VILLA WELLINGTON:
HOME OF WONDERFUL PERUVIAN FOOD
4701 Rue Wellington, Verdun, QC H4G 1X2
Phone: 514-768-0102
Price range: $25+ for meal, drink, and tip for one person
Price range: $25+ for meal, drink, and tip for one person
Mouthwatering Summary: A delicious, delicious Peruvian restaurant in a simple, unassuming atmosphere
Meal to try: Pollo a la Parrillada (grilled chicken)
Hello folks! Today I'm going to talk about one of the best surprise discoveries that I've had in a long time - Villa Wellington, home of very good Peruvian cuisine in Montreal!
I've been passing by this place for years (it happens when so many people I know live in Verdun). Because it's so nondescript (from the outside), I've never really noticed it. Finally, a work colleague told me that I've been missing out hardcore. Skeptical though I was, I took the plunge.
And my GOODNESS had I been missing out.
For my money, Villa Wellington serves some of the tastiest food and at the best value for your money. The portions are huge and tasty!
Let's begin with my favorite meal here so far, Pollo a la parrillada ($16):
This grilled chicken was a huge portion of meat that was consistently juicy, tender, and flavorful every which way. It was seasoned expertly and grilled just about perfectly. And for the giant meat-lover in me, I loooooved the fact that the chicken was satisfyingly thick. In fact, while I can (and do) finish the portion, everyone else who I know who's ordered the dish has had to take half the order home for lunch the next day. It's a good deal for just about everyone, I'd say. The sides with which it came were also wonderful.
The potatoes were pretty well-done. They were thick and lightly salted, and were tender to chew. The spicy sauce was a real revelation as well:
Spicy, garlicy, and absolutely worth the burning sensation to my mouth and tongue.
Also, the accompanying rice was also anything but bland. I mean, it looked like regular white rice:
And yet it was teeming with pretty deep flavour. When I asked about the rice, they told me that they cooked it with broth and a home-blend of spices (I MUST find that blend!). I could eat just the rice on its own forever...
All right, now that I've talked about my favourite meal, time to get back to a more regular sequence of description.
For me, it's always a good sign when the complementary bread is good. And it was. It was hot, toasted buns that were crispy on the outside and soft and chewy on the inside:
Their soup of the day was nice and rich (it was a carrot-based soup - $4):
It was thick and smooth and creamy. It was also a touch spicy. But very, very lovely for it!
One of the best appetizers here is the papa rellena (fried mash potato shell stuffed with seasoned minced beef - $7):
There is no part of this appetizer that isn't amazing. The potatoes were crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside. The beef filling is exceptionally well-seasoned. It's the kind of minced beef that's been very carefully spiced. Somebody went to a lot of trouble to make sure that the spices were evenly mixed throughout.
And now, some mains. Here is the ceviche de pescado (marinated fish, $15):
This is a subtly-flavored dish that does a good job of blending all its component ingredients (although the coriander, being stronger, does stand out just a bit more). The fish is light and flaky, and the tomato-onion sauce has a smooth richness to it. As with the chicken, this was a generous portion of meat!
This is olluquito con carne (beef stew with Peruvian potatoes - $16):
The beef is good and thick and flavorful. It also manages to be tender, too. The sauce is just a touch too salty, but it's very, very satisfying. Those facets aren't surprising - you kinda really hope for that in beef (stew) served at a restaurant, after all. The pleasant surprise of this dish was the Peruvian potatoes. They were full of potato taste while having the texture of turnips at their core.
...
I say, what?!
That's right. Potato flavor, potato texture on the outside. Turnip texture on the inside. Unexpected, but totally tasty! I have to find more of these things and try cooking with them at home!
And what's a trip to a Peruvian restaurant without trying a Peruvian drink? Well, okay, it's still a trip to a Peruvian restaurant. But still! The sentiment remains! I gave chicha morada a try ($2.95):
As for dessert, I'd say they have a pretty standard selection plus their homemade specialties. Unfortunately for today's blog post, I kinda inhaled their in-house pastry before taking a photo (it was just too tempting!); I'll have to post those in an update. In the meantime, here's a picture of their creme brule. Unexotic, but still excellent! ($4)
And that's it for now! Do yourselves a favour and give this place a shot!
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Map of restaurants I have reviewed:
Mouthwatering Montreal - Villa Wellington is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
