Bringing a unique blend of Peruvian flavors with influences from many other cultural cuisines such as Greek and Latin American, Sí Señor offers Grandview Heights a globe-trotting lunch experience that has been widely popular since its opening in 2017.
After leaving Peru and coming to America at 20 years old, owner and head chef, Guillermo Perez, worked many restaurant jobs and eventually decided that owning a restaurant was the path he wanted to take.
Perez and his wife, Christell Gózzer, opened a sandwich joint in downtown Columbus in 2010, before they moved to Grandview Heights with a redefined menu and branding. Sí Señor was created after years of experimenting with recipes, to find the best sandwich combinations.
Sí Señor
Although developing the styles and tastes of its sandwiches was a long process, Perez knew Sí Señor would use fresh ingredients and prepare dishes in-house as much as possible.
“We make everything from scratch,” Perez says. “We don’t buy anything pre-made…”
Whether he is creating homemade pickled onions and tomato jams or cooking chicken and pork, freshness is something Perez takes great pride in.
Sandwiches, Sandwiches, Sandwiches
With 16 sandwiches on the menu, everything from tilapia and chorizo to beef and chicken is available to accommodate all palettes and cravings.
A go-to for many Sí Señor visitors, the Chicharron Peruano is a sandwich you’ll have trouble finding anywhere else in Columbus.
Trying the sandwich myself, I tasted large chunks of tender, pork chicharron, pickled onions and a sweet potato mayo smeared on top. Every bite was well-balanced with a salty, sweet and acidic flavor, all stacked between what Perez believes makes a sandwich truly great - the bread - in the form of two slices of crisp ciabatta.
While the Chicharron Peruano was fantastic, I felt the true star of my meal was the cilantro cream pasta salad. Perfectly doused in a smooth, cilantro dressing and mixed in veggies, these green noodles are the sandwich's ideal sidekick, giving a refreshing switch from the warm and savory chicharron.
Topping it all off is Gózzer’s contribution to the menu, tres leches cake, from a recipe she developed and Lopez now makes himself. Light, moist and flavorful with hand-whipped cream, this slice will end any Sí Señor visit with a sweet sensation.
The People’s Palate
Recently opening a location in the Arena District with a smaller and more focused menu, Sí Señor looks to reach an even wider range of Columbus foodies with its Peruvian creations.
However, opening a new storefront wouldn’t have been possible for Perez without the support that the Tri-Village area customer base gave him.
Sí Señor
When he initially opened in Grandview Heights, he didn’t understand much about the community or the potential customers, but once word got around about his sandwiches, Perez became much more aware and connected to the city.
“Grandview has been very good to us,” Perez says. “I realized there’s a lot of young people and they like to go out to eat, try new things and are very open-minded to different types of cuisines.”
These young customers, whether they are college students or young professionals, oftentimes return with their parents or relatives, introducing them to Sí Señor and creating a domino effect as more older adults start coming in and expanding their palates, Perez says.
Above all, witnessing children and teens enjoy his food is what he appreciates most about operating Sí Señor.
“If we make a young kid happy, we feel like we succeeded because they haven’t tried that many things yet,” Perez says. “That means we did good.”
Peruvian Fish Ceviche (yields six servings):
The national dish of Peru, ceviche is a cold-fish delicacy that can either be an appetizer or a full entree - with an authentic, Peruvian focus on fresh ingredients.
Ingredients:
- 2 lbs. white fish fillet (Mahi-Mahi)
- 1 small purple onion
- 3 medium habanero red peppers
- 1/2 cup coriander
- 1 tsp. grated ginger
- 2 medium sweet potatoes
- 1 cup corn
- Salt to taste
Directions:
- Wash and dry the fish. Remove scales, spine and bones.
- Cut fish into approximately 2 cm cubes of equal size.
- Squeeze and strain limes and lemon into a bowl, removing all seeds.
- Place cubes of fish into bowl so they are covered by lemon and lime juice.
- Cover the bowl and place in the refrigerator for 20-30 minutes. Check the fish periodically to make sure each cube is touching the lemon and lime juice, turn cubes if necessary.
- Wash the sweet potatoes and place in a steamer for 30 minutes. When they become tender, remove the skin and cut into large pieces.
- Open the peppers to remove seeds and veins, dice them to small pieces.
- Peel the onion and slice into thin strips.
- Finely cut the coriander.
- Take fish from the refrigerator. The meat should then be cooked to an opaque flesh that is tender and falls apart.
- Add the onions, peppers, coriander, ginger and salt into a bowl and stir. Let the bowl sit in the refrigerator for 10 minutes.
- Remove from the refrigerator and plate with corn and sweet potato. Plantain chips are typically eaten with ceviche.
Kyle Quinlan is an editorial assistant at CityScene Media Group. Feedback welcome at feedback@cityscenemediagroup.com.
