La Lucha (Lima)

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Great little deli/restaurant located on Block 3 ("Cuadra 3") of Avenida Diagonal (officially Avenida Mariscal Oscar R Benavides) between Calle Mártir José Olaya and Pasaje San Ramón (which is also known as "Calle Pizza"). "La Lucha" is actually at the corner of Diagonal and Olaya (technically, the northwest corner - but it is much easier to think of it as "the corner of Diagonal and Olaya closer to the ocean"). The address is Avenida Mariscal Oscar R Benavides 308. It lies next door to Starbucks.

The sandwiches here are good, but the perennial problem in Lima is the SIZE of the portions. In Lima they just don't give good sized portions. One way to get around this problem is to eat at "La Bistecca" in San Isidro (or Chacarilla too), or to dine at "Il Forno" (near Óvalo Higuerata in Miraflores) because both of those places remarkably have an "all you can eat" policy. But if you are looking for the closest thing Lima has to a deli, then you don't want La Bistecca nor Il Forno - you want "La Lucha").

Personally, I don't trust Limeños when it comes to defrosting turkey (a process that should be done with considerable care and attention to detail). So I stay away from turkey sandwiches EVERYWHERE. But everything else should be fine. Try the house special "La Lucha" which is steak and cheese. Just make sure that you order two of them.

But the fries are really good. There are two sizes. Defintely order the large size - known as "Papas Fritas Huayro Clásico". NOTE: You DEFINITELY want their all-star fries. BUT, they only have the fries at this location and the location within C.C. Larcomar. Therefore, you want to avoid their two very small "La Lucha" locations at Óvalo Guriérrez and at Pasaje Marcelino Champagnat (facing the outdoor chess tables) where they have no fries.

Getting food late at night is a problem in this area. The restaurants generally close by midnight or earlier. "La Lucha" closes just a little later at 1 AM and is therefore, one of the few exceptions.

This place is pretty good. Try it. Remember to go up to the register right away and pay them though. Then they'll bring your sandwiches and fries. That's the way things are done in Lima. There are too many Limeños who would try to bolt out without paying, or just change their mind and leave right after ordering.