After reading that this place had a vegan lomo saltado, it had been on my list for a while. Finally made it to Ferndale to get it! The place is cozy. The staff was extremely friendly and knowledgeable about the vegan options. There were two, the lomo and another that was like a fettuccine pesto with eggplant and sundried tomatoes. They guy behind the counter said that those were the only two true vegan items, that everything else was fried in the same fryer as meat and therefore had a "meaty" taste. I appreciated his honesty and we got one of each dish. They were both quite good, the lomo saltado was as I remembered! (They use mushrooms instead of steak). Both dishes were a tad salty for my personal taste. We were checked on more than once and very happy with the service. The place is set up so that you order at the counter and then are brought your food. There is no bar, but we found out from another table nearby that you can bring in a bottle of wine or a growler and they will serve it to you. No corking fee. Good to know for next time! read more

Culantro - Vegan Lomo Saltado - Peruvian Near Me - Ferndale, Michigan

This was such an incredible incidental find! We planned to have brunch somewhere but it was way too packed and so we just randomly walked in here. You order at the counter, have a seat, and they deliver the food to you. This was not the first time I've had Peruvian cuisine, but this was perhaps one of the best experiences I've had. Ordered Tacu Lomo, which is rice cooked with Canario Beans, garlic, and aji amarillo. Served with Lomo stir fried Steak strips, tomatoes, yellow peppers and green onions. Incredibly happy with my choice. Meet was tender, very well seasoned, fragrant, and delicious. The rice was more on the soft side instead (you know how fried rice use dry, more separated rice, while this leans towards somewhat soft and stickier consistency) which is what I like. Again, rice is also incredibly tasty. The bowl was quite big, but I had no problem devouring it down. We also tried chicken empanada, which was really big and comes in 2 pieces. I've had various types of empanada, but this one is interesting because it's coated with cinnamon sugar even though the filling is savory. The wrapping is thin and crispy instead of doughy. The mixture of sweet and savory turns out to work out well. Price wise, I think it's very reasonable. Service was great too! Looking forward to come back and try other dishes in the future read more

Typically I like Culantro and only het heir pulled pork sandwich. Today I got it and it was totally not edible. The meat was gray in color and tasted off. It was negative stars today. Im giving ut 2 stars because if past experience. read more

Culantro - Peruvian Near Me - Ferndale, Michigan

Culantro is one of those unassuming little restaurants that packs huge flavor into a small space. From the moment we walked in, the delicious aromas of onions, meat, spices and herbs telegraphed that there was something special about this restaurant. We had a group of five for lunch on a Sunday afternoon. We walked right in and squished into a booth to check out the menus and pick out a range of delicious dishes, and then ordered and paid at the counter. We ordered so much that when food started arriving, we had to relocate to one of the larger high top tables! What we tried: - A tostones-style appetizer special that consisted of smashed, fried plantains topped with pico de gallo and a spicy chipotle sauce. Fresh, spicy and satisfying. - Yuca fries. Fibrous and starchy with a crisp crust and phenomenal dipping sauce. - Fried plantains. Beautifully fried with a crisp exterior and custardy center. - Empanadas. Absolutely stellar, with shredded meat, olives and hard boiled eggs inside a fried shell dusted with sugar. - Lomo saltado. Oh wow, this was good. Tender pieces of steak, sautéed onions, tomato and herbs in a savory brown sauce over fries and with the tastiest plain white rice I've ever tasted. Phenomenal. - Sandwich de Chicharron. Also amazing with juicy, tender pork and a spicy sauce. - Salchipapas. Sounds strange but the cashier assured us the hot-dog-and-fries dish is a guilty pleasure for many customers. The hot dogs are a little more like kielbasa, with the same spicy sauce that's served with the sandwich I think. I've never had Peruvian food before so I don't have a baseline for comparison, but I can say I was blown away by everything we tried. The food was vibrant, fresh and a little unusual. Culantro was the best kind of surprise--affordable, unassuming, friendly and absolutely delicious. read more

First time trying Peruvian food! Was not disappointed! Had the Sandwich de Chicharron. Amazing! Will be back again for sure!

DEAD FLY IN MY FOOD???? I ordered carry out from Culantro and not only found my order was wrong by also found a dead fly in one of the sauces! I called and spoke to Lauren she was absolutely no help insisted that I was lying and basically didn't care about my messed up order. I'm soooo disappointed in Culantro not sure if I will be returning. It was the total disregard or care about me a customer who has spent money and referred multiple people to the restaurant....very unfortunate DO NOT RECOMMEND CARDY OUT . read more

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Where else can you find REAL Peruvian food with really good vegan options?! Have been multiple times, will dine again

Loved the food. Well cooked beef and the rice was just very well. The deep fried empanadas were also very good. We had the chicken and beef empanadas! read more

Culantro - Empanadas (left) Tacu Lomo (right) Patacones Picantes (bottom) - Peruvian Near Me - Ferndale, Michigan

My entree was bland and dry. No sign of seasoning or freshness tasted like it was made from leftovers made earlier in the week. My treat to myself ~ flan, was pricy but I was due for an indulgence. What a rip-off and disappointment. I'm sympathetic to everyone trying to stay afloat but if you aren't going to make good food in respectable portions you're not justified in staying ope Response to owner: I have been ordering and making flan for 40 years. I know what the texture and taste should be. What I received was dated in the box from the day before in marker. It was a puny serving that was watery inside ( not from the caramel) and not smooth or creamy at all. My entree was the equivalent of chicken fried rice. Old rice, no flavor, only carrots and peas that tasted like mass frozen generic veg from some commercial supplier. Dry flat tasting chicken. I try to support local family owned businesses in this community but expect owners to take personal pride in return. read more

Culantro - This is a $6 order of flan. Tiny, curdled, and dated from the day before. Yuck. - Peruvian Near Me - Ferndale, Michigan

Some of the best service we have had in a long time. We stopped here after a Tigers game and spending time in downtown detroit. This is a unique Peruvian gem. The chicken, unfortunately no photos, is soooooo good. The causa rellena is a unique dish, like mash potatoes with chicken and a wicked good sauce. The sauces that come with chicken are all unique and tasty, the creamy one is our favorite. We liked but didn't love the yucca fries. The plantains were delicious. Now the surprise was the tres leche, which was the best I have yet too have. We will be back and suggest for you to try this place out, it rocks! read more

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Got the carne a la planche. For 15$ everything I could want. Plantains were delicious. Steak was nicely seasoned. Chimichurri was good aswell. Service was good. Would absolutely recommend. read more

I've visited Culantro at least two dozen times. It is one of my favorite restaurants. Each time, I've wanted to take pictures to write this review but the food was too tempting to wait for a few photos. The food has bold flavors and large portion sizes. The staff is also extremely friendly and attentive. My favorite dish is the Pollo a la Brass (roasted chicken) with black beans and rice. The Salchipapas (fried hot dogs and fries) is also a wonderful snack. read more

Culantro - Carne a la Plancha (grilled steak with eggs, rice, fries, black beans and chimichurri sauce) - Peruvian Near Me - Ferndale, Michigan

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There are so many good choices on the menu, but the Pan Con Pollo is hands-down the best chicken sandwich I've ever had. I meant to add a photo of it, but then it disappeared somehow and now there's sauce in my mustache. The place is clean and inviting, with lovely staff. Highly recommend. read more

A very unique dining experience. There are not a lot of ethnic foods from peru. It's a new place so mostly everything is nicely kept and clean. The colors are vibrant, with bright reds, yellows and deep blues. Food was great. I ordered cheese potatoes and a purple corn drink. Both were great and presentation was nicely done and taken into consideration. They have a breakfast and afternoon selections. I had the dessert which was a light berry cookie I belive frejoles. It was tasty and not too sweet. Very fresh and reasonably priced. Great for breakfast or brunch. Waitstaff is nice. read more

My food came out warm and didn't have much flavor to it. Overall it was a decent comforting dish called Aji De Gallina. My boyfriend loved his roasted chicken dish. At first, the cashier rung us up wrong and afterwards we realized that we ended up overpaying. The owner/lady fixed it and apologized which we appreciated but the young cashier girl was just so oblivious and didn't even care. Good food but not in a hurry to come back. read more

Great empanadas. Pork shoulder sandwich was good. French fries were very good. We got there right after the lunch rush, so the cook and waitress were still recovering and they ran out of the chicken which I wanted to order. The food was tasty and interesting. I think it is the only Peruvian restaurant in the area. The staff was friendly. The music was too loud for me. read more

We ordered carry-out on New Years Eve. I would have forgiven anything being a little bit off with a last minute order but was very pleasantly surprised. Everything tasted amazing. The carry-out came very quickly (via Uber eats). It all far exceeded expectations. The food was delicious: 3 different rice meal entrees, fried plantains, and ice cream. It was such a great experience and pleasant addition to the evening read more

Not authentic Peruvian food at all! I had expected that this would be authentic flavors but fell short on every aspect. I am Peruvian myself and was disappointed with the flavors, they taste nothing like our traditional dishes. Very disappointed! read more

I have been eager, and overdue to try this place, as I so love Peruvian roasted chicken, and especially the green sauce. I have previously been a big fan of Pio Pio in NYC, and El Pollo Inka on the west coast. This is more or less the same setup, perhaps a bit more fast casual. Walked in at prime dinner hour. Active, but not overly crowded.......placed my order for Pollo a la Brasa with fries and salad, with anticipation of the comfort of familiar tastes. Food generally tasted good, but not to the level I've experienced consistently from the aforementioned Pio Pio. The biggest problem was that the temperature of the chicken was just warm, not hot. Would have hoped that they were turning these chickens out as soon as they are cooked, timed to meet the dinner rush, but this one was allowed to cool down to the point of my concern about food safety practices. Nowhere near 140 Deg. F. I understand that a bird held at a higher temp will dry out, but that balance is the art behind the science. Additional concerns to that effect were raised by the filthiness of the floor and the disarray of the kitchen as you walk towards the back alleyway door. This place could really benefit from a major deep cleaning. My tolerance to overlook some of those details is becoming less and less, as more restaurants continue to pour into the market and the standards of quality are raised. I came, I ate, and unfortunately don't need to rush back. Was hopeful for more from this place. read more

Chicken was dry (and old?), fries soggy. Plantains we're ok and as well as the sauces. Maybe it was an off night but I was expecting the food quality to be much better. read more

I visited this place twice. The first time was 5 Star, food was amazing, I had the lomo saltado, steak was cooked and seasoned perfectly. The fried plantains were carmelized just right. I loved it so much I came back the next day and ordered the same thing and it was a huge difference. Meat was bland and kind of tough. I am going to give this place another shot since it was so great the first time. read more

Culantro - Lomo Saltado - Peruvian Near Me - Ferndale, Michigan

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Love this place. Today was my second time there in the past year. The food is amazing. My wife had the chicken sandwich and I had the dish with rice and seafood (I can't remember the name). I also order the fried plantains and they are so delicious. We also had Trace leches for dessert and it is my favorite cake, I don't like cake but this I can get down with. The staff is also great and very friendly. Thank you for a great meal experience. read more

Boy was I excited to discover Culantro. I love Peruvian cuisine, and I never got to experience much of it outside of more major cities like Miami or Chicago. The food of Peru is very diverse due to the country's multiethnic society and landscape, which provides many local ingredients and unique dishes. For our first time here I decided to go with some classics and also try something I haven't had from a Peruvian place. We started off with the ceviche, which was served with sweet potato, large corn kernels, and a romaine lettuce leaf. The ceviche had terrific flavor, but I found it to be too wet and the citrus content a bit excessive. The sides it came with were also ok, but the corn was too chewy (almost stale) and lacked flavor. The half chicken was served with a side salad and we also added black beans. The chicken was extremely juicy and the skin was seasoned perfectly. The yellow and green sauces it came with were good compliments and didn't overpower the chicken at all. Finally we had the cau cau, a stew made with various vegetables, potato, cumin and tripe most notably. I loved the tripe; it was very tender and it didn't have the off putting odor usually associated with poorly cooked tripe. We finished off with a passion fruit mouse (which we ordered because it was the only dessert they made in house). While it didn't look presentable when it arrived, it was one of the smoothest desserts I ever ate. Perfect balance of sweet and tart, light as a feather, and a great palate cleanser to an otherwise spicy meal. Culantro is not a perfect restaurant, but it sure is a winner in my book, and it does justice to the country it sets out to represent read more

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The Carapulcra was SO GOOD. Chicken, pork, potatoes, rice, and the best peanut sauce I've ever tasted. Can't wait to go back and try some more of their delicious looking food read more

Culantro - Carapulcra - Peruvian Near Me - Ferndale, Michigan

Stopped in for lunch and left happy. I had the carne de la plancha, with the yummiest chimichurri sauce, pappas fritas, rice, and plantains. My husband had a favorite, aji de galina. Love this place! read more

THE BEST CHICKEN! Get the pollo and ask for the sauces! And the owner is so kind. She consistently checked in to see if we need anything and gave us a short cultural explanation of the meal! Kinda felt like I was with mom. A must try if you're in the area! read more

Culantro - Peruvian Near Me - Ferndale, Michigan

You come here for the food, i.e., if you are looking to be pampered, go somewhere else. All I have had thus far on my two visits is the Aji de Galina and white beans, both of which were delicious. Everything is fresh and flavorful; I am ready to try more items! Tonight I waited a little longer for my take out than was expected, but that's ok, it gave me time to catch up today's White House news. The owner was sincerely apologetic, but I'm just happy to see them doing well! read more

Stopped in a couple weeks ago after hearing a lot of good things about this place. The setup is nice, and I appreciate the open kitchen, which helps you see what's going on behind the counter. I don't like the counter ordering system, and would prefer a waiter/waitress, but I understand that this helps them keep costs down and move food out more quickly. I tried the rotisserie chicken - so incredibly flavorful, and the skin was fantastic. I loved their herb blends, and the sauces that came with the chicken were nothing I've ever tried before. I also tried the aji de gallina, and the sauce was amazing - a little heavy but would be filling and comforting when it's not 95 degrees outside. I highly recommend the chicha morada drink - it's definitely not for everyone but it was just the right amount of sweet/spiced and was super refreshing. The service was fast and our food came out in like 5 minutes! It was crazy and it was fresh. read more

It was really really good food. I ordered the full chicken meal with black beans, rice & fried plantains. Loved every bite. I'm most definitely going back read more

WOW what a great place to have in metro Detroit! We had so much fun trying the chicha morada, and loved the free plate of plantains for the table to start. Our food was delicious, although heavy on the garlic so beware if you're not into that lol (I love garlic so this was a plus for me!). The tres leches cake was excellent as well, although I do agree with the other Yelper who said that the alfajores just weren't quite there. Overall though, this was an outstanding meal and I can't wait to come back! read more

Excellent. We had a #6,7&12. Get the tress leches. People here are cool. Good South American vibes! read more

Culantro - Peruvian Near Me - Ferndale, Michigan

The food is solid, great service, cool atmosphere. It is a little confusing when you walk in how to order and get your food. Just order from the counter and they'll give you a number to take to any seat and they'll bring your food. Seems authentic and the menu is pretty different. Definitely going back. read more

The half chicken was delicious! The seasonings were amazing and the chicken was tender and juicy! We were greeted as soon as we walked in the cashier was extremely friendly. We will definitely be back! read more

Culantro - Peruvian Near Me - Ferndale, Michigan

Have ordered culantro a few times previous and usually it is a good experience. However, tonight I ordered Seco Nortena at $15.90. The piece of beef they sent was ALL FAT AND GRIZZLE. See attached pic, a completely inedible piece of fat. Disgusting and waste of money for basically rice n beans. read more

Culantro - Peruvian Near Me - Ferndale, Michigan

The food here was very tasty and ready for pickup very quickly. Looking forward to trying more items on their menu.

Ok a few disclaimers. First time here and only tried two dishes. I am from Peru and have lived in Miami, NY and San Fran. All places where you can get quality Peruvian food as well as plenty average. I was frankly disappointed by the ceviche and papa a la huancaina. Ceviche a coastal dish, was over salted and not balanced at all so I could barely taste anything beyond the salt. The huancaina dish had no flavor at all. I did not know that was possible. I took a few bites and left it alone. Maybe this is all about the pollo a la brasa so I will try that next but in summary my experienced was over priced and below average. read more

I shamelessly came here 3 times in 24 hours. I have been waiting for Peruvian food to hit Michigan since I moved here 6 years ago. The time has finally come! Everything was very authentic and delicious. Get the classic Papa a la Huancaína to start.. tender potatoes in a spicy, creamy sauce with egg. And definitely get the ceviche! We had to order 1 per person as we weren't keen on sharing this delicious specialty. I loved the ceviche- it was FRESH, spectacularly spicy and oh so lime-y. I hope that in the future they might do a ceviche mixto with shrimp and calamari, or a tiradito with a creamier sauce! The roast chicken was fantastic, and close to my favorite spot, Pio Pio, on the East Coast. I could drink the green aji sauce! Wash it down with an ice cold Inca Kola!! (tastes like bubblegum IMO and it's a Peru classic). To end, grab some Alfojores cookies to go! Shortbread cookies with creamy dulce de leche holds the cookies together. YUM. All around fantastic spot--- I will be back again and again. read more

This place is great! First time coming here the Food is amazing and service was wonderful! The prices are reasonable. I will come here again and recommend it to anyone looking for a new spot to eat at. I would leave a photo but the flavors I experienced wouldn't let me stop. read more

I never had Peruvian food, so cannot comment on authenticity. So this review is purely based on my palate and service expectations. Walking in, no one greets you or explains how this works. Upon asking, we find out we order at counter, get a number, and then grab a table. This does not work if most of the people walking in do not know the food or menu. Smartly they put up pictures of the food choices on the wall. Once we order we get a number to put on our table and sit. No one really available to explain menu. Food choices are basically chicken, pork or beef with rice and beans. But a different sauce. Everything is precooked and basically just plated, so comes quickly. Sauces not up to temperature, just luke warm; this worries me as it sits waiting to be ladled out. All meats cooked nicely. Roast chicken moist. Problem is everything is bland. Not undersalted, just bland. Has flavor, but just bland. Needed to add hot sauce to everything to add flavor. I think this is the way it is supposed to be. One server for the whole place. Seems like his first job as a server. Did not know which dishes were what, so we had to guess who ordered what. Overall, we liked it. Everyone liked my pot roast type dish best. The yellow sauce over pulled chicken just super bland. The roast chicken came with a side sauce that was a bit spicy and very good. We ordered 2 of the Peruvian drinks. Both sweet, one has clove flavor. We also got the flan. It was really good. I really want this place to make it, but they just don't understand service. Curious to try other dishes. May come back. read more

I've never experienced flavors even close to Culantro. I even had to look up "How to Make Peruvian Rice." I heartily enjoyed my choice of entree (Carne a la Planche, but sneaking a few bites of my friend's choice, the special for the day, was a grand idea). Frankly I doubt you can go wrong in terms of meal choice. The rice is truly unique and the prices are pretty reasonable compared to other food options in the area. I also am the type that typically opts for "water" but their Chicha Morada really caught my eye--if you enjoy cinnamon this is quite a treat. There were several other options on the menu I wanted to try but that just means I'll have to come in next time. Parking was convenient and the service was very polite. The staff was very patient with my indecision. Thank you, Culantro, for the memorable meal! read more

Culantro - The food was so good I forgot to take an aesthetically pleasing photo. - Peruvian Near Me - Ferndale, Michigan