Article 1582 of pgh.food: Path: fs7.ece.cmu.edu!crabapple.srv.cs.cmu.edu!bb3.andrew.cmu.edu!andrew.cmu.edu!rs8d+ From: "Robert M. Stowe" Newsgroups: pgh.food Subject: La Feria (Peruvian restaurant in Shadyside) Date: Fri, 28 Jan 1994 23:01:05 -0500 Organization: Psychology, Carnegie Mellon, Pittsburgh, PA Lines: 43 Message-ID: NNTP-Posting-Host: po2.andrew.cmu.edu I recently re-joined this newsgroup after a long absence, so I don't know if "La Feria" has been "reviewed" lately or not. But I was impressed enough when I ate there tonight to post a testimonial (unfortunately a rare reaction after eating in a Pgh restaurant!) La Feria, which has been open for about a year, specializes in Peruvian and Latin American fare. The menu is quite small, consisting of several daily $6.99 specials (almost always at least one of which is vegetarian), a few appetizers, a soup-of-the-day, and several sandwiches ($5.50, including side dishes or soup in some cases) and salads ($5.50). The food is made from fresh ingredients without additives or MSG. La Feria also has an expresso bar, but there's a $4/person minimum charge on weekends. I had one of the specials, the "Pastel de Choclo", a delicious, spicy Peruvian corn pie with ground beef, raisins, black olives, yellow peppers, onion and garlic. It was served piping hot with perfectly cooked, fluffy white rice, good bread, and an excellent salad with fresh, crisp romaine, spinach, tomatoes (that had real flavor), black olives, red onion, Swiss and Parmesan cheeses, and a great, creamy Caesar-like "Peruvian vinagrette" (the "secret recipe" for which could unfortunately not be extracted from the otherwise exceptionally friendly and helpful staff who co-own the restaurant). Everything seemed to go very well together; overall, a filling and very tasty meal, and a steal at $6.99! I also had a taste of the vegetarian special, "Llapingachos", a potato & cheese casserole with cilantro and yellow pepper, served with a spicy peanut sauce (and the same side dishes as the other special). This was quite tasty and definitely a cut above the average (given the disappointingly low quality and availability of vegetarian fare in Pgh) although I liked the Pastel de Choclo a bit better. La Feria is located upstairs in a Peruvian crafts store, above "Pamela's", at 5527 Walnut St. in Shadyside (between Ivy & Filbert). The ambience is cafe-like, warm and spacious, even though they only have a few tables, and it's refreshingly quiet, even when busy. The clientele seemed as friendly and relaxed as the staff. Hours are 10 am - 9 pm (but if you want dinner, get there by 8 pm, as they close at 9) M-F, and 10-6 on Saturday (closed Sunday). They take M/C and VISA ($15 minimum). You can call 682-4501 and they'll tell you the daily specials. - bob