Probably the dish I have enjoyed the most has been the Pollo Saltado, a flavorful roasted chicken that was not spicy, but was topped with vegetables and garnishes. I thought this was a very good introduction to South American food, provided one is hungry for meat (two vegetarian versions are also available: one with spinach and one with spinach and linguini). The saltado dish is also available with seafood or beef. The chicken was good, though, and I thought was one of the better versions of chicken I have had in the OKC area.

The Peruvian dishes come with side dishes that are typical of the country. Mine included fried plantains and yuca. Sliced tomatoes and onions provide added flavor.

Pollo saltado with white rice and cilantro sauce

The second photo of pollo saltado was a more recent version I received that had a green cilantro sauce instead of the former aji amarillo sauce, and white rice instead of brown. The cilantro sauce was somewhat disappointing compared to the aji amarillo sauce, but I still enjoyed the dish overall, and I think this is probably the best dish at the restaurant.

Jamaican curry chicken

One advantage of Zarate's is that they not only have Mexican food, but also dishes from several Latin American countries. One that was recommended by my waiter was Jamaican Curry Chicken, and I can assume this is one of Zarate's specialties. This was sauteed chicken with potatoes, and a Caribbean style curry sauce. I cannot judge how authentic it was, but it was good. However, I did not think it was quite as spectacular as I have heard that some Jamaican dishes can be.

Feijoada

Zarate's also offers Feijoada, the "national dish" from Brazil made of black beans with ham, ground pork, and pulled pork. I thought this had a good flavor but certainly not a vibrant flavor, and did not seem to match the type of Brazilian food I have had at Cafe do Brasil in downtown Oklahoma City. Still, it left me wanting to try more of the different national dishes from Central and South American offered at Zarate's.

On the Mexican food I tried the chips and salsa were really nothing special, although the special spicy salsa served on request was good. The Rice was quite surprising, though, with a tomato flavor that reminded me of the good versions served in El Paso.

The Chile Relleno was also quite good, although since I judge all of these chiles by the ones in New Mexico I only gave this one four stars out of five.

Zarate's has a lunch menu that comes at substantially reduced prices, but the tradeoff is that not all dishes are available (including the pollo saltado). I cannot speak for the other dinners, but I thought the pollo saltado was very good, and probably provided a better bargain than at most restaurants that charge the same prices.