¡Viva Garibaldi Peru-Mex! Great People Serving Great Food

If you've read any of my past bloggin's, you know I take my Mexican food very seriously. Let me re-phrase that.  I take my Mexican food VERY, VERY seriously. I spent my formative years 20 minutes north of the Mexican border outside of San Diego. When I vacation: I vacation in Mexico. Heck, my first car in high school was a '68 Chevy Impala, the numero uno choice of cars to be be altered into those rolling pieces of art known as lowriders. In a nutshell, I'm a huge fan of all things Mexican.

So, when I finally was able to get to Garibaldi Peru-Mex on Route 46 for dinner, I left weak in the knees knowing that I had found a new bastion of authentic cuisine from south of the border. Serving not only great Mexican food but always a treat incredible Peruvian food, as well. Peruvian food, like Puerto Rican food, I find to have both similarities and differences to Mexican fare that both excite and comfort me at the same time. This is food that can be incredibly traditional and reliable and new and creative simultaneously. 

You walk into Garibaldi Peru-Mex and are immediately at ease in it's warm tones and comfortable and homey atmosphere. This is not a fancy schmancy restaurant. This is a fantastic restaurant in a small little strip mall next to a bike shop and an Indian restaurant. But, you know what? They're serving some of the best damned food in Morris County and you should go with a cold 6 pack of cervezas or a bottle of wine and eat like there's no tomorrow.

Do yourself a favor and try either the yucca fries or the Papa a la Huancaina. The yucca fries are a like a denser earthier cousin to potato fries and come with a tongue sizzling hot sauce. And, the Papa a  la Huancaina, is this incredible Peruvian-version of potato salad that has to be tasted to truly understand and enjoy.

The wife had a piece of tilapia that was fried to perfection. This fish tasted like it had gone from the water, to the pan to her plate in the time it took to order it and start eating it. I was picking every bit of flaky moist white meat off every bone I could. And, I am not a fish eater. Another must have is the incredibly succulent Peruvian rotisserie chicken. Moist meat and crispy skin I could eat like a bag of LAY'S Potato Chips.

For me, when there is mole' on the menu, I don't even hesitate. If I was on death row, enchilada mole' would be my last meal. If I could replace my blood with any other liquid, it would be mole' sauce. Get the picture? So, the mole' at Garibaldi's? On a scale of 1 to 10, is about a 13. This is OMG!! good mole'.

As an extra bonus, we had dinner delivered the other night, and my worries that the quality I had experienced eating there would suffer in traveling, were quickly laid to rest. Their take-out is not only just as delicious but they deliver and are a great alternative to the standard "only Italian or Chinese places deliver!" dilemma.

Garibaldi Peru-Mex is located at 107 Route 46 East, between Spice Grill and Cycle Craft.