My quest to find the best ceviche in Tarapoto has gone from bad to worse. On the recommendation of a neighbour, I went to Cebicheria Waikiki (Jr. Alonso de Alvarado 139). This place makes Monsefú look like a fish-lovers paradise.

cebicheria-waikiki-tarapoto-peru

I really don’t have much to say about Waikiki. The “cebiche especial de Waikiki” (S/.16) was average — too raw for my taste and with little evidence of anything “special”.

The jalea mixta (S/.20) was, in a word, pathetic. This plate of oily, heavily battered seafood now takes the crown of worst jalea mixta ever. The chef even managed to make the fried yuca disgusting, a skill that can only be mastered after many years of neglectful, passionless cooking.

Everything looked and tasted like it had been prepared days earlier, frozen, then lackadaisically refried before being dumped on a plate and smothered with diced onions. Even now, an hour after eating, I’m finding it hard to shift the taste of this monstrosity, whose bulk I left half-uneaten on the table.

Cebicheria Waikiki… Don’t go.

Jalea Mixta

Possibly the worst jalea mixta in Peru.