Fiesta! Peruvian Cuisine Opens New Location in Stamford’s West Side

Jessica Ryan March 04, 2023

Fiesta! is now open in Stamford’s West side neighborhood (conveniently located in the Shop Rite shopping center.) The Rojas family opened this location, their fifth restaurant, this past November, continuing in their dedication to share authentic Peruvian cuisine and culture with the Fairfield County community.

Alberto Rojas’ opened the first Fiesta! location nearly 30 years ago. The Peruvian businessman and entrepreneur came to the States in the 1980s and has owned numerous local businesses over the years including those in the dry cleaning, travel and marketing industries. Rojas, a youthful 76, welcomed us warmly, and with pride, to his newest eatery.

The restaurants’ success are in part due to the fact that these spots truly represent Peruvian culinary traditions, but additionally because Peruvian food is so incredibly approachable. Peru functioned as a melting pot, and it’s food is a unique fusion of many cuisines including Creole (by way of New Orleans), Spanish (by way of Spain), French, Italian, Japanese, Chinese and African. For these reasons, the restaurants appeal to a wide variety of local ethnicities, and are just plain delicious.

For those not acquainted with this South American fare, Native to Peru are corn, over 300 varieties of potatoes, and a vast assortment of legumes and peppers. Those staples not native to the nation were imported by a host of other countries including those in Europe, Asia and Africa. Items such as wheat, barley, rice, lentils chickpeas, broccoli, cauliflower, artichokes, eggplant, livestock such as beef and chicken, milk, eggs, and fruit ranging from quince, to oranges, apples, figs, melons, pomegranates, spices including mint, cilantro, laurel, parsley, turmeric, cinnamon and nutmeg are now all staples of this South American diet. Peru’s various regions boast very different cuisines and Fiesta! does well to represent them all.

We began our Peruvian dining experience with the classic Lomo Saltado, a traditional dish merging Asian cuisine with Peruvian ingredients, consisting of sliced beef that’s stir fried with garlic, onion, an assortment of spices and soy sauce-served au jus over French fries. The Asian influence here is very apparent. The beef was tender, juicy and beautifully seasoned and the fries bathed in that light sauce is a little slice of heaven. Lomo Saltado is traditionally served with rice and Fiesta’s wonderfully seasoned rice is the perfect accompaniment to all their dishes. The Lomo Saltado was delicious!

Next we were treated to the Polla alla Brassa. If you know anything about Peruvian cuisine, you know about their rotisserie chicken- a seemingly simple dish featuring a half rotisserie chicken cooked in an assortment of traditional Peruvian spices, and nothing short of phenomenal. Intensely flavored and incredibly moist, this chicken is sublime and truly unparalleled. The dish comes with two sides and their aji sauce, a wonderful Peruvian herb infused creamy sauce. (I tried to get their recipe but they wouldn’t share it with me!) They do sell this sauce and it’s a worthwhile purchase. There’s nothing that wouldn’t go beautifully with it.

The Pescado a lo Macho is a Peruvian favorite. The base of this dish consists of a lightly battered, sautéed fish which is then topped with an aromatic tomato-based cream sauce as well as an assortment of seafood featuring squid, shrimp, octopus and mussels. The white fish was flaky and the seafood tender.

On the lighter side there is the Ceviche, another traditional dish popular along the coastlines and at Fiesta!. As with traditional ceviche, an assortment of fish and seafood – clams, mussels, calamari and octopus – are cured in a citrus-based marinade. Ceviche lovers will delight in this Peruvian version served with yucca, onions and toasted corn nuts.

The dish that captured our attention and stole our hearts was the Pescado Entero Frito. This deep-fried whole fish was absolutely spectacular. While it may not appeal to some who do not care for fried or whole fish, I urge you to step a outside of your comfort zone. Although deep fried, there’s this fish was amazingly not greasy. The red snapper was delicate, unbelievably flaky and effortlessly pulled away from the bones. A squeeze of lime elevated this from delicious to sublime. Order this with a friend or a few, but this is something you simply must try!

Looking for an adult beverage to complement your meal? Let me suggest a sangria or Pisco Sour (among a host of other cocktails). The Pisco Sour originated in Peru and named for the Pisco region which is in the southernmost part of the country offering the perfect climate for growing and harvesting these grapes. The Pisco grapes are fermented into a liquor bearing the same name, which serves as the basis for the cocktail which is purported to have been created by an American bartender in the 1920s in Lima. Another mandatory order is their Sangria (seen above).

Though our menu sampling just skimmed their extensive menu I really enjoyed all of these dishes, and very much look forward to returning to continue our Peruvian culinary journey.

Fiesta! Westside

@fiestawestside

1990 West Main St
Stamford, CT 06902

11:00am - 9:00pm
Sunday - Thursday

11:00am - 10:00pm
Friday - Saturday