Thanks for a lovely dinner! I called and asked what they would recommend and got paella (comfort food at its best), empanadas (fresh and flaky outside with gooey goodness inside) and a flavorful green sauce to dip (baby dip) with the best cheesecake I've ever had: passion fruit cheesecake. I am a visitor and will remember that cheesecake forever... dear cheesecake, you'll be in my dreams until next time. read more

Good Peruvian staples of ceviche and lomo saltado. The dish that stole the show was the duck leg, I haven't seen that dish at any other Peruvian restaurant before but it was really good. read more

After a great time at the Adobe Bar, we were hungry, but didn't feel like walking back to the house to get the car. Looking for something downtown, within walking distance of the Adobe Bar, I remembered reading about a new Peruvian restaurant in town. We called, they had seating, and so we strolled down Paseo Del Pueblo Sur in the dark, New Mexico night, trying to stay on the decrepit sidewalks, often unsuccessfully. (The places I have dragged my wife to on a whim.......) Fortunately, almost everything was closed and dark in Taos at 8:30, and we saw the lights of Aji before we noticed any signage. Aji was located in a lovely house, and although there was just a four top left finishing dinner, the warmth and hospitality of the restaurant were palpable. We dined alone at Aji, a Monday night in November is about as out of season as you can get in Taos, but service was lovely and excellent. Being served the incredible ceviche by accident brought momentary guilt because it was comped. However, that guilt dissipated as we devoured the three different preparations. The ceviche was culinary artistry. Our Tequenos appetizers were "killer," non greasy, large fried wontons with exotic dippings. The shrimp Causa Rolls, with potato filling were not only beautiful in appearance, but had a unique and delicious flavor, unlike anything we have ever eaten. I loved the Pato entree, a slow cooked Duck leg whose tender meat literally fell off the bone. The sweet potatoes and Yucca accompaniments added more exotic flavorings. Donna's Jalea, a mountain of beautifully fried seafood was too much to eat, and along with a piece of cheesecake, we carried the boxed Jalea back to the house. Our scrumptious meal cost $75.00, a veritable bargain. A couple of years ago we dined at Farolito Peruvian Cuisine in Coral Gables, purported to be one of Miami's best Peruvian restaurants. The dishes served at Aji tasted infinitely better than what we ate at Farolito. This restaurant will become the hot new place in Taos. Go and enjoy gourmet cooking. read more

A friend and I spent a week in Taos and this place was hands down our favorite! There was one waitress so service was a bit slow, but it was beyond worth it. We split the two ceviches as our appetizers (both amazing) and then had the paella for dinner. We were both completely blown away by the paella: it was so creamy and flavorful with fresh seafood. We will 100% be returning to this restaurant next time we are in Taos! read more

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Small portions but excellent quality. Nice ambiance. Friendly service. Hubby had salmon and I had lomo Saltado and passion fruit flan for dessert. Yumm!!!! read more

Wooh. This is round two at this lovely little restaurant. The service has been great both trips. I'm very full and on my second chilcano. Try one. This is round one with Paella. There will be more rounds. I practically licked the plate clean. Shame on me. read more

Very nice and a bit unique. Super sweet staff. My husband had the pesto pasta. It was delicious and a bit different than Italian pesto. But the star of the show was the flan, YUMMY! truly scrumptious! read more

Best to call ahead to secure seating. This place is very intimate and understaffed. They did a good job for how busy they were. The server hustled her little tail off the whole night. Food was solid. The ceviche was spiced well and super fresh. Steaks came out to true medium-rare as well. There are multiple rooms to dissipate the feeling of so many covers for a small restaurant. Accepts credit cards too. I hope people understand how hard it is for this industry and that people working are doing the best they can with 1/2 the resources at twice the price. read more

I visited this restaurant on 1/27/2024, I ordered the beef appetizer on alambre super yummy, tender, perfect spices, and sauce. I paired it with the house margarita and we ordered the tenderloin entree with the paella. The food was delicious, exquisite, and amazingly yummy! The chef is 100 times better than any restaurant in Taos even better than the resort food nearby! The service was attentive, prompt, and excellent! I had the pleasure of meeting Yessenia and she was an added bonus to meet and chat with her. read more

Aji Restaurant - Paella w shell fish perfect spice and heat! - Latin American Near Me - Taos, New Mexico

The food was fabulous. The service was fantastic. a must do! Can't wait to come back next year read more

Stumbled upon this gem by accident. The food, drinks, and desserts were great. The staff members were friendly and attentive. Must try!!!

We were having a hard time finding a place to eat on a Tuesday night. After having an early morning with lots of activity and not a lot to eat we were starving. Aji saved the day. We had the ceviche nikkei, summer salad, tallarin verde, paella, and finished with the cappuccino flan. Everything was fantastic and our waitress was lovely. We went right as it opened so it was nice and quiet as well. Highly, highly recommend. read more

Amazing dinner at this Peruvian gem. Make sure you make reservations, because there aren't enough Taos restaurants open at night to accommodate tourists. The Squash soup was so smooth and rich, the Brussels sprouts were glazed to perfection. Our whole table thoroughly enjoyed the Cesar salad, which was romaine leaves lightly grilled. From the empanadas to fried plantains, our vegetarian family was greatly satisfied with both the food and customer service. read more

Aji Restaurant - Brussels Sprouts - Latin American Near Me - Taos, New Mexico

Delicious food. We ordered empanadas, pasta and steak and all were delicious. The staff is very friendly and we plan to come back.

Omg this place was amazing! The ceviche was a great start and same with the beef empanadas. We got to apps and shared an entree and were so full!! The cocktails were also delicious. Our favorite was the passion fruit pisco drink. The waitresses were both super helpful explaining the menu and gave amazing suggestions. I will be back next time I'm in Taos. read more

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This restaurant is delicious! I ordered the Steak that comes with potatoes and pasta. My boyfriend ordered the salmon with corn pudding. We both cleared our plates. The service is great. Our waitress was very nice and helpful. They are busy, so some patience is required, but with good company it's almost unnoticeable. The inside of the restaurant is really nice too. I love that each table gets a bottle of water. Next time we are in town, we will definitely be back. Thank you to all of the staff for the delicious food and great evening! read more

This restaurant must be new because the outside is extremely unassuming and lots of construction happening BUT- it's amazing!!! Forget the tourist spot - go down a few blocks and have an exquisite meal! The Brussels were magnificent. The shrimp was yummy If you are gluten-free- tons of choices! read more

Aji Restaurant - Latin American Near Me - Taos, New Mexico

ABSOLUTELY YUMMY!!! A must go when in Taos. We had the Paella and skirt steak. I had the Paella and it was phenomenal. Taste was incredible and didnt take as long as other places I have ordered it before. read more

Aji was hands-down the gastronomical highlight of our 6-day stay in NM. We were pleasantly surprised with the bold flavor and authenticity of the dishes. From the small plates (empanada, Caesar Salad) to the large plates (salmon and seafood paella), down to the dessert (passion fruit cheesecake): everything was a feast to our palates! Our waitress Jessie was pleasantly hospitable and provided tips on which dishes to try. Highly recommended if you are in Taos. read more

We just had dinner at Aji! The Cheviche and Paella were spot on! The atmosphere was romantic and quiet - exactly what we were hoping for! Would definitely come back! read more

In Taos for the weekend and decided to try Aji and so glad we did! To start, we split a wonderful salad that was so fresh. I had the trout and quinoa "risotto". The dish was delicious! The trout was very well seasoned and cooked perfectly and the quinoa was so tasty!! My husband had the elk and loved it! We had the espresso flan for dessert and it was divine. We will definitely be back when visiting Taos again and highly recommend! Great food and quaint atmosphere! read more

The ceviche was delicious and the waitress was sweet and attentive. It was a little cold inside but overall I had a good experience and would recommend :) Great service! read more

We arrived early & were seated on time. Small restaurant with excellent food. Pisco sour is reminiscent of Peru. Paella & Pato excellent & the Ceasar Salad was grilled. Highly recommend this restaurant. read more

Aji Restaurant - Pato(duck) & Paello - Latin American Near Me - Taos, New Mexico

As a Peruvian, I was thrilled to find them. The dining room is clean, with peruvian art and ceramics. The menu has a great sampling of peruvian classics, like Lomo saltado, along with foods Americans are more likely to recognize, like paella. The staff are warm, friendly, and the prices don't break the bank. My husband had the duck, I had the pesto and both were delicious. They even made pisco sours with NM brandy, a nice local touch. Highly recomended, don't miss it. read more

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One of my favorite spots when I was in town!! The service was really fantastic and everything I ordered on the menu was phenom, especially the paella!! read more

Just a great gem. We found this place based on reviews on Yelp and saw the menu and figured we had to try it while in Taos. We couldn't have been more pleased. Very cute place that was tastfully decorated inside. Classy, clean inside and the server greeted us and sat us right away. Starter We had the Street Ceviche, was explained that it is a typical Peruvian style. Looked different I must say, but looked well prepared. The big take away on this was the Yam and Roasted Corn Kernal. Wow! My wife and I really enjoyed this dish. The Yam was cold and popped with flavor. It soaked up all of the flavor and was delish. Wonderful My main was the Paella. In a word, WOW! Popped with amazing flavor, the seafood was perfect and the use of basmati rice was brilliant. The rice was excellent. The salad was very fresh, loaded with avocado pretty,, but the lime vinaigrette dressing was the star of the salad tasty. Also enjoyed a Sangria, red wine, which seemed to be fresh squeezed. Very tasty also. I really enjoyed the experience here, my only regret is it is in Taos and I have to wait til our next visit. There were at least 4 other items on the menu that looked amazing. Guess my wife and I have to plan our next trip and make sure we include a dinner at Aji. read more

Okay. Okay. We're still eating this but you all need to know this now. Immediately. Aji has so many reasons it shouldn't be this good. It's serving paella in the mountains. During a pandemic. So takeout only, in a place where the last shrimp may have lived here during the Pleistocene era. And yet... we brought this home and it's one of the best meals we've had in a very, very long time. If it was this good to go, I'm terrified to find out how good it is when we can eat at the restaurant again. I thought I had upped my home cooking game over the past 10 months but this meal is hitting me with a combination of exhilarating inspiration and existential futility. I hope I can get this good, but I'm pretty sure this chef is just born with a superhuman sense of flavor. Here's the rundown: Beef Empanadas - from the first bite we realized we were in for something exceptional. Amazing filling, perfectly cooked exterior, it's like I'm watching a magic show where I have no idea how they're doing this but I love the result. The sauce was a great complement, but man. One of if not the best empanadas I've ever had. I don't know the last time I've taken a first bite of a meal, stopped everything, and realized that something important was about to happen. Paella - smaller sample size, but easily the best I've ever had. Rich, wonderful, exceptionally well-balanced with fresh lime and some kind of pickled onion salsa. The risotto is wonderful and perfect and I want more of it in my life. Lomo - very good, delicious, well-executed, and totally outshone by the other dishes. Basically a beef stir fry made by a virtuoso, which is a bit like hearing Yo Yo Ma play Wonderwall- sure he can and it's interesting and creative and done well, but why taxi the plane around town when you could be flying? That said, very well done and I hope one day to be able to cook in a way that brings out these flavors. The meat was a little more cooked than I prefer, so maybe there's opportunity to bring the flavor and texture together. Plantains - that said, the kind voice on the other end of the line recommended plantains to pair with the beef dish and oh my goodness was she absolutely right. They were perfectly cooked, flavorful with a great texture that was firm yet melted into the rest of the dish. Worth it. To top it all off, wonderful service. Which I hear you, it's a pandemic, you had like two minutes of interaction with them tops. We were utterly charmed. Whoever is on the other end of the phone is either one of those natural bright points of effortless light in the world, or she's got ace customer service skills. Her recommendations were on point and the start-to-finish experience of this meal was just pure positivity. Many thanks, and looking forward to trying it again. read more

Excellent get away from taos plaza not far at all ... way better cuisine from hotels and resorts

We dined here our last night during our visit to Taos. The food was positively delicious and service was attentive (not overbearing). From the outside it's nearly uninviting but once indoors the ambiance is perfect for a quiet dinner. The perfect type & level of music welcomes you into what feels like someone's home. The dining room is arranged so that you have enough space between tables to feel some privacy. You are able to speak at a respectable tone and hear your dinner partners and while eating enjoying the background music not the other tables. We loved the anticuchos!! It was a first for us. Excellent flavors and incredibly tender. My husband! & I thoroughly enjoyed our mains - the trout and the paella along with a lovely bottle of wine. The food service was paced perfectly. If Aji was in our hometown, we would be frequent patrons!!! My husband has celiac and it was comforting the server was fully able to assist with his gluten-free requirements. read more

Wow wow wow! Chef Ramsey would be very pleased with the menu and what the chef is putting out!! All three of us at the table had different dishes and each was spectacular! Easily the best meal i have had in five years! read more

Aji Restaurant - Latin American Near Me - Taos, New Mexico

My sister and I were taking a roadtrip and didn't get into town until around 8 PM, which is around when many restaurants in Taos seem to start closing. As a result, we didn't do much research on restaurants and decided to gamble on Aji after we saw it on yelp mainly because a) it was still open, b) easy for us to drive to, and c) we wanted to eat somewhere that was farm-to-table. I'm glad we took that chance because our meal at Aji was, hands down, the best we had in 700 miles from Denver to El Paso. Despite having already wolfed down several plates of freshly made frybread and jam earlier that day at Taos Pueblo, my sister and I were still hungry. As we looked over the menu, we decided we wanted to try as much of it as possible since we were traveling and unlikely to return again anytime soon, so we literally ordered every appetizer except for one of the salads. If you're not as indecisive/greedy as we are and only want to limit yourself to one appetizer, GET THE CAUSA ROLLS. If you've never had causa before, it's like a confusingly delicious combination of American sides (mashed potatoes! chicken salad! potato salad! egg salad!)... but it's actually a beloved traditional Peruvian dish, with a long history going back to pre-Columbian times. Here the causa is flavored with ají amarillo peppers and lime, rich with avocado and spicy, creamy huancaína sauce, and served in bite-sized maki rolls. I don't know how I'll go back to regular potato salad again. All the other appetizers we tried were fantastic too. Definitely try the ceviche sampler: there's a classic Peruvian ceviche where the mild fish plays well with citrus and creamy sweet potatoes; a nikkei (Japanese-Peruvian) inspired ceviche with soy sauce, sesame seeds, avocado, and tuna; and my favorite, a gorgeous bright yellow ceviche topped with crunchy toasted Peruvian corn kernels, with just enough heat from the ajís. We also really enjoyed the tequeños-- we initially weren't sure about the flavor of the day (salted ground beef, hardboiled egg, and...raisins?!) but we were so glad we ordered them. To be fair, it's hard to go wrong with hot, freshly deep-fried little wonton pockets. The anticuchos (grilled beef heart slices) were also perfect vehicles for three! dipping sauces (chimichurri, green chile, and yet more huancaina). Finally, we ordered the loaded salad because we had been on the road for several days and needed a source of vegetables before we contracted scurvy. Although it was a pleasure to eat such a fresh salad with actually flavorful ingredients (unlike your typical sad garden salad served at most restaurants), I almost regretted ordering it since it took up precious stomach space that could be used for more interesting foods. At this point, we were essentially performing triage with our meal: With each successive appetizer, we felt elation (because the food was so good) and despair (because we knew we were rapidly reaching capacity and had ambitiously and foolishly ordered an entree, which was still yet to come). We performed admirably though and determinedly finished all the appetizers. We cleaned UP, y'all. Only the entree left to go: The pato, slow-cooked duck with vinegary vegetables escabeche on a bed of creamy sweet potato puree. It was the perfect comfort food on a chilly fall night. We ate as much as we could and boxed up the other half to heat up at the earthship we were staying at in El Prado. (We also got the perfectly tart passion fruit cheesecake to go and had it for breakfast lol). Even if the service had been non-existent, I would recommend Aji for the food alone. Happily, I can report that the service is maybe the best I've ever had (although to be fair, service is completely nonexistent back home in Manhattan lol). We showed up an hour before the restaurant closed and like I said, we ordered a LOT. Although there were only a few other late-night diners, we were warmly welcomed and never felt at all rushed as we made our way through plate after plate. Our server actually turned out to be the owner! Yessie is originally from Lima and decided to adapt Peruvian cuisine with local organic ingredients (those New Mexican chiles!) She was highly knowledgable and answered all our questions about the dishes. It's clear she's passionate about creating thoughtful dishes and she truly made our experience all that more special. As we rolled ourselves back to the car, we joked that we should eat at Aji again the next day before driving south. We ended up going to the Love Apple instead, which was good but nowhere near as memorable or ambitious as Aji, and the service was much slower and less personalized (although to be fair to Love Apple, the servers were very friendly and as a popular venue, it was crowded). Whether you are a local or are just visiting Taos, you should definitely stop by Aji for a terrific meal full of delicious, surprising food. We hope we can come again and wish Yessie all the success with Aji. read more

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Delicious meals. Very nice presentation all the food was very flavorful and fresh. We were the last table to leave the waitress was very accommodating and pleasant. We got the salmon, loaded salad and lomo. Cute little restaurant and dining area read more

Aji Restaurant - Latin American Near Me - Taos, New Mexico

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Great find. It was delicious and the service was wonderful. All the food was fresh and you definitely should stop by if your in town!

The ambiance, hostess and chef were all amazing. One of the next culinary experiences ever. read more

Aji Restaurant - Paella - Latin American Near Me - Taos, New Mexico

Pros: The hostess seated us right away. The waitress was friendly and knowledgeable about the menu and ingredients. We got in our drink orders and our appetizer orders right off the bat. We ordered ceviche, which comes with three different options: Japanese, Traditional, and another flavor, none of which were great. Cons: Although we got in our appetizer order quickly, we had to wait almost an hour before we could get in our dinner order. When the waitress finally came to take our order, she asked whether we were ready to order, as if she hadn't taken an hour to come back to take our order. Very odd. My duck dish was okay, except it was sooooo salty. another person at our table ordered a seafood dish, which came out 15 minutes after our food and was so deep fried, it was disgusting. It was supposed to be a fried dish, but it seemed like they left it in the fryer past the time. Back to pros: The gluten free chocolate cake and the passion fruit cheesecake desserts were tasty and beautifully presented. I will not be trying this restaurant again. I had high hopes after reading all the great reviews, but sadly, it wasn't a hit with us. read more

Best Peruvian food I've had outside of Peru. If you're new to Peruvian, I recommend the tallarin.

We loved our dinner at Aji! I got the Pato (duck) and my husband got the paella-both we're delicious! We also loved the playlist they had, it was covers of pop hits that fit the place perfectly. read more

The food is amazing. We have been several times. The duck is great. The sauces and vegetables are very unique. I guess unless you eat a lot of Peruvian food. The ambiance is terrific. We really like the music. read more

Ceviche was great. The paella was very creamy. My pisco was spot on. Great service with a sense of humor.

Excellent in every way. Good, staff and pisco sours. Went over Christmas holidays and loved the decor.