El Aji Peruvian Restaurant

3.5 for lomo saltado.3.5 for ceviche.4 for papas a la huancain.5 for service.It doesn't come with bread.

Tiny hole in the wall Peruvian restaurant right on Mission @ 26th Street. The food is very good and very reasonable. Highly recommend. We got the fried seafood sampler and two Lomo Saltados. Extremely happy and for the value, you can't beat it. Would definitely come again. The service is good. They even gave food to a homeless man who came in asking for good.

What a hidden gem! This restaurant currently has no sign hanging outside and is located amongst a whole bunch of businesses with bars outside the windows. Not the expected tourist destination, but there was a lot of hype about the authentic Peruvian food, so we had to stop by for a taste. No regrets, and everyone else should give this place a try!FOOD: All 5/5 stars, and I would heartily recommend that you order the same. Next time I visit, I want to try the arroz con mariscos. - Traditional ceviche: Generous portion of fish simmered in lime juice & garnished with pickled onions plus cilantro. There was a side of sweet potato that was both random and a perfect hint of sweetness. I really liked the dried corn, which added a nice bit of crunch in between the bites of fish. - Lomo saltado: So even though the restaurant is well-known in various magazines and newspapers for ceviche, I think the lomo saltado stole the show. The sirloin steak is remarkably tender. The sauce is rich and perfectly salted to complement the rice and crisp fries. It tasted like both comfort food and a luxury meal.SERVICE 5/5: I think the owner circulated amongst the different diners. Very friendly and helpful with navigating the menu. AMBIANCE: Clean restaurant with soccer game playing on big screen TV. The restaurant was nearly full with what looked like locals. Additional items: I understand the importance of living wage, etc., but for once it was so nice not to have to pay some 6.5% additional SF tax on top of sales tax on top of tip when signing the check. Maybe it was build into the price of the food already, but overall a very reasonably priced meal. Parking was street-only. Mission looked like chaos for cars, so we turned onto one of the smaller streets and parked a couple of blocks away where there was 1 hr free parking.

I almost didn't want to review this place because it is SOOOOO GOOOD and want it to stay a secret. Everything is perfect - food, service, ambiance! I forgot to take pics because I inhaled everything as soon as it came out! Lomo saltado was full of flavor and seasoned perfectly - fries nice and crispy as well!The owner is super attentive and came out to tell us the story of him opening and how his restaurant survived the pandemic so he was really appreciative of us being there.

Horrible Customer Service! Mal Servicio al Cliente. Yo e venido aqui y me a gustado la comida. Vine el Dia de hoy Domingo 14, 6:15pm y en Cuanto entramos el dueño dijo "ya estamos cerrados , no tengo arroz no tengo arroz ,se acabo el arroz"parado con su mano en la cintura muy grocero en mi opinion . HAY MANERA DE ANTENDER ESPECIALMENTE CUANDO ERES EL DUEÑO. I don't recommend horrible Custumer service, I came in with my family at 6:15 pm , the owner received us with a negative attitude and his hand on his waist saying we're closed because we're out of rice .

One of the big bosses on my office invited a few of my team to lunch. I had never eaten there before and was definitely in for a treat. Our VP said he had eaten their many times and loved it. He was right; it was very good.I had the Saltado de Pollo. Season chicken served with red onions, tomatoes, rice and...french fries? Oh, YES. I never would have thought to put the two together. Such carby goodness. This dish is comfort food. 'Nuff said.

Great place and very authentic vibes. The ceviche and fish were on point as one of the best in the city for Peruvian

I found out about El Aji through my Peruvian friend's recommendation, but I can't believe El Aji has fewer than 100 reviews on Yelp. For one, their food is great, and then they surely offer the best Yelp check-in deal I've ever seen! In what world can you get a $17 ceviche for free just for checking in?! Well, the deal definitely worked because we are hooked.In addition to the delicious ceviche classico, my husband and I also ordered a lomo saltado, which had great flavor, especially the juicy and tender and plentiful beef. I actually wish it had some peppers in the mix, but oh well, the plate was already large enough. For drinks, we ordered chicha morada, which was was better than probably 2/3 of the ones we had in Peru. We will be back to try more!

We ordered the causa de pollo, it was very good, the fried yuca, it was very tasty, but it was a tiny portion. It's the reason why I am giving it 4 stars. Yuca is not expensive, the portion should be double the size! The huancaina sauce was amazing!The lomo saltado was maybe the best I have had in San Francisco. And it was a huge amount. Strange how some dishes are such a small portion and others are so generous. I totally recommend the place, other than some dishes really having minuscule portion sizes.Please fix this so I can give you five stars!

First of all, I been buying food from this restaurant from a long time ago and never disappointed me, this business represents what a real Peruvian food taste like. The service is fast and friendly, I don't have any complaints about it, the ambiance is great you can go with family and friends, you will feel like home.