Incas Grill in Concord: home-style Peruvian specialties in casual atmosphere
CONCORD, CA (August 23, 2022) — A strip mall with a Papa John’s Pizza and a 99 Cent Store hardly sounds like the locale for a gourmet Peruvian restaurant.
But under the tutelage of owners Ulises and Maria Napuri, Incas Grill has been serving large portions of home-style Peruvian cooking since 2009. The unique cuisine featuring seafood, chicken, pork, beef and lamb is like no other in Concord.
Ulises, who serves as executive chef, got his start operating a crab stand at Fisherman’s Wharf in San Francisco. He transferred this experience, along with recipes from his great-grandmother, to provide the foundation for the Incas Grill menu.
Where seafood is king
Typical of what they serve is the Seafood Pescadero, made with striped bass marinated in lime juice, chilies, garlic, cilantro and pickled red onions. He combines this flavor profile with whole Peruvian corn, corn kernels and a chunk of cooked sweet potato. Several diners can easily split the generous portion as an appetizer.
Incas Grill offers many other unique starters. I especially liked the Causa Rellena Con Cangrejo, which consists of mashed potatoes topped with a creamy crab-shrimp salad. The Con Pollo version was filled with chicken and avocado. Other alternatives, such as Empanadas, green-lipped mussels and Ocopa, are large enough to be a meal for the less hungry.
When it comes to entrees, Incas provides more than 40 selections. Ulises, who has a passion for home cooking seldom seen in the local culinary scene, stays close to his Fisherman’s Wharf roots with a staggering 13 seafood selections. His Arroz Con Mariscos is a Peruvian version of Basque paella with shrimp, mussels, fish and calamari served in a spicy sauce cooked over a mound of rice.
Incas Grill more than holds its own with similar dishes from local upscale restaurants Lima and Parada. On another visit, I enjoyed the Chicharron De Calamari featuring fried calamari, yucca, toasted corn and special salsa.
Incas only has one lamb dish, but their braised shanks are not to be missed. My lunch companion especially enjoyed the meat served with creamy Peruvian yellow beans and rice. Charley the dog also liked the bone packed for his later enjoyment.
But don’t count out the chicken
Important menu items at Incas involve poultry. Unlike restaurants that offer chicken breasts with assorted mundane sauces, Incas serves a diverse array of Peruvian specialties that brings their loyal customer base back for return visits.
Ulises serves their popular Casero combo with a delicious cilantro sauce. Though simple on paper, Incas’ rotisserie chicken marinated in Peruvian aji spice has been a mainstay of mine for several years.
Incas makes several soups using ingredients found in their other offerings; they can comprise a meal or be split for larger tables.
In addition to a kids’ menu, house-made fruit drinks are noteworthy. The Chicha Morada utilizing purple corn spiced with cinnamon and their passion fruit beverage are perfect companions to Peruvian specialties. I recommend purchasing these drinks in pitchers as one serving is often not enough. A diverse selection of wine and beer is also available.
Incas Grill is a family-run operation, with relatives and in-laws making up most of the staff. If this were not enough, Maria still has time to operate a souvenir stand at Fisherman’s Wharf that the family owned prior to opening their restaurant.
Incas is open seven days a week for lunch and dinner at 4669 Clayton Road. Reservations are especially recommended on weekends at 925-687-2479. Visit their website at incasgrill.com.
Contact Richard Eber at rjerje@pacbell.net.
Read more Taste and Tell restaurant reviews.
Rich Eber
Rich Eber is a local journalist and long time resident of Concord. His diverse topics covered go from politics to gourmet food. He can be reached at rjerje@pacbell.net