In a word: Lima to eaters.

The specs: #0544  
Address, hours & details via Isthmus; reviews at 5929, , Yelp, Fearful Symmetries, Isthmus; video review by W1RLD; listing at Eat Drink Madison; official web site, Facebook.

JM, Jennifer and John ate the lomo saltado, with a sangria and a soda.
Nichole ate the ceviche pescado with a chicha morada.
Skip ate the brocheta de lomito with a chicha morada.
The bill was $38 plus tip.
Skip gave Pollo Inka an A; Jennifer, John, and Nichole gave Pollo Inka a B+; JM gave Pollo Inka a B.

First things first: we didn’t get the pollo at Pollo Inka because all of us had either had it or read a lot about it. We hear it’s OK.

The beverages were a mixed bag. The sangria was very light and hit the spot; likewise the iced chicha morada was very quaffable, lighter in color and flavor than what we had at Inka Heritage. The biggest disappointment (or most ingenious business decision) was the $1.50 can of Roundy’s (?!) root beer that had JM gnashing his teeth. Despite the glass of ice that sometimes implies bottomless soda, we dared not ask for a refill.

We’d never seen salchipapa before, but we’d come back just to split a plate of this fantastic(al) stuff. It’s hot dogs, on a bed of lettuce, atop fries, lashed with bright orange and purple sauces. The fries were nothing special (a shame, since they underpin nearly every dish on the menu). The hot dogs, though, had a great snappy skin. We could have done without the lettuce, which quickly wilted, but the sauces were super. Orange “golf” sauce (salsa golf) was tangy and 1000-islandish; the purple sauce was made of olives and we want that recipe badly. 

The ceviche came mixto with an assortment of crustaceans or pescado with just tilapia (Nichole’s choice). The dressing/cooking liquid was bright with lime flavor and also lots of peppery spice, though the fish itself was rubbery. Corn niblets, mellow red onion slices and very soft (not to say overcooked) sweet potatoes filled out the appetizer. The presentation on a half-shell was pretty.

Pollo Inka’s simple take on the classic beef, tomato, and onion stir-fry was more like lomo salado, heh. It was beyond salty from the soy sauce in the marinade. Yet everyone joined the clean plate and high blood pressure club anyway, because the tender meat was just that good and the long-grain white rice and thick fries were perfect for sopping up the surplus.

Skip’s beef skewers were nice and rare, and lightly seasoned on a bed of the near-ubiquitous french fries. The side salad of shredded lettuce, avocado, cucumbers, and tomato probably made his plate the most balanced on the table.

Pollo Inka suffers the same problems with decor and layout that JM noticed when it was Oliva (which has since moved next door). If only Pollo Inka had a patio – we can think of worse ways to spend a summer night.