Emma Perez’s sunny strip-mall dining room, going strong for more than a decade, excels with many aspects of Peruvian cooking, from tart ceviches to grab-and-go rotisserie chickens. We tend to load up on the bookends of a meal—strips of lime-marinated fish arranged over piquant yellow sauce; a tangy potato cake (causa) layered with chicken salad; and, for dessert, delightful sandwich cookies filled with dulce de leche. Inexpensive.
Also great: Papa rellena (fried potato filled with beef); lomo saltado; parihuela (shellfish soup); rice pudding; pisco sour.
Ann Limpert joined Washingtonian in late 2003. She was previously an editorial assistant at Entertainment Weekly and a cook in New York restaurant kitchens, and she is a graduate of the Institute of Culinary Education. She lives in Petworth.
Anna Spiegel covers the dining and drinking scene in her native DC. Prior to joining Washingtonian in 2010, she attended the French Culinary Institute and Columbia University’s MFA program in New York, and held various cooking and writing positions in NYC and in St. John, US Virgin Islands.
Jessica Sidman covers the people and trends behind D.C.’s food and drink scene. Before joining Washingtonian in July 2016, she was Food Editor and Young & Hungry columnist at Washington City Paper. She is a Colorado native and University of Pennsylvania grad.
