From November 2005

The name is something of a misnomer--there's a lot more than chicken here. Wood beams, Peruvian art and artifacts, and terra-cotta floors give the dining room a rustic south-of-the-equator feel. Among the more unusual dishes are a tamale made from cornmeal and chopped coriander and filled with chicken, and the famed Peruvian potato dish papa a la huancaina, steamed potatoes with a velvety sauce of cheese, bread, and milk, sided with wedges of hard-boiled egg. The sauce has a distinctive taste diners tend to love or hate--Chicken Place has one of the easiest to love.

Other memorable plates are the house bistec, a big platter with plantains, fried eggs, fries, and rice; lomo saltado, the Peruvian answer to stir-fry, with beef, peppers, onions, and fried potatoes; a fragrant and creamy cilantro-laced beef stew; and the unusual-but-delicious scrambled eggs with shrimp. If you crave fishy flavors, the pungent parihuela, a concentrated soup with a flotilla of shell and fin fish, is a briny bowl.