McDonald's or Pizza Hut. Despite its relatively recent history, the rotisserie-style chicken dish is one of the most popular foods in Perú. These chains, and some upscale versions, serve a whole menu beyond the chicken with options from traditional Peruvian and chifa (Peruvian Chinese) cuisines. Often times in Lima these restaurants are bursting at the seams during dinner, with families occupying large tables and enjoying quality economical meals that satisfy everyone from baby to abuela.

While New York City also has many of these and many Peruvian people to enjoy them, they are a bit scaled back but usually just as delicious. The menus focus on the greatest hits of Peru and chifa, but do them all pretty well. One of such places is Sunset Park's La Brasa Peruana, which actually opened on Roosevelt Avenue in Queens in 1973 but later moved here.

The spinning pollos are front and center when you walk into the establishment, which is otherwise decorated with styles similar to fast food chains. If you happen to come right at lunchtime opening, a few have already been cooking and are ready to eat.

Pollo a la brasa is great with extras, so try the half chicken combo ($8.29, above), which gives you dark and light pieces of the bird with your choice of fried rice, rice and beans, fries, or potato. The chifa-style pork fried rice (above) is a great pick for this combo, giving diners the chance to eat a typical Limeño meal with all the fusion that this entails.

Peruvians will tell you that their aji (below) is very spicy, but for heat lovers, it is pretty medium. The tastes inside are complex and superb though, and it can be added to just about everything served, from chicken to fries.

Chifas in Peru also made lomo saltado popular, and the dish is now considered part of traditional Peruvian cuisine. The lomo saltado combo ($9.95, below) comes with red beans, while for $1 less you can have it just with rice. This dish can be wimpy elsewhere depending on the cuts of meat, but the strips of beef here are quite tasty. Tomatoes, onions, and fries are cooked in the gravy which makes sauce unnecessary.

Sauteed hot dogs and fries make another simple "Peruvian" classic: the salchipapas ($5.95, below). This is a great snack for eating while drinking beers during a match, but unfortunately there is no alcohol (or football) in this location. They bring ketchup and mayonnaise to the table, but this is also a great opportunity to use the aji.

Another version of chicken worth trying is the chicharrón de pollo ($8.95, below), which is miles tastier than the US fast food cousins known as chicken nuggets. These chunks have been carefully seasoned and can also be enjoyed with squirts of lime and aji.

It might not seem immediately apparent, but the barbecue ribs are also worth checking out here. A plate of three ribs ($5.79, below) is enough to get quite a large portion of protein, objects are larger than they appear. With or without sauce, the chifa-style ribs are full of flavor and texture.

For those with a sweet tooth, try the bottle of chicha morada ($2.50, below), a very sweet drink made with purple corn and popular before Perú was colonized. The bottled version is unexciting, but if you ever see a woman on the street here or in Perú stirring a big cauldron of purple drink, definitely try a cup.

SUNSET PARK Brooklyn

4618 5th Avenue

The Lomo Truck

PERU

Lima, Perú is now home to some world class restaurants and is know as the dining destination in South America. My visit to the country was a little less posh though, and most of the deliciousness remembered came from the street. Anticuchos and picarones filled my evenings with magic, as I made good friends and was taken to the best spots.

These memories made hearing about the Lomo Truck so exciting, hearty Peruvian cooking straight into the styrofoam container on the streets of Paterson, NJ. Finding the location is quite easy, despite the residential address given. Their truck is painted completely with a Peruvian flag on the side that faces the street, with imagery from the famous Nazca lines as well. From the sidewalk where you order, there is a table and some chairs. Most people come and grab take away, workers from Main Street in Paterson and beyond.

On the first visit, an order of lomo saltado ($10, below) is inevitable. One of Peru's most popular dishes, lomo actually derived from Peruvian Chinese food, known as chifa. Today it is cooked in almost every household, with each chef having their own secret recipe.

In any recipe, the beef must be good, but the real secret ingredient? Fries, mixed right in. This order comes with a healthy portion of white rice and not much juice. We devoured it with pleasure. Served on the side, and barely visible at the bottom of the above photo is the green aji salsa which allows for some serious heat to be trotted out. Proceed with caution.

Possibly the only disappointment of the meal was the huancaina sauce, usually a favorite. The papa a la huancaina ($4, below) was just a bit unmemorable, so we spiced it up with the aji.

The empanadas are both worth ordering, $1.50 for beef (above, left), and $2 for aji de gallina (above, right). The beef is the most typical type you might find in Perú, shown below with a bite taken. The spicing is nice, and the dough well-fried.

More peculiar, at least to me, was the splendid aji de gallina version, shown below. Usually this mildly spicy chicken stew dish is found served next to rice, this is the first time I have seen it inside of an empanada. Searching online shows that this is more common than I knew though, and kind of fantastic.

Both empanadas take the aji salsa perfectly as well if that is your thing. Further down the handwritten menu if you have extra stomachs with you is a variety of dishes, including more Chinese-influenced dishes like chaufa, a Peruvian fried rice. To make lunch easier for patrons eating on the go, they put ingredients into sandwiches and wraps that you normally would not see but make perfect sense.

With friendly service and obvious regulars, the truck is already a fixture on the street and in the neighborhood. Paterson is known for great Peruvian food north of Interstate 80 and downtown, but this truck expands the range south. It is hard not to pick one of Paterson's excellent Middle Eastern restaurants when in this area, but this truck is definitely making decisions harder.

PATERSON New Jersey

270 Getty Avenue

[CLOSED] Pico Rico

PERÚ 🇵🇪

[UPDATE: CLOSED]

From the very beginning, Pico Rico seemed like a drinking establishment. Their menu is quite lengthy, and they advertise only food out front, but the interior space, alcohol lists including pisco and beers from Perú, and the existence of what is almost a bar in the rear make the place feel like the type of joint you meet your rowdy friends at and enjoy a game or party all night until they kick you out.

So it can be slightly forgiven that the food here is not the most excellent Peruvian food in the city or even the neighborhood, but the place makes up for it in charm and decent drinking snacks.

Usually a staple of Peruvian home cooking, the papa a la huancaina ($6, below), is offered here but does not even pack the punch of its description on the menu. The sauce is not as thick or flavorful as usual and seems very light, as if it is missing at least one ingredient. The potatoes are nicely (and unusually) fried and of course do their job soaking up alcohol, so by a few rounds this might be a tastier option.

The ceviche de camarones ($15, below) is very solid and appetizing, coming covered with goodies that all go in to a good mix. Plenty of lime has been used, the sharpness of the acid clear in every bite.

The highlight of this drinking party would definitely have been the jalea ($14, below, small order), a heaping plate of fried foods that are of course the perfect accompaniment to vast quantities of alcohol. I do not think there was an exception in the restaurant of each occupied table having one, sometimes the $23 large version. Included under the vegetables are all types of seafood, cassava, and corn kernels, all fried. This dish also has a fresh douse of fresh lime.

Two green salsas are on each table, and we all preferred the darker one which in large quantities will make you cry. Dipping all the fried shrimp and calamari into these creates a perfect bite.

Most disappointing might have been al ajillo de camarones ($15, below), which just seems too starchy and sweet, out of a box even.  A proper garlic sauce makes the dish of course, so we would probably pass on any further versions of this on future visits.

The bistec encebollado ($10, below) is also a bit disappointing and tough, but the sautéed red onions that cover the thin steak are delicious and almost worth ordering on their own.

Our meal ended on a very positive note though, with the enjoyable alfajores ($1.50) that they have for dessert. Even though we were past the point of stuffed, not a crumb was left.

🇵🇪🇵🇪🇵🇪
CORONA Queens

103-12 Northern Boulevard