Review: Urubamba in Huntington
The classic ceviche at Urubamba in Huntington. Credit: Newsday/Alejandra Villa Loarca
Urubamba is New York City's oldest Peruvian restaurant, opened in 1970 by Julian and Maria Ruiz. Their granddaughter Silvana Rojas has blessed Long Island with a chic and modern version that takes design inspiration from eateries you might find in the bohemian Barranco neighborhood of Lima. The restaurant features a white color palette accented by gray stones and festive multicolor pompoms and imported tribal figurines, and in its center, a small bar with muted gold stools that welcomes diners with killer pisco sours, the national drink of Peru.
Urubamba
Range of entrees: $30 to $45
Accessibility: Yes.
Attributes: Celebrations, date night, family-friendly, open for lunch, new for 2026
Reservations: Suggested
286 New York Ave., Huntington
Upon seating, a server offers cancha, or corn nuts, which are typical to Lima’s casual cevicherias, alongside chicha morada, or the deep, purple juice that ferments from Peruvian purple corn. Andean people are said to have used this elixir for its antiaging and immune-boosting antioxidants. So begins the easy dialogue that Urubamba wants to have with diners.
Representative of Peru, the classic ceviche — which is spiced to order — is chock full of pureed sweet potato florets, red onion and toothy maize, or choclo, alongside white fish marinating in leche de tigre, a milky citrus jus that flavors and tenderizes the fish. If raw fish isn’t your thing, opt for the anitcuchos, traditional tender veal heart skewers accompanied by fragrant rosemary potatoes. Both are excellent.
Credit: Emma Rose Milligan
Notable dishes
Classic ceviche, anticuchos, lomo saltado, lucuma pannacotta
Tip:
Quiet by day, Urubamba is open for lunch Friday through Sunday, if you’d prefer a daytime meal. If you’re not familiar with Peruvian food, this is a wonderful place to explore. Ask questions; the staff couldn’t be happier to educate diners on the bounty of Peruvian food.
For entrees, arroz con mariscos is a Peruvian-style paella with shrimp, mussels, octopus and squid. Typical Peruvian style rotisserie chicken is made here with Cornish hens, while the short rib chaufa, or stir-fry, is made with quinoa and subs mushrooms for vegan diners. But it's the perfectly cooked lomo saltado, a sirloin, onion and tomato stir-fry accented with roasted potatoes, that won over our hearts and palates. For dessert, don’t skip lucuma pannacotta, which is made with the tropical fruit from Peru that tastes like a flavor bomb between vanilla and peach and accented by purple corn syrup, blackberries and raspberries. A notable plus: Ninety percent of the menu is gluten-free.
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A global freelancer who has checked her suitcase to raise her young daughter on her native Long Island, Marie Elena will always make time for good mezcal, even better tacos and killer conversation. Preferably, in a corner bar seat. She can be found on Instagram at @mariesworldeats.
