Maido is the restaurant of Mitsuharu Tsumara, currently ranked at number 7 in the World’s 50 Best Restaurants list and number 2 in Latin America’s 50 Best Restaurants. The restaurant specialises in Nikkei cuisine, a type of cuisine that uses Peruvian ingredients with Japanese techniques.
Being a descendant of Japanese immigrants, Tsumara travelled to Osaka following his graduation from culinary arts in the US to learn more about his Japanese heritage. Here, he specialised in sushi and izakaya (Japanese-style bar snacks), before returning to Peru and creating Maido. Now, using all he has learned, Tsumaru searches for the very best ingredients from across all corners of Peru and creates unique Nikkei dishes like a Peruvian seafood soup dumpling or lucuma ice cream with soy sauce.
Table of Contents
The Menu
Maido offers a 12-course ‘Nikkei Experience’ that takes you on a journey from the Pacific coast of Peru down into the jungle of the Amazon Rainforest. A number of the dishes change daily based on which ingredients are available, such as the nigiri course which sometimes is foie gras and other times sea urchin. To accompany the Experience, Maido offers a beverage pairing consisting of wines, beers, ciders and spirits, as well as a very unique and creative cocktail menu, which is definitely worth ordering a few drinks from.
1 – Snacks
Amazonic Puffed Potato. Rice Senbei, Grouper Fish, Coral Emulsion, Clams.
The Nikkei Experience began with a course simply called ‘Snacks’. In the box were three unique looking dishes. Firstly, a black Amazonian potato filled with sweet and tangy lime cream and chunks of a meaty, smoked sausage. Secondly, the rice senbei, a traditional Japanese rice cracker, sandwiched a thick grouper fish mousse which tasted just like the sauce you get in moules marinière. Finally, the razor clam topped with a zingy and soy flavoured ponzu, fresh fish roe, crispy fried garlic and crunchy rice crackers.
2 – Que Tal Concha
Paracas Scallops, Green Butter Beans, Huacatay Oil, Miso, Smoke.
Topped tableside with a savoury seaweed powder, these scallops were sweet and buttery, with a fruitiness coming from the sauce. The crunchy black mashua tuba contrasted the tenderness of the scallops.
3 – Chupe de Camarones
Wrapped in a Xiao Long Bao Dough
Soup dumplings are so good and this was no different. Inside the slightly chewy dumpling was a rich, seafood soup known as chupe de camarones, a traditional Peruvian soup made from river shrimp, fava beans, milk and cheese.
4 – Sanguchito
Katsu Sando. Veal Sweetbreads, Cabbage, Spicy Mustard
Wow. This sandwich looks so simple, but damn was it tasty. Two slices of milk bread sandwiched a veal sweetbreads katsu. It tasted sweet and smoky like it had been barbecued and the texture of the veal was so silky.
5 – Udon
Tsuyu, Trout Eggs, Egg Yolk, Tenkasu
Slightly chewy udon noodles, topped with slices of nori, trout eggs, an egg yolk, scallions and tenkasu, which are the crispy parts of tempura. At the table, the waiter poured on tsuyu, a rich sauce made from fish stock, as well as soy sauce, rice vinegar and shiitake mushrooms. Just before eating, we mixed the egg yolk into the sauce for a creamy, savoury and salty dish.
6 – Leche de Tigre
Crab Dashi and Tapiocas
After the filling udon noodles, the next dish was simply a refreshing shot of leche de tigre (tiger’s milk), a popular appetiser in Peru typically found in ceviche. The leche de tigre was a perfect balance of flavours with the zing of the limes, the umami of the crab dashi, the sweetness of the chunks of crab and the freshness of the coriander.
7 – Sushi
Nigiri of the Day, Chirashi.
Next up we had two different kinds of sushi, a nigiri of the day and a chirashi. The nigiri for me was rice, topped with cubes of foie gras and wrapped in tuna. At the table, the waiter brushed the foie gras in a sweet ponzu and caramelised it with a blow torch, creating a smoky and tender bite.
The chirashi was rice topped with melt-in-your-mouth salmon and sweet, grilled unagi (eel) which again was finished table side with a blow torch to just slightly caramelise the unagi.
8 – Gindara
Sudado Reduction, Seaweed.
Another perfect example of Nikkei cuisine, marrying Peruvian and Japanese foods. This dish was a take on sudado, a traditional Peruvian soup which in this case was made from yellow peppers and gindara (black cuttlefish). The soup was so creamy and full of fish flavour, with chunks of the meaty gindara. There were all sorts of other things in the soup as well, like little pearls that went pop, small fruits that brought a sweetness, seaweed and caramelised onion.
9 – Beef Cheek
Seco Reduction, Tsukemono, Cloud of Jora Corn and Chili Pepper
The final main dish of the night was another take on a Peruvian soup called seco, a meaty stew. In this case, the stew was reduced until the beef cheeks were pull-apart tender. The sauce tasted like a thick, cheesy and meaty sauce, which also contained tsukemono, Japanese preserved vegetables which gave a fresh acidity to cut through the stew’s richness. On the side was a cracker made from jora corn that had a smoky bacon flavour which we could use to dip into the stew.
10 – Loche
Panela Ice Cream, Loche Textures,Corn and Huacatay
On to the dessert courses and maybe my favourite dishes of the night. This started off with an airy, corn cream, topped with sesame seeds, seaweed flakes, huacatay and crunchy shards of corn. As you dig through the cream you find the cool, smooth panela ice cream, with panela being a raw sugar from the sugarcane. Going deeper into the dessert you find a creamy, orange gel and biscuits with a slight flavour of orange blossom.
11 – C L C
Amador Piura Cacao – 70%, Lucuma Ice Cream with Soy Sauce, Macambo Foam.
Next up is the cacao course, showing off one of the best ingredients of Peru. Served in an orange dish, surrounded by cacao seeds was a caramelised macambo foam, a cousin of the cacao. Underneath the foam was the classic hot and cold trope that seems to make every dessert better. The cool lucuma ice cream had this rich, custardy flavour, which contrasted with the warm, fudgy and salty cacao-soy caramel. Then, if you weren’t already satisfied with the dish, digging that little bit deeper revealed a crunchy, Piura texture with caramelised nuts, adding that final chocolatey and nutty, textural layer to the dish.
12 – Our “Little” Box
Dorayaki of Copoazu, Piura Cacao Mochi.
Finally, finishing off the night after two amazing desserts were two small bites, served in a cool ceramic pot that the chef, Mitsuhara brought back from Japan. Taking off the lid of the pot revealed the first bite, a Piura cacao mochi. This was chocolatey, minty and had a slight chew from the outside of the mochi. Then, taking off the mochi layer of the pot, revealed the final bite of the experience. A dorayaki brushed with a sour syrup made from copoazu, a rainforest fruit related to cacao. The two pancakes sandwiched a copoazu ice cream. A delicious and refreshing bite to end the meal.
The Drinks
Maido offers a beverage pairing to accompany the Nikkei experience, consisting of wines, beers, ciders and spirits, but I decided not to go with this. Instead, I had a few non-alcoholic cocktails to pair with the dishes, as recommended by my waiter. These drinks, known as ‘Creativities’, really capture the essence of Nikkei cuisine in a glass by bringing interesting ingredients from both Japan and Peru together.
Firstly, I had a Murasaki. This was a funky and refreshing drink that fused the flavours of green tea, pomegranate fruit, lychee and orange. The cocktail was topped with a pineapple foam that slowly settled down into the drink, changing the cocktail’s flavour with each sip. Next up, I had a Shipibo which highlighted fruits from all over Peru, such as cocona, lulo, pitahaya and camu camu. And finally, the final cocktail was called Para Para. The orange coloured drink had nasturtium-like floral and peppery notes, complemented with a bit of sweetness from carrot juice.
The Experience
Maido is a small, cool and cosy restaurant with just 12 tables, a cocktail bar and a sushi bar. It probably had one of the funkiest looking ceilings I’ve seen in a restaurant, with lots of long red and gold ropes hanging low above the tables.
The staff were really friendly and made you feel relaxed, something I found to be very typical of Peruvian restaurants. As you walk into the restaurant, all the staff shout “MAIDO!”, a Japanese greeting, usually used to welcome regular customers.
Closing Thoughts
Maido is the epitome of Nikkei cuisine. Each dish is artistically created, taking you through an experience that shows off the best of Peruvian and Japanese flavours. Whether it’s the luxurious beef cheeks with the crunchy cloud of jora corn or the beautiful balance of cool, lucuma ice cream with hot soy sauce and cacao caramel, each dish is artistically created, taking you through an experience that shows the very best of Peruvian and Japanese flavours. Maido is definitely a must-visit if you find yourself in Peru.
Pricing and Details
Nikkei Experience without Pairing: £90 / $123 / s/479
Address: C. San Martin No. 399, Miraflores 15074, Peru
Book here: https://maido.pe/en/
Looking for Accommodation near Maido?
There are 2 main neighbourhoods that we recommend staying in when visiting Maido and Lima; Barranco and Miraflores.
Barranco Recommendations
The bohemian district of Lima is filled with vibrant street art, cliff-side bars and boutique hotels.
- Budget: Kokopelli Hostel Barranco – Mixed Dorm, S/.56 / £12 / $15
- Mid-Range: Casa Fanning Hotel – 1-Bed Apartment, S/.140 / £30 / $37
- Luxury: 3B Barranco’s B&B – Standard Double Room, S/.233 / £50 / $62
Miraflores Recommendations
The upscale neighbourhood of Lima. You’ll find luxury hotels, beautiful parks lining the cliffs and high-end shopping experiences here. Maido is located in Miraflores, making this a great choice.
- Budget: Llaqta Wasi – Mixed Dorm, S/.37 / £8 / $10
- Mid-Range: Hotel Andesmar – Queen Room, S/.160 / £34 / $42
- Luxury: JW Marriot Hotel Lima – Deluxe Room with Ocean View, S/.990 / £210 / $260
Thanks for reading – and if you want to read more about Peruvian restaurants, check out this Central review!
