Review: Pio Pio in Glen Cove
Ceviche Limeno with corvina, lime juice, red onions, cilantro and rocoto at Pio Pio in Glen Cove. Credit: Yvonne Albinowski
It all started with four tables in Rego Park, Queens. In 1994, Augusto Yallico opened a tiny Peruvian eatery called Pio Pio and, within a few years, its main item, rotisserie chicken, had become a cult item. Last summer, Pio Pio opened a stunning restaurant in Glen Cove.
The huge, high-ceilinged, light-filled space is divided into a chic bar and a bohemian dining room. There's a full drinks menu — here's your chance to try the Peruvian national cocktail, the pisco sour — and a menu that extends beyond rotisserie chicken (a.k.a. Juanita's chicken) to the seafood soups chupe and parihuela, the great potato dishes causa de pollo and papa a la Huancaina, the Chinese-influenced arroz chaufa (fried rice) and lomo saltado (stir-fried beef), jalea (fried mixed seafood) and ceviche (raw, marinated fish).
Ceviche limeno, raw corvina fish marinated in lime juice, at Pio Pio in Glen Cove. Credit: Yvonne Albinowski
Pulpo al olivo, an inventive Peruvian dish that features cold octopus slices nestled inside a bright yellow aji amarillo and salty purple olive sauce, is a sleeper hit from the appetizer menu ($25).
But the most popular dish is the "matador combo," which can feed four people ($74). Centered around a whole, burnished chicken — which must be anointed with Pio Pio’s famous spicy green sauce — it also includes a platter of salchipapas (French fries topped with hot dog slices, improbably delicious), tostones (fried and smashed green plantains), avocado salad and rice and beans.
"In the city spots, it’s a quicker take-away experience; everyone moves faster there," said bartender Juan Carlos Chavero. "Out here, people are more curious. They have more time. They’re not in a rush. They try more things. It’s not just about the chicken."
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Andi Berlin is from Arizona and does not know where she is going. But when she gets there, she’ll find something beautiful and delicious that the world needs to taste.
