Jess’s Place

I love the pollo a la brasa. I agree this restaurant doesn’t look inviting to sit and have lunch or dinner there, but their pollo a la brasa is delicious! Is the closest taste to original Peruvian pollo a la brasa. I always order the chicken to go, it comes with fries and salad. I would like to try their ceviche I’ve heard is good too. i

The flavors here are very good. Lost a star for hair in food and price.
They have both peruvian food and mexican food. I come here when once in a while. The workers dont speak english so it’s hard to communicate what I want. I basically have to go to Unilocal,find something good and point to the menu. They take card so that’s great!

I don’t understand why there are so many bad reviews, I’ve been going here for a while. I consider myself a Peruvian food enthusiast, and as such, this definitely feels like an authentic Latin American restaurant. This is not your cliché overly expensive «Peruvian restaurant» that one would find in San Francisco where nothing resembles real authentic Peruvian food. If you’re looking for authenticity go here, if not, go to Santana Row. Yes, this place is in a bad location, but so what, it’s all part of the culture in San Jose. Being Mexican and having travelled throughout Peru, I can tell you firsthand this food is good, flavorful and authentic. It may not be that overly fancy food you see on travel shows, but rather, this caters to the working-​class people who miss home and want some home-​style cooking now and again. Give it a try.

Green sauce was very distasteful, I saw roaches climbing up the wall gross !! Lomo Saltado tasted like nothing, wouldn’t go back their again.

My husband always told me not eat at any of the restaurants close to our house (not the best area) but when we were craving Peruvian we had few options. Off we went.
Jess’s Place (which bothers me already as there should be no third ‘S’) is split, one side is a restaurant and on the other side of the mirrored glass is the bar. The two have a door and the bar shares a restroom with the restaurant. This means that 1) you can hear the blasting music through the wall and 2) every time a patron from the bar side opens the door to use the restroom, or as the waitresses go through the door to serve people at the bar, you hear an intensified wave of music. The restaurant has very hard surfaces, not very comfortable, not a welcoming feeling. The sun beams in through the wall of windows and nearly every seat inside is in direct sunlight.
We both ordered the Lomo Saltado and an Inca Cola. Very good food. Tender meat, crispy fries, onions and tomatoes cooked perfectly. The side sauces, a white and a green bottle, are kept refrigerated which alleviates some thoughts of bacteria. The complimentary salsa is very good, the chips taste very store bought. On our second visit the Lomo Saltado was clearly prepared by someone else, this time it had cilantro all over it. Not being a fan of cilantro I was not pleased. I’ll add that the dish costs $ 13.75.
This is not a place where you would want to bring your kids, or even a date, the waitresses/​bartenders are scantily clad and walk through the restaurant side.
We’ll be back but it won’t be our first choice. Looking forward to visiting Isabella’s.

Nos gusta su pollo a la brasa es muy bueno, podría decirse uno de los mejores fuimos con mis hijas aprovechando el feriado es pollo fresco y rico pero la atención pesima, le pedí otra porción de papas la camarera se olvido me lo trajo al ultimo, le dije q lo ponga para llevar y q me diera box descartaba es para mi pollo y mi ensalada sólo me dio uno .le volví a pedir y nunca me dio con las justa pidiéndole bolsa me lo dio. le pedimos ketchup nada me tuve q levantar y agarra el ketchup de otra mesa… y eso q no había mucha gente me fui molesta y sin llevar mi ensalada

As I parked my car I noticed the environment is a little ghetto. Then again, many good restaurants in San Fransisco are located in sketchy areas. I am so surprised some reviews are rating this place because of bathroom appearance; when the focus should be on the food and service.
I am Peruvian so I have been coming here whenever I’m in the neighborhood to satisfy my palate; I have to say that their «arroz con mariscos» is pretty darn good! Most Peruvian food places try to add their twist on authentic recipes, but this place tastes just like my grandma’s cooking. Their «aji verde,» also known as green chile sauce that they serve with chips, goes so well along their dishes. Although the place says Mexican food, most customers go for the Peruvian menu.
We Peruvians love «aji,» so without the chiles a Peruvian place wouldn’t be a Peruvian restaurant. Peru is known for their rocoto (red hot pepper) and other chiles, and this place incorporates them onto their dishes. One bite and I can taste the «aji Amarillo» in the Escabeche, «aji panca» in the Arroz con Mariscos, and «rocoto» in the Ceviche. The food makes me feel as if my grandma is in the kitchen cooking it. Nonetheless, I recommend the «Pollo a la Brasa» for all you chicken lovers!
Like any other Peruvian place, make sure you can afford it because dishes are usually $ 11 and up! The staff is friendly and even the owner gave us complimentary lucma ice cream because he knows I’m from San Fransisco so he appreciates that I stop by.

I’ve been coming to Jesse’s place for a long time (years) and have had my ups and downs with regards to service being too slow. I really liked the owner and was very faithful in coming almost every Sunday. About a month ago, I ordered my usual dish, ceviche and bought 2 plates. I failed to see it before I left and my pieces of fish were very Mexican, so thin you cannot be able to taste the fish. On the other hand, the price went up but for a good plate of ceviche it would be okay for that price if the pieces of fish were cubes. I was very disappointed since I drive all the way from the north side of San Jose. I do not feel that they should put Peruvian ceviche if the ceviche they serve is not like that. Consistency is important in a restaurant.

i had a lomo saltado a lo cenon!!! it was the best lomo saltado i ever had .way different from the normal lomo saltado, make sure you ask a lo cenon on every plate. it means your plate would be different and bigger, a lo cenon means like the owner likes it !!!

El nuevo plato de Cordero con Quinua esta exquisito! Este restaurante Peruano hace muy buena comida. Gracias Sr. Zenon! Pasare la voz a todos mis amigos!!!

No vivo en San José pero cada vez que vengo a visitar a mi mami vamos a Jesse’s a comer su delicioso cebiche y exquisito chupe de camarones. Me encanta el sabor peruanísimo de este restaurante. No se diga nada del típico lomo saltado, tallarín verde, arroz chaufa etc. Deliciosa comida! Se los recomiendo a todos. :)

Nasty and expensive ass food! Bathroom had hair all over like someone wash them self in there. the service was bad enough

I understand Peruvians love their food but there’s nothing really special about this Peruvian restaurant. The food was bland. I don’t think Peru is known for chiles so don’t expect anything spicy or deeply seasoned.

I met the owner, Zenon, through a business call. At the end of our meeting he offered a complimentary meal like a true gentleman. My girlfriend and I finally got around to eating it when I got home, after it had been sitting in my car for about an hour… and it was delicious! We had the chicken with both green and white rice. Even cold, everything tasted great. IMO the white rice was especially good.

The food was just ok. I’m not Peruvian, but I’ve had enough Peruvian food to know I’ve had better. The food is alright if you’re craving chicken. Not a big fan of the area though. It’s in a really sketchy location.

The chicken literally had no flavor, my salad still had water with no type of dressing. I’m very disappointed. The maracuya was a watered down packet drink. I didn’t like anything. Not to mention when I got here the gas station was surrounded by cops. Never coming back

I like to go to this place every so often. I usually get the Caldo de Gallina, it’s perfect especially for the cold season. Most of the time it feels like they are understaffed and sometimes have to wait a long time to order and receive the food. But on the weekends they have a one-​man-​band playing and he isn’t half bad. :)

Never been here and don’t care too. The owner is a thief and scam artist. He wrote my company a check in May and still has not paid. He has made numerous promises with no follow through. The joke is on him now, small claims court just awarded my company over $ 3400 on a $ 250 check! Now the fun begins! He will pay or be in jail.

I’ve been at this place twice for Pollo a la Brasa and Caldo de Gallina, and overall it was ok. I guess this will be the closer we have in the area for that. Service is ok, and the place itself looks more like a cantina (not fancy at all!). The location/​area is a bit shady, and most of the patrons are too.
So 3 stars for good food (Pollo a la brasa mainly) and average service.

I would love to give ZERO stars. This place lacks a lot of stuff… First, the location is tucked in an area that is not welcoming, and probably only shady people is around.
The service is horrible. I asked for a whole chicken, and we were seating there for about 40 mins, when we asked where was out chicken the waitress said that probably the guy had forgotten our order… She went in and asked the cook to cook a chicken for us, she was laughing as it was funny that the other guy had forgotten our order. Like making a joke out of it, it was not even funny at all. The waitresses here look shady and the people who came in to visit the place also looked shady.
Then finally the chicken came, and it was not great at all. It was just OK. I have had better.
Then when I was about to pay I clearly told the waitress to put half of the amount in my card and half was being paid in cash. I speak perfect Spanish, and she clearly repeated it again to confirm what I wanted… I got the receipt from my card and I signed it to approve it… it clearly stated half the amount of the order. However, some days later when I came home and check my bank statement, she has charged me the whole amount of the order in my card, plus she took my cash that day. So she basically got the amount twice for the order… Talk about being shady… I would never come here again.

El pollo esta rico el servicio no muy bueno muy pocas papas y la inca cola te la dan caliente

Get the Pollo ala Brasa, ’nuff said.
Ok I’ll explain… I’ve ate other plates before, and they’re alright, but when it comes to Peruvian food and the world famous «Pollo ala Brasa» — this is where its at!

We went with a large group of 16 people. What can I say? Peruvian restaurants are notorious for lagging service and we are used to that. (I was with a group of Peruvians that I love). But we ended up getting our own dishes, food was served without silverware, we requested chips and salsa and we had to request additional glasses. On the up side, the chicken was mouthwatering, the sangria was good and the people watching was interesting.
This restaurant boosts nothing fancy. I can swing with poor service if I know what to expect. The parking lot is a little sketchy and crowded and the restaurant was loud. But since we were there to celebrate a birthday, we made the most of it and enjoyed the pollo and fries.
Happy birthday Koki!!!

This place is certainly an odd one!
It’s tucked away near Oak Hill Cemetery off of Monterrey and Southside, and the plaza it hides in is a seedy one. The gas station it faces welcomes loitering hobos, so the general cleanliness of the façade leaves a lot to be desired.
The small dining room feels like someone rented out their kitchen. The waitress/​cashier is a friendly woman who offered us a choice between a Peruvian or a Mexican menu. She spoke ZERO english; i had to rely on my restaurant spanglish and my attempts to conjugate latin roots similar to french (which I can semi-​speak) in order to communicate. AWKWARD!
The lomo saltado and the ceviche mixto were recommended by a friend’s friend, so we ordered that. Complimentary chips and salsa were promptly delivered to us, but I found it peculiar how these were store-​bought chips. A little on the old side, so it gave my jaw a serious workout.
The ceviche was cold and spicy — as expected — but I was turned off by the use of imitation crab. For those of you that don’t know, imitation crab is made up of a less-​appetizing, cheap fish colored with a red streak. Anyways, it was filled with that stuff, so we quickly grew tired of it.
Central and South American food walk hand-​in-​hand, so I did enjoy the plaintains, the refried beans, and the rice of the lomo saltado. The dish itself is steak slices sauteed with fries, onions, tomatoes, and soy sauce. Fries in my sauteed food??? The starchiness worked with the soy sauce, actually, and my friend and I actually finished this one.
Maybe I’m overly enthusiastic about trying different cuisines, but this place is not worth going to again.