Peruvian chicken makes its Oakland debut

Like most sensible people, I throw out mail inserts almost immediately, often before looking at… Like most sensible people, I throw out mail inserts almost immediately, often before looking at them. But when I received a glossy half-sheet that simply read ‘Mmm … Delicious!!!’ in the mail last week, the usual urge to toss just wasn’t there. Maybe it was the picture below of an entire rotisserie chicken on a plate with fries. More than likely, though, it was the trio of exclamation points. One is something, but three? Immediately, I set out on a quest to eat at this restaurant. AJ’s, as I learned on Thursday night, is a true melding of cultures. The restaurant’s main draws are burgers and ‘- a first for Oakland as far as I know ‘- Peruvian rotisserie chicken and traditional dishes. The menu looks a lot like that of Five Guys if it substituted Peruvian fried rice for, say, grilled cheese. AJ’s looks a lot like your average pizza place on first glance. There are sparse walls decorated with art reflecting the owner’s homeland, a soda machine and a few plants. The menu was split almost exactly in half ‘mdash; ‘Famous Burgers’ on one side, Peruvian specialties on the other. The smell of the rotisserie was intoxicating and filled up the entire front half of the restaurant. It wasn’t hard to decide that my selection would be from that half of the menu ‘mdash; I can get a burger anywhere, but Peruvian chicken? My options, as I saw it at the time, were AJ’s or Peru, and it was too snowy to attempt a last-minute trip to Peru. I ordered the arroz chaufa ($6.95), listed as Peruvian fried rice, including chicken, vegetables, egg, sliced hot dog and … wait, sliced hot dog? Here we had the best of both halves of the menu. I was sold. The lovely woman at the counter smiled and took my order, assuring me it wouldn’t be too long. Even with the description, though, I wasn’t sure what to expect. A group of diners to my left had a table full of chicken and all sorts of delicious-looking food. The smell wafted in my direction, making those three exclamation points seem worthwhile. My arroz chaufa came soon after. I dove right in. The rice was light and fluffy, with an almost couscous consistency. Mixed in were peas and corn, adding a bit of heft to the dish, along with shredded bits of rotisserie chicken. The chicken packed a bold, dark flavor and gave each bite a much stronger impact. The problem was there simply wasn’t enough chicken. The ingredient that was by far the highlight of the dish was lacking ‘mdash; by the end of the meal only fried rice was left, and I was missing the chicken that tied it all together. The chaufa also contained thinly sliced pieces of kosher hot dog. While many traditional recipes for the dish call for sliced ham or bacon, AJ’s has chosen hot dogs. This might not be the best decision. Hot dogs seem out of place in this otherwise nicely seasoned dish. My side dish of fries ($3.99, large), ordered ‘Cajun style,’ did not quite meet my expectations. The Cajun seasoning was hard to detect, and the homemade fries seemed a bit undercooked ‘mdash; fries this big (about half the size of steak fries) need to be well cooked for a crisp, crunchy taste. Still, had I ordered one of the more chicken-centric dishes I don’t think I would have left even a bit dissatisfied. With an extra rotisserie sitting next to the front door, chicken is clearly the AJ’s specialty. And leaving full (of food and longing), I just wanted more of it. I’ll be back to AJ’s in the future, but I’ll stick with simpler foods ‘mdash; namely an entire rotisserie chicken for $12.99. If the shredded chicken in my dinner was any indication, AJ’s might earn those three exclamation points after all.