Nazca Grill Peruvian Restaurant

**** Nazca Grill has closed

Lately, the Missus and I have been fondly recalling our trip to Peru. And while it's been less than two years since we've been there, we're starting to speak of our trip in that faraway tone..... Funny thing is, as much as we marvel at visiting the Sacred Valley and Machu Picchu, it is the moments we treasure like walking into a dirt floor shack and grabbing some Chicha de Jora, a frothy alcohol beverage made from maize. And yes, the the fermentation process is actually started by moistening the maize in the maker's mouth. And of course it was the food, from Cebiche at Pescados Captiales, a fantastic meal at Astrid y Gaston, to the meal that was the most memorable, sharing dinner of home made Cuy (guinea pig) with a warm and gracious family in Cusco. You could say we've developed quite a fondness for Peru. So of course we were thrilled when we saw the sign for Nazca Grill go up. And even more thrilled when I noticed that the place had opened.

  

Nazca Grill now occupies the spot that both Aji Seco and the attached Taco Shop stood. The interior has been freshened up a bit, and in the open kitchen(actually the jerry-rigged kitchen of Aji Seco) stands a rotisserie. This could only mean one thing..... Pollo a la Brasa! Peruvians love their rotisserie chicken. You can't walk a block in Lima without running into a Pollo a la Brasa shop.

 

And yes indeed, Pollo a la Brasa was featured on the menu, as were Peruvian standards that would make any Peruvian ex-pat's heart sing. Stuff like Papa a la Huacaina, and those "Chifa" (Peruvian Chinese dishes) like Chaufa, basically a fried rice dish, and Lomo Saltado, which is basically a beef stir fry, featuring the unique Peruvian touch by including Papas Fritas (basically french fries). What else would you expect from Peru, where potatoes originated .

  

Pollo a la Brasa sounded good, but I was in search of something to refresh and revive me from the heat. If this ain't Cebiche weather, I don't know what is! We started with the Ceviche de Pescado ($10.95):

 

The cancha (fried corn kernals) and choclo (peruvian corn) were perfect and spot on. We really would have preferred a proper Camote (sweet potato) prepared in the Peruvian way, or even some purple sweet potatoes. The fish looked, tasted, and had the mouth feel of what they call "Corvina" in Peru(white sea bass), and was prepared well, with just the right amount of "cooking" from the citrus. It was however, a bit weak in the flavor department, you could say that the "Leche de Tigre" ("Tiger's milk" - the marinade for the Cebiche) lacked claws. It was very bland, which made this much less satisfying than the version at Latin Chef.

The Missus ordered one of Her favorite dishes, Pescado a lo Macho ($10):

  

First off, I gotta say this place really makes some good rice. The fish was cooked well, but again this was a bit lacking in the flavor department. The Missus prefers a version with a bit more spice and tomato for a nice mildly spicy-tangy kick. It was good, but not great.

Not in the mood for anything hot, I excitedly ordered the Tiradito Nazca ($11.95). I've developed a love for this supposedly Japanese influenced Peruvian dish. Every version of Tiradito I've had has been different. So I've come to think that this dish is a great way of a Chef displaying his, or her individuality, rather than sticking to the basic rules of Cebiche. I've had some fantastic versions, and some versions that looked amazing, but were train-wrecks. But I've never been bored by a Tiradito....until now:

   

When the dish arrived, the first sentence out of the Missus's mouth was; "where's the rest of it"? This tasted like the Cebiche with a bit of equally bland "crema" on it. No zing, no personality...... I was excited seeing this on he menu, as on my last visit, I learned that Latin Chfe no longer makes Tiradito....bummer.

After dinner, driving home, the Missus texted Her Peruvian friend. When She inquired as to whether he had been to Nazca Grill, he replied "of course". The place had only been open a week! That Peruvian pipeline is mighty strong. When She asked what he thought about the food, he replied that we needed to try the Lomo Saltado and the Pollo a la Brasa. So of course I returned, but this time for take-out.

I started with the Causa Nazca ($4.50).

 

I often call Causa a "layered mashed potato cake". A layer of mashed potato is covered with a filling, the usual is a tuna-mayo filling, with another layer of mashed potatoes on the top. This was the chicken version, which was pretty good. The shredded chicken was not dressed with too much mayo, so you could still taste the chicken. And who doesn't love mashed potatoes...in cake form. It was topped with a Huacaina sauce, a mild cheese sauce, which added, but didn't subtract from the flavor. Potatoes in Peru have amazing flavor, so I didn't even try to add that to the equation. Looking at my photo, I guess you could always say that this is a mashed potato-chicken salad sandwich, with the mashed potato being the "bread". We enjoyed this.

And of course the Lomo Saltado ($10):

 

A few years ago, someone made fun of one of my photos of Lomo Saltado. Specifically, the papas fritas....to which I simply replied, "you've never had this before, have you?" 'Nuff said....

This version was good, the meat has a decent chew without being tough, but I thought the dish could have a bit more ooomph, perhaps a bit more tangy-sour flavor. The saltiness was perfect. Again, the rice was perfect.

And of course, I needed to get some Pollo a la Brasa. I ordered a Half Chicken ($11.95), which came with a green salad, papas fritas (of course), and some Aji Amarilla (yellow pepper sauce).

 

Now truth be told, this place doesn't hold a candle to the woodburning Pollo a la Brasa joints in LA, or even the Peruvian mega-chain Pardo's. And while the flavor is not quite up to the level of El Pollo Inka, it is still quite good. The meat is very moist, soft, but not mushy. The flavor is on the salty side, but in a good way. The Aji Amarilla is bland. The fries....well, who doesn't love french fries??? The salad is your basic iceberg lettuce mix.

 

I'd have that chicken again. Be it ever so humble, we've got Pollo A la Brasa in San Diego.

The Gentleman who runs this place is named Wilson, who is a very nice, gracious, and accommodating guy. The service is decent, in that casual Peruvian way, and the food gets to your table much faster than at Latin Chef. There are items such as Anticuchos (grilled beef heart) and Sudado, which I assume is Sudado de Pescado, a fish stew, on the menu. I hope they do well!

Nazca Grill
4310 Genesee Ave
San Diego, CA 92117

Hours: Mon-Fri 1130am-10pm
              Saturday 830am-10pm
              Closed Sunday

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Comments

[Mary Palmer]

Hi Kirk-
Follow you on Twitter and just rt'd your post. We love your referrals and have tried many of them. Keep 'em coming!
Mary & George (Taste Cheese Shop)

[Kirk]

Hi Mary - Thanks for reading, and commenting! I try not to over-twitter, but sometimes if I find a place interesting I will. I hope the places you've tried have worked out well for you. Thanks again for taking the time out to read.

[nhbilly]

Kirk, I miss Peruvian food - the classic lamb and chicken dish and oh the silky sauce on those potatoes to die for.

[MrM]

Some interesting dishes. I've not yet explored Peruvian Cuisine so I'll have to investigate.

I might not try this place, but one closer to my home.

In Chula Vista, one block south of where Hogetsu Bakery is, there's a place called El Dorado.

Yelpers have been scoring it pretty high and making comparisons with it and Latin Chef.

Just another idea for lunch for you and the Misses the next time you go on a Mochi run. ;-)

http://www.yelp.com/biz/el-dorado-chula-vista#hrid:HeaTR4k_PqUFgYU-SrlKig/src:search/query:latin%20chef

[Kirk]

Hi Billy - Oh man, that's too bad.

Hi MrM - Been to El Dorado:

http://mmm-yoso.typepad.com/mmmyoso/2006/01/el_dorado_mexic.html

I'm gonna check out their ceviche for a comparison in the near future.

[kat]

sounds like a keeper, hope they do well!

[caninecologne]

hi kirk - cool post- another peruvian place to try out!

[Kirk]

Hi Kat - I think we'll go back, but I think they are a bit uneven.

Hi CC - Yes, go ahead and check them out.

[IncaWarrior]

My mission in USA is to promote the real and delicious peruvian food. Also criticize when is not the real "peruvian flavor" or mix our food with mexican/american flavor.
El Dorado is not a real peruvian restaurant. I have a lot of complaints for the peruvian/mexican mix .. really sucks.

Now, I recommend a lot of people Aji Seco and sometimes Latin Chef.
Now I recommend NAZCA GRILL and I have a complaint here, please see below:

"Hi Fernando,

Here is my feedback, hope it helps them out.

Appetizer

We had the Ceviche Pescado which wasn’t too bad, Aji Seco made a better one.

We also had the Ceviche Tiradito which was good, but yours (Fernando) was definitely way better. My complaint for this dish is that it was really expensive for what we got. It was ~$11 for 6 slices of fish which was really disapponting. This is the same price you would pay for a really expensive sushi restaurant.

Entrees – All the portions were pretty small and not that filling. When I ate at Aji Seco I would always have some leftovers to take home. This is especially true for the noodle dishes…noodles are not that expensive…they need to put more in.

Lomo Saltado: The taste was there but not very flavorful. Aji Seco’s was better.

Rotisserie Chicken: This was really good but the portions were really small for the price.

Mixed Brocheta (potatoes, beef heart, peppers, chicken, shrimp) – This dish came with 2 skewers and each skewer had one ingredient each which wasn’t enough. The beef “hearts” tasted like regular beef flank, it didn’t have the same muscle texture as beef heart.

Tallarin? (Noodles with chicken) – This was ok, it tasted kind of bland.

We went on Saturday night and even though there were only 2 other tables the food came out really slow. My friend’s mixed broceta didn’t come out until the rest of us were almost done eating. Maybe it was a good thing that it wasn’t crowded that night, because everyone would have had to wait for a very long time.

Thank you,

Oi-Kay Ho "

***A Peruvian restaurant must have Peruvian chefs, not mexicans ***

Thank you Oi-Kay, I have to go to the restaurant and go back to you.

-Fernando Romero

[Kirk]

Hi Fernando - Thanks for posting.....you know, I'd like to know what you thought rather than doing a cut and paste of someone elses email. How about doing that in the future? Thanks!

[IncaWarrior]

You are welcome.
Not a problem. I'll do it.

Regards,
-Fernando

[Sergio]

I came to eat at Aji Seco, reluctantly, and found this new Nazca Grill restaurant, thank heaven!! This place is CLEAN, quick service, and the food was DELICIOUS. I came back the second day with a few more people. The owner, Wilson, is very pleasant and had things going quite quickly.
I saw some family having some type of "guiso", maybe it's an on demand dish. Lomo saltado, pollo a la brasa, tallarin saltado, papa a la huancaina, and ceviche were damn good. Aji Seco's food was never this good so I don't know what Fernando is referring to. This place actually has added a bit of class to this strip mall, and it does have yummy food! Too bad I don't live here. IMHO, the pollo a la brasa was just as good as Pardo's, I just came back from Lima and was disappointed with Pardo's chicken. They, NG, do need more aji selection though and the papa a la huancaina was a bit too small, but it's cheap! I live in Miami now, and I eat as much Peruvian food as I can, being Peruvian myself. I think this NG place's got something good going for it if they keep up the quality of service and food they currently have. Hope they do well.

"Aahh, barriga llena, corazón contento" ;-)

Sergy

[Kirk]

Hi Sergio - You really enjoyed the Cebiche that much? I thought it pretty weak. For me, the Pollo a la Brassa was not nearly as good as what I had in Lima. That's not to say it was bad, I did enjoy it, but have had much better.

[Sergio]

Hey Kirk,

Nice blog you got going here! Well, I did enjoy it. Maybe they've improved it a bit, mine was spicy and had the right balance of 'sourness'. But I've gotta come clean with you, I'm not much of a ceviche buff as I am for other dishes, like saltado. Come to think of it, it had been roughly 5 months w/o eating ceviche until now! is that a sin for a Peruvian? ;-) The tiradito did not look like the picture you posted here, it was ok, not great, IMHO.
If you go to Lima, visit Las Brujas de Cachiche in Miraflores, I love the food there but it ain't cheap, buffet is $30.00 a pop!!! ouch!

Sergy

[Kirk]

Hi Sergio - Thanks for the kind words. We'll definitely give Nazca Grill another try in a bit. Thanks for the rec as well..... you know, we ate at Astrid y Gaston for about $30 pp!!!!

[luis R]

I'll check it out and give you me feed back I'm peruvian fron trujillo!!!luis R.