We go loco for pollo.
(Credit: Mike Unger)
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On most visits to this Peruvian chicken joint, you'll find similar guests—men and women who seem as if they wouldn't waste time frequenting an eatery that offers anything less than an authentic taste of home.
Pollo Latino's menu consists of whole and half chickens, a few sides, and...well, that's pretty much it. The spare offerings prove tasty, though. The smoky skin of the chicken seals in juicy, tender chunks of meat that fall off the bone. Don't be fooled: this is not health food. The chicken has its requisite portions of grease, but along with flab and fat comes flavor. Oh, so much flavor.
In the small dining room, Spanish-language tunes mesh with the sound of kitchen workers carving chickens and dropping sides into a deep fryer, which crackles and pops with promise. Unpretentious and straightforward, Pollo Latino delivers what it sets out to: chicken that satisfies your taste buds no matter where you call home.
Dish: Get your fingers ready. Pollo Latino offers chicken, chicken and more chicken served in its purest form. It doesn't even bother messing around with sandwiches. The chicken is served either whole or halved. Among the sides, the best are fried yucca—crisp, plump and sufficiently greasy—and sticky yellow rice with peas and small carrot chunks. Pinto beans and French fries are garden variety, and coleslaw rounds out the options. Make sure to plunge the chicken into the house green chili sauce, which is accented with mint, and dip your various fried accouterments into the tangy ranch dressing.
Damage: A half chicken platter with two sides costs $6.49, and it's $11.99 for a whole. The half chicken platter comes with ridiculously large portions of rice, yucca or fries, and it proves almost as difficult to close the Styrofoam container as it does to finish the meal.
Decision: No bones about it, the Colonel and that Popeye fella are both featherweights compared to roasted Peruvian from Pollo Latino.
