Rosty Peruvian Food — Restaurant in Los Angeles

"If I am an advocate for anything, it is to move. As far as you can, as much as you can. Across the ocean, or simply across the river. Walk in someone else's shoes or at least eat their food. It's a plus for everybody." - Anthony Bourdain

I feel like I did that tonight :)

Been eagerly awaiting my first meal here for weeks now and Rosty did not disappoint. My husband and I love Peruvian food so much we knew we had to hop over to Highland Park and try it out. If you're familiar with HP, you already know parking can be a bit tricky. There's meters and side streets to choose from but you may have to circle a bit before you find a spot. The restaurant itself is beautiful....brick wall with geometric mirrors, a large open kitchen concept, wooden barrels, iron work, and my personal favorite, a fountain in the back with a sign above which reads, "family and friends gather here."

And you know what, we were truly treated like family. All the waiters were incredibly attentive and kind...especially Giovanni. He must be the manager or owner, but he spent so much time talking with us about their food, and cooking process...he stressed how important it is for their ingredients and flavors to be fresh and how, yes, sometimes it does take a little longer to prepare because they make everything to order. He even talked to us about his daughter and made sure that we walked out of there with happy, full stomachs.

Which leads me to the food....simple, authentic, and incredibly robust flavors. The lomo saltado portion of my entree was the best I have ever had. We also loved their trio of aji with their fresh bread as well. It was obvious that they want to preserve and celebrate the traditional recipes as they are... so celebrate we did.

With food and service like that, how can you...

I must start by saying that I was really apprehensive about trying Rosty's and that is only because when in LA, I can't wait to get to my Peruvian faves, Mario's and El Rocoto. But I am so happy I gave Rosty a try! This is a fairly new restaurant and with that being said, they are somewhat understaffed but, the service was far from being mediocre. My food did not take an hour to arrive and even if it would have, it was well worth the wait. The food is cooked as you order it, not precooked or microwaved. So if a quick bite is what you are looking for, you may want to try the Pollo a la brasa. The food is simply delicious, we ordered the Lomo Saltado, the meat was seared to perfection which gave it the right juciness and tenderness (something good Lomo Saltado requires), the onions and tomatoes were stir fried to perfection. It had the right "saltiness" for my taste but, I am sure that if you would like it less salty you can request it at the time of ordering. We also ordered the Tallarin Verde and the Tallarin a la Huancainca and the pasta was cooked just right with generous amounts of the creamy sauces. I also had some of the best Chicha Morada outside of Peru, it had just the right sweetness and purple corn goodness. The portions are very generous and well worth the price, 2 people could easily share one of Rosty's dishes. So if authentic Peruvian food in a relaxed and comfortable environment is what you are looking for, pack yourself a good read and patience and head on over to Rosty's. Oh, do try the Lucuma ice cream, it is just delicious. No palette cleaning needed for me, I have found the one my palette...

I really wanted to love this place more. Cozy atmosphere. Nice people running it. Let's start with more positives. Copa de Rosty ceviche, particularly the non-cooked portion of it was good. We loved the leche de tigre. We found the fried seafood just okay to not good. The fried calamari were overcooked and rubbery...not all that great, but the rest of the dish was fantastic. The service...really good. People coming and checking on us, curtesy, etc. We appreciated that part of our meal. Negatives. All of us ordered the Peruvian seafood soup because it sounded great. The broth was overwhelmingly salty and tasted like it was made from an artificial powdered mix. Couldn't taste anything in the broth other than salt. No aromats. Nothing. Three bowls of soup. Two had 2 large shrimp and loads of seafood. One had a lot less seafood and no shrimp...mine. Some of the shrimp still had the poop shoots in them. None of us finished our soups. We sent each of them back with most of the soups still in the bowls. I have had Parihuela before. It was delicious and the broth tasted strongly of garlic, seafood flavor, ginger, bayleaf, etc. None of that was anywhere to be found in this soup. Yeah, you can say to us, "You ordered the wrong thing." Well, my response to that is, "If it isn't good, please don't put it on the menu or charge money for us to order it." I'm hoping that they read this and take note, because I'm rooting for them to succeed as...