El Meson

We were excited to try this place. I’m pretty for sure we’ve tried 90% of all of the Peruvian restaurants in the DMV area. So this was one of the few we hadn’t tried.
To start, it’s a small place in a strip mall. It doesn’t look very fancy or attractive. They do have a waitstaff, nice wall decorations, pretty Peruvian style tablecloths and big flat screen TVs.
Our server seemed annoyed while we were thinking about what to order. She kept saying she can come back after a few minutes and then left and another server took care of us for the rest of our dinner… Lol.
I ordered choros a la chalaca and anticuchos (like I usually get). Fiancé got ceviche, jalea mixto, and a side of plantains. My mother in law got the arroz with mariscos, and brother in law got the parihuela (seafood soup).
Unfortunately I did not like either of my entrees! The anticuchos, although burned on the outside were very bloody and squishy. They didn’t have any flavor either. My choros were lacking the juiciness that I’m used to. It was mostly just mussel and vegetable.
My fiances first ceviche was amazing! It was the best ceviche he’s had in a while which led him to ordering another one! The plantains were really good and fresh, and his jalea was pretty good too. However when his second ceviche arrived, it was nothing like the first. It was really sour and lacked salt. He asked the server to take it back and bring him one that tastes good. She brought back the exact same dish because it had the same flavor.
Brother in law did not enjoy his parihuela either.
I do believe I will come back because the menu is big and I want try more things.

From the outside, this small restaurant looks like just another Peruvian chicken place. It is set in a small strip of shops and restaurants with parking in front and more behind the building. And honestly, it is just a humble Peruvian chicken place, complete with all of the standard menu items.
Juicy chicken? Check.
Saltado? Check.
Pupasas? Check.
Rellenos? Check!
But then there is more. Seafood dishes, soup, even dessert is available. We sampled a nice variety from the menu, and it was all quite good. Even the rice here was tasty. Perfectly cooked and lightly buttered. It was easy to see that the rice was not a forgotten portion of the meal.
As much as I liked the chicken, the dish that will bring me back is probably the chicken soup. A huge bowl of broth filled with noodles (spaghetti noodles, which was odd, but not awful) and a chicken drumstick. More than enough to be dinner for one, but I’m thinking I’ll order it with yucca fries on the side and share them both.

This was a very nice find. The flavors were good. The portions were great. The server was extremely friendly.
Full disclosure, I don’t remember the names of all the tasty dishes. First we had the beef hearts on skewers. So far, I haven’t found anything that doesn’t taste good on a stick. This was no exception. Just the right amount of tenderness, while staying firm.
Actually, now that I think of it, ALL of the appetizers were good. Next came the main dishes. You guessed it, these pleased too.
The bowl of chicken noodle soup was huge! It contained wonderful flavors without being salty. Boneless trout wasn’t something I’d shout about, but it was still good enough not to want to leave anything behind.
Why the three stars? Well the facilities were a bit crowded. The location left a lot to be desired. As a plus, there was lots of parking if one was willing to go around back. A negative would be the sketchy area the back of the building is at night.
Small tweaks and they can easily hand out a four star visit. I look forward to seeing how they develop.

The service was absolutely amazing they did everything they could to make us feel welcome. I am always up for trying new things and this place has some things I would never try on my own for example beef hearts. The food was amazing and I plan on going back! The pupusas were to die for and believe me you are not going hungry after ordering one of the meals. The price is very reasonable for the amount of food you receive. I highly recommend this place!

Anywhere you go for pupusas you’ll get cortido (pickled cabbage). I didn’t get any with my order and when I asked about it they told me they didn’t have that and that’s why they serve lettuce (which they called a salad) with my pupusas. The reviews I read here on Unilocal said they had some of the best cabbage. The pupusa itself wasn’t bad, but without the cabbage I’m not a satisfied customer.

While I would agree with Mike B. that they serve one of the most pupusa worthy slaws around, but my pupusas were doughy, pasty (including bean filling), and undercooked.
Some of the worst I’ve had around — but, cooked enough, they could have been pretty good, especially with such a nice slaw and salsa.
While that’s all I had, some of the other things coming out of the kitchen looked quite good. Will have to give it another shot for a better review.

When I found myself, sitting in my parked car, in front of Don Pollo in Gaithersburg on Memorial Day, staring at a «Closed For Memorial Day Sign,» my Peruvian chicken craving that I was having… quadrupled… to pregnancy like levels.
So I get on Unilocal and I start looking for the closest Peruvian Chicken joints, and I bump into El Meson… hmmm this is interesting. I’ve never heard of you. 11 reviews… 4 stars… sounds promising. Very promising.
I get there, and I park in front of a large blaring open sign. I go in to find a small comfy restaurant that is lightly decorated but cozy. There is one waitress handling the handful of tables that are seated, and she is good. She doesn’t mess around– get your order in, she’ll bring you you’re food.
I got the Pollo Alla Brasa (obvi), but decided that I really wanted to try one of their pupsas too.
THANK G_​D: Finally a slaw worth topping a pupusa with. I’ve found most of the slaws I’ve been served recently bland and watery. This slaw was fantastic, vinegary with a bit of spice from lightly pickled jalapeños. After I finished eating it with my pupusa, I started to put it on everything else on my plate.
THE INFAMOUS RED: So, the sauce that is served with pupusas. I’ve never really… got it… I’m always like… why do they serve this bland watery tomato juice with my pupusa. I think I’ve had one adaptation that was decent, but 90 percent of them I just usually toss. This one at El Meson was soooo good.
MCperfectlyGRIDDLED: It’s easy to burn a pupusa. If you’re doing it right, you’re cooking raw dough on a flat top and trying to make sure the filling is done and warm. The perfect pupusa has a slight char from the griddle, you cut into it and it is gooey like a perfectly cooked grilled cheese. This pupusa, though didn’t have technically as much char as I’d personally like, the inside was cooked perfectly. I got frijoles and cheese. It was warm gooey heaven.
KIKI RIKI: That’s the sound a rooster makes… Spanish. Chicken was cooked perfectly, tender, skin was delicious. Try and pull the wing out, you’re gonna get a bone. Truly one of my favorite Peruvian chickens.
DROWNING: The salad was a basic b. However, what really was a little annoying was that it was not properly dried. It needed to be put through a salad spinner. There was a lot of water left on it from when it was washed. Which… I’m glad it was washed… this was literally the only negative part of the meal.
36−24−36: These tortillas were thick. They were obviously made in house and came in a bit of foil. They were steaming hot when they landed on my table. Bravo! They arn’t cutting any corners.
STRUCK GOLD: Ya know the yellow sauce that Peruvian chicken places guard like it’s their mothers pearls. They charge you extra for more sauce, they give it to you in this thimble like container. They always have a sign about extra sauce not being free.
This place, this place, this place… *tear falls from eye this place… they just slap to extra large size squeeze bottles of yellow and green sauce on your table. And if you’re now asking yourself? But are they good. They are ggggoooooooooddddd. They follow suit. Definitely made in house. 100 percent.
Can’t wait to go back. It seems that they have Peruvian soups that are quite popular. There are a couple pics on the Unilocal of them, and I saw a family having the soups next to me while I was eating.

Great experience. Well served. Great prices. Friendly staff. Def recommend this place. It pretty hidden though.

Ordered a whole chicken w/​sides to go. Quick, friendly service and food is delish! We will be back!

The food is always delicious and the customer service is awesome! I’ve been here over 5 times and the food is always satisfying!!! I normally order the quarter white chicken with fried rice and cole slaw. The price is really reasonable, about $ 7.00. I really like there food, it taste homemade. I’ll definitely keep coming back.

They have the best Peruvian chicken around. A whole chicken with 4 sides is $ 19.95. The rest of the menu deserves the $$ rating, but the chicken is great, and just $.

Like Jessica I discovered El Meson after a visit to one of my favorite Goodwill Stores around the corner from here.
I was very pleased with my quarter dark chicken and two sides (cole slaw and plantains for me) for a very reasonable price. Meals are served on real plates, not styrofoam. I too like the fact that the two tasty sauces are provided el gigante, not just the single little container in many restaurants of the same ilk. I hope you like futbol, becuase it will be on at least one of the three tv screens
I hope to get back to this place to sample some other items on the menu.

I went to eat on Sunday and asked for choros a la chalaca (mussels) they taste bad also chicharron (fried pork) was to dry and the sweet potato were hard not soft I dont know if the chef doesnt works on sunday

My wife and I were starving after going to some dealers looking for a car for her. We were going north so we were kind of far away from our favorite Peruvian restaurant. We were thinking in what and where we were going to eat and my wife just remembered a restaurant that her brother took her a while ago. She did not remembered very well were it was located, but eventually we found it. I have never heard about this restaurant before, but this little place called El Meson just surprised me with their menu, quality of food and service.
their menu has a lot of varieties in Peruvian food. they even have Cuy Chactado, a plate that is very expensive and fine back home. They also have Caldo de gallina and another thing I saw in there menu is that every weekend they have the typical Peruvian breakfast which is Pan con Chicharron and Camote, bread with fried pork (it is no exactly fried pork but I don’t know how to explain it in English) and fried sweet potatoes, Tamales and Coffee. Alway ask about their specials, they might have dishes that might not be in their menu.
Another thing that surprised me was the food quality. when the waitress brought our dishes they were very presentable and the portions are big. I ordered Salchipapa (French fries with fried hot dog and salad) as my «appetizer» and Bisteck a lo pobre (steak with fried eggs, fried plantains, French fries, rice and salad) as a my main course. Man, I ate all that? My wife ordered Sopa de Cordero (a soup) and Tricia frita. My dishes were delicious I was amazed with how good they were prepared. My wife loved her soup, but did not like that much her Truch frita.
Service was very warm and kind. Our waitress was very helpful with the menu. She explained us the specials and she was always heckng on us. Also the restaurant was very well decorated. I love the tables. they have a big screen to see the games.
Overall, this place have a lot of potential to compete with others Peruvian restaurants in the area. The only down side is that this restaurant is further than the others, I would say 15 extra minutes driving, but I think it is worth the extra trip.

The chicken is very good! Nice staff :)

I tried the lomo saltado and it was ok. No sauces were offered and the waitress never checked on my table. It was a Sunday afternoon with just another table to serve and the only time I saw the waitress was when I was asked if I wanted the check.
At the same table we ordered the tallarines con lomo saltado and aguadito de pollo. The only highlight of this order was the aguadito and that’s why I give them two stars as I might be back for the aguadito alone. The tallarines were extremely oily and the supposably lomo saltado on the side was just the meat with some tomato and onions. I don’t know what happened to the fries that are always mixed with the meat. I can understand the rice being missing, but the fries too??? Again it was disappointing to not be offered any sauce as the waitresses were too busy cleaning tables and floors.
From the other reviews it seems that this is more of a chicken place than other Peruvian dishes. I was also shocked when I saw a man come out of the kitchen area with all the trash! He was pushing through the restaurant a cart with black trash bags. Once he exit the building, he then came back with the empty cart and walked through the middle of the restaurant! I know there was only two tables but I have never seen this happen at any establishment. I’m sure they have a back door or at least they should wait until the customers leave.
Also, FYI the tip of 15% is already included to your check and we were not a party of 6+. It was only two people at the table.

I love the food here! Especially the chicken. I usually get the whole chicken so we can have leftovers. Always well cooked and tasty! The staff is nice and efficient! Plus it’s close to home. My go to when I don’t want to cook dinner.

Very clean inside, friendly waitress. And they have DIET inca cola.
I stumbled upon this place today after leaving the Goodwill in the lot next to this place. I was in need of lunch and thought I would give it a try as I am a HUGE fan of Peruvian foods. I ordered the ¼ white rotisserie chicken with yucca and fries. Oh and a diet inca cola.
The waitress was very friendly and my food was ready fast. It came out piping hot with plenty of condiments. Even ketchup which is a no no at Peruvian places but I guess they get some people who request it. So I can say that this is my new neighborhood favorite restaurant.
The chicken was crisp on the outside and juicy on the inside and so tasty. Seasonings were right on! The yucca and fries came out golden brown and crispy but not greasy in the least bit. Inside was pretty empty but I was there kind of early.
I am pretty sure this is a family owned place which pleases me because I am all for the hard working people who own their own businesses and would rather dine at a family owned place than a corporate cookie cutter place any day. I will be back and soon with my half Peruvian daughters.
Cannot wait to try the ceviche as the waitress told me it was fantastic!

I’ve been to this restaurant a couple of times. The food is delicious!!! the pollo saltado and the fajitas de carne are my favorites. My only critic would be that sometimes its a bit salty for my taste (personal taste). Other than the food, the place its very chilled, simple with nice peruvian decoratives. The staff are also very nice and welcoming. Overall, its a good restaurant to get some good food after work.