El Mono Fresh Flavors Of Peru

El Mono is such a good Peruvian restaurant. Food and service is top notch.

My friend and I went there to celebrate my birthday. We came on on a Sunday, early evening, and the restaurant was just starting to fill up, but we were seated immediately. The ambiance is lovely, with decorations of Peru. We ordered the trio del Mar as an appetizer. It was so delicious. I am not a bug fan of squid, but it was tender and had so much flavor. For an entree, I ordered the Aji de Gallina and my friend ordered the Lomo soltado. We also ordered the Pescado ala Macha to share. All three dishes were fantastic and will definitely come back. We did nit get any dessert as we were stuffed. I love Peruvian food and it has been a feat to find a restaurant as good as this. I can only assume that the person who took our order was the owner. He was very kind and kept checking up ok us. Kid-friendliness: Good for families. Variety of foods Wheelchair accessibility: Ramp for wheelchair

Slow, inexperienced wait staff during busy Sunday rush. Usually, they manage, but today very bad. Try it during the week, not on the weekend. Where is the boss? No flow or control. We’ll come back, hoping today was an fluke. Wheelchair accessibility: Easy access

I paid $68.98 for lunch, including 20% tip. What I got was a ceviche that had good presentation, but did not seem as fresh as what I expected, considering I was there at noon. After ordering the ceviche and a chicha, I asked the server to give me the lunch special, which included a salad and a drink. The salad was a small vinaigrette that was 100% American. I expected a salad with at least some botija olives, but that's because I went with very high expectations for El Mono. For the main course, I got a 1/4 rotisserie chicken, which had the adequate spices, but was a bit on the overcooked side. At this point, the server brought me my check, even though I hadn't indicated that I was leaving. I reviewed the lunch special description and informed the server that I had been charged for the chicha. The answer I got was that the drink I ordered was larger than the drink that was included. So I asked the server to bring me the size of chicha I was being charged for, but not given, and to also include a lucuma ice cream. The lucuma ice cream was nice, because it was reminiscent of childhood memories, but it was not of the D'Onofrio quality I expected. Finally, after having been brought the chicha I paid for, I was given the check again. This time for the correct amount. As I wrote above, I gave a generous 20% tip, but what did I get for this? A surly server that showed little interest in hospitality, which is crucial for any ethnic food restaurant. Being rushed is something I do not appreciate, considering that the restaurant was not busy and I wasn't overstaying my welcome. Considering that El Mono is not in downtown Berkeley or downtown San Francisco, the price was high. I have eaten in these other two places in the same timeframe and the price per person did not approach $70 per person (for an alcohol-free meal). I can overlook poor service if the food is excellent, but if the food is only ok, then service becomes really important. It costs nothing to El Mono to have their servers be sincerely welcoming of diners.

Oh my God! I am in love with this restaurant! The food is really good.