El Loco Pollo, Charlotte

El Loco Pollo is a unique Peruvian restaurant located in a most unlikely place- a strip mall in east Charlotte. There is some method to that madness. The owners pay less rent there and, in turn, can get by with charging lower prices than they would as a stand-alone restaurant. The inside is decorated on one wall with Peruvian flags and crafts, Peruvian music plays on the loudspeakers, but on the other wall is a silhouette of the Charlotte skyline. The interesting thing is, at this last restaurant at which we ate, just like the first, our server was Asian in a Spanish-speaking restaurant.

Favorite Dish: For an appetiser, Mark and I both had the beef heart kebabs (marinated in wine, vinegar and spices and served with grilled potatoes). Mark had Cusqueña beer and I tried Inca Kola (interesting, but not very good). For entrees, I had chicken sauteed with onions, tomatoes, fresh cilantro and cumin served with rice and pinto beans. Mark had "pescado a la macho" (fish filet, shrimp, squid, mussels, diced with red pepper, tossed with creamy sauce and served with rice and yuca). The food was great, but they ran out of coffee in the middle of the supper rush.