Inka Trails — Restaurant in Claremont

Walking into this place it was immaculate, clean everywhere almost too clean! But not judging I get it we’re in a Pandemic and 6 ft apart is important. I’ll start by saying that they conveniently have a hand sanitizer next to the cc machine for signing and I frankly appreciated that.

Needless to say, I was asked if I wanted to leave a tip after stating I would eat there, but what’s ironic is that there is no restaurant silverware, instead everything is disposable, so did I need to leave a tip? No, but I felt forced to, so I did. Nothing big just a few bucks.

I ordered the Lomo Saltado, I figured it was a safe request considering I’ve had it at tons of restaurants and it’s typically pretty straight forward and kinda of a staple of what people know Peruvian restaurants offer and of course tallarin verde. Anyway, the lady asked me what I wanted to drink, she had a 4-6 bottles up front to choose from, inka cola was the only traditional thing they offered, I was sad to see that they did not have their traditional Marakuya drink (passion fruit refreshing drink). So obviously-1 star as it’s a must I believe. It was passed 12pm so it wasn't like it wasn’t ready, they just didn’t carry it.

Next I went to find a table to sit at, it was pretty empty I should have known that wasn’t a good sign :/, well it hadn’t even been 5 minutes and my food was already ready!? I was like, wow! That’s almost too fast, yummy steak like lomo saltado takes time. Unless....it’s been brewing in some stew juice, drum roll....it was. The meat was tender but it almost looked like stew meat vs lomo saltado, and let me tell ya, I’m a prime rib girl and Tri tip and filet mignon and Kobe meat I do them all so I know my cuts. This looked like stew meat, not even flap meat or maybe I guess when you stew things they have a tendency to look all the same. It was disappointing, to say the least. But it gets worse, the fries were not crispy as they should be, they where soggy and that was just as bad. - Another star sadly. I promise I was hoping for the best :(

The waitress/hostess brought me a small container with some green sauce, sadly it wasn’t what I was expecting but before tasting it thinking it was as delicious as every other place I’ve eaten. I politely ask her, “if it’s not too much trouble could I have another sauce”? She had me say it a couple of times before responding “why would you need another one”?! I have to tell you I was taken back by her response as I just paid $18 for a mediocre meal and a little extra sauce would help. So I went on to say, “excuse me?” Because typically I put extra on my rice?” She then proceeded to say, “omg your expression is priceless I was just kidding”! Um....we just met lady, I wasn’t aware we where on a joking friends basis, but okay?! Totally unprofessional and just kinda uncomfortable ya know? - One star it was weird...

I’m disappointed because I love Peruvian and I’ll pay whatever as long as its amazing, and this place just didn’t do it for me. I feel like 2 stars is fair considering it’s near me Claremont, but I wonder if you’re not familiar with Latin/Hispanic cousin if maybe they’re just taking advantage of the fact that it’s Claremont and people just don’t know any better...

If I can offer any constructive criticism is that they stop being lazy and cutting corners with beef stew dishes and go back to made to order Peruvian dishes even if it takes longer and charge the $22 per plate but make it amazing! Fries should be crispy and green sauce should be spicy, erby and or creamy. Please do better guys I know you can, I'm...

We have passed this restaurant for years and finally decided to check it out. Its located at the northeast corner of Foothill Bl and Towne Av in Claremont.

Parking is a bit unusual. Directly west of the building is a rather slim one-way road that leads around the side, then the back, and then the east side of the building. You essentially end up between the Inka Trails building and the west side of Eddie's Pizzeria.

On our visit, there was only two cars in the parking area. Not sure if those were workers vehicles or customers. Generally, if there's not a reasonable amount of traffic, we will usually move on. Being that it was our anniversary, we decided to check it out anyway.

Once inside, the place was nearly empty with one customer leaving. It's very welcoming with nice pictures, uplifting wall colors, and paintings on the wall. The hostess/waitress was very pleasant and seated us right away.

We tried a few dishes (along with food to go), and it came out rather quick.

We ordered the saltado de pollo dish with chicken, rice, french fries, and a rather light sauce. Presentation was awesome. It was filling, unfortunately, my wife and I could both taste the soy sauce in the sauce. There wasn't much flavor or spices otherwise. They were rather light on the chicken as well. I'd estimate only 4-5 small pieces of chicken.

To go, we ordered the tallarin salgado pollo. It was also filling but short on flavor, short on the chicken quantity, and overall, rather bland. On the positive side, the dishes themselves were affordable with most dishes not over $15.

We ordered a particular flowered drink, and after we both finished it, the waitress didn't offer refills or ask us if we wanted water. In other words, despite us being the only patrons inside, we weren't "catered to" as much as we were use to. Despite this, we still left a 30% tip. Service could definitely be improved with more attention to the customers needs. As previously stated, the waitress was pleasant, it's just that her waitressing skills could be improved for a better overall experience.

I'd rate the food 3.5 and the service a 3.5 star experience.

On this particular day, we were actually looking for Cuban food, but found out our usual spot in Rancho Cucamonga had gone out of businesses. With it raining and limited options, we ended up at Inka Trails.

I really wanted to like Inka Trails. We may visit again, however, after trying several dishes, nothing was particularly flavorful or impressive. With no refills and lack of service in a practically empty restaurant was also an issue...

Coming from a person who ate her a lot AND worked here at one point. They do NOT pre make food and have it sitting there. EVERYTHING you order is made on the spot, never sits under a light. Most of the items like sauces and the Chicha Morada they serve are made in house from scratch. so yeah, they aren't going to taste like they would somewhere else. I'm a very.. routine eater, always eating the same items. I had the Lomo Saltado on my first visit back because it was the first dish I ever had. I wasn't disappointed, it tasted like normal to me. I want to.. correct? something I've seen on a couple of posts. Their fries have always been soft, never crispy. I've had the same dish at Kikiryki now closed I think and Incas Peruvian Grill in Upland and have all served them like this. If you don't like something about you're food they are more than willing to fix

The restaurant is recently open and they are remodeling, so it isn't in the greatest shape visually. If you are someone who is going to judge on appearance, wait to visit when they are done remodeling so it can at least be a fair review. When I went they weren't using silver wear, not a big deal seeing as we are in a pandemic and most people probably feel safer using a disposable items right now anyways.

I can't say much on the customer service since I worked there and they know me. What I can say is, the owner prides herself in making sure everyone is treated like they are a regular and making sure her employees do the same. She is a very hands-on owner, you'll see her there for at least a couple of hours during the week. On weekends she is there most of the day. You'll see her serving, cleaning and even washing dishes sometimes... just don't tell her I...