Perchi's

I went back toward Glen Burnie today for some pho at Pho Miss Saigon, and got sidetracked when the storefront across the way was now open (it was closed the last time). In it I beheld Perchi's. They sell Peruvian style rotisserie chicken "and more." I had never tried Peruvian-style rotisserie before (or maybe I have and hadn't realized it), so I switched gears and went in. This place must be new - so new that I can find absolutely nothing about them on the web except for this one blurb placed on hometownglenburnie.com. It's at the very bottom of the page. Since there is nothing else about it online, I'll put address and phone number information at the bottom of this post.

Perchi's is crisp and new, but looks more Mexican than Peruvian. No matter. I went up to the counter and the poor woman, who saw I was a gringo (I should've broken out my Spanish again. Oh well.), called over an employee who spoke better English than she did.

Looking over the menu, I saw quarter, half and whole chickens, burritos, tacos and fajitas, plus bottle drinks - Jarritos tamarind and jamaica sodas, as well as Peru's favorite soft drink, Inka Cola. A quarter of a chicken is plenty food for me, so I ordered that. I got two sides, rice and beans - the menu says fries and salad, but obviously that isn't set in stone. This for only $5.20 after tax. I ordered the food to go, and five minutes later my quarter rotisserie chicken with beans and rice was ready.

When I got it home, I had to wonder just what made it Peruvian. I'm still not sure, but I can describe what the chicken was like. The skin was wonderfully crispy, and had a salty, slightly cumin-y flavor. It was, well, damn good! The chicken was moist, and had kind of a mellow flavor almost, a more sedate chicken taste, I can't explain it really. My cat liked the infrequent hunks of fatty skin and little pieces of chicken meat, too. The rice was unremarkable, but it let the chicken stand out. And the black beans were tasty enough, though again were a definite second fiddle to the chicken. This chicken also came with some kind of jalapeño cream sauce that went very nicely with it.

It wasn't a large amount of food, but it was quality chicken, and good for the price. If you want the half chicken instead, it only costs $2 more. A whole bird will cost you $12.95 ($9.95 without sides).

Perchi's Rotisserie Chicken and More... (Peruvian, chicken) - 103-B N. Crain Hwy, Glen Burnie, MD 21061 (also in Lima, Peru); Phone: (410) 787-0052