El Bolivariano / Pueblo Libre

Excerpted from this Field Report:


(Click on image to enlarge)

El Bolivariano
Pasaje Santa Rosa 291, Pueblo Libre
(corner 5 Av. Sucre)
261-9565
http://www.elbolivariano.com/

Puebo Libre is an 8-10 Sol ride from Miraflores. It seems to be a middle class neighborhood, and El Bolivariano is just a really nice neighborhood restaurant.

This is a typical Peruvian restaurant, serving typical Peruvian (Criollo) food. I was the 0nly foreigner in there. The deal on Sunday in many restaurants is the buffet brunch, and this restaurant serves off the menu in the front, and has the buffet in the big, covered courtyard in the back. The place was full of families (and me). The selection was outstanding: six different ceviches, a bunch of different salads, mussels, scallops, and about a dozen hot dishes, ranging from rice & seafood, to beef, chicken, some fried stuff, and of course, an entire pig. You could also get anticuchos (beef hearts on a stick) on demand. They were disappointed that I didn’t want any. There were dessert choices, too: a few different versions of rice pudding, some small pastries, and the always exciting Live Donut Vat Fryer.


Also included in the price was a welcome drink of Pisco Sour, and all you wanted of Chicha Morada (a purple corn drink that tastes a lot better than it sounds). The whole thing was 39 Soles (under $13), and I waddled away fatter and happier than when I arrived.

 

RT here. Lunch was a good as ever. Two changes:

1. The price went up 60 cents -- it's now 41 soles.
2. The Live Donut Vat Fryer has been replaced by an ice cream station.

Other than that, still recommended.

 

RT here.

The Sunday Brunch at El Bolivariano is still awesome.

It went up again (to 45 Soles), but is well worth the $15. I discovered that you can still get your Picarones (Live Donuts fried in the vat) fresh and hot; they just don't trot out the fryer on Sundays for all to see. The also bring you anticuchos by request. Or don't bring them, if you prefer not to have them on your table.

I will -- and have -- repeated this meal often.

 

Here's an ad that they sent me a couple of weeks ago. Even though it speaks of May 1, it seems to be the same one that they have every Sunday:

 

Photo of the front of the restaurant added to first post in this thread.

 

Adapted from my March, 2011 Field Report

One night, I met a visiting friend for dinner. I usually ask people what they like, and then I pick the place. This guy told me that he likes “Peruvian food, but not ceviche.” I thought El Bolivariano would be perfect. It was.

We get in a cab and head over there. They’re open until 11, maybe later on weekends. This place is old-school Peruvian food, so we stuck to the classics. My friend had a papa rellena and an order of aji de gallina, and I ordered a causa and tacu tacu de la casa (covered with seafood).




Fabulous, as usual. The tab, including a pitcher of frozen lemonade, came to 101 soles. The Sunday Brunch remains at 50 soles and – although not in the league of Costa Verde – is more than enough to kill a man, plus you get the added treat of being the 0nly English-speaker in the place, yet they still make you feel welcome.

 

RT here. We had Sunday Brunch at El Bolivariano a couple of weeks ago.

The buffet remains unchanged.... and excellent. I took a bunch more photos; here they are.
(Click on photos to see larger versions)







The place is wonderful, and they're open for lunch and dinner every day, with a full menu.

 

Here's the Rocoto Relleno and the Adobo de Cerdo from a recent visit:

 

RT here.

The brunch at EL Bolvariano seemingly hasn't changed in all the years that I have been eating there... and that's an excellent piece of news.

At 52 Soles, it remains an excellent option for a Sunday afternoon.

 

RT here. Dinner last night was at El Bolivariano.

I ordered my two favorites: Rocoto Relleno and the Tacu Tacu de la Casa -- Topped AND Stuffed with Seafood.

 

RT here. I went to El Bolivariano for the Brunch today. The price is up to 63 Soles, but that's still under $20.

Other than that, nothing has changed, they still have a Pig and they still are not shy about supplying the ice. And you get to be somewhere that doesn't have 74947693432 people speaking English. Here's some fotos; click to enlarge.