Latin America is a rich and diverse region, both in its culture and in its gastronomy and making it look through its most renowned restaurants. Latin American cuisine is the result of the fusion of the culinary traditions of the original peoples, the European colonizers, African slaves and Asian immigrants, among others. Each country, and even every region, has its own typical dishes, ingredients, flavors and techniques, which reflect its history, geography and climate.
Latin American restaurants are the setting where you can appreciate and enjoy this gastronomic richness, ranging from the most traditional and authentic to the most innovative and avant-garde. There are restaurants for all tastes and budgets, from the most popular and accessible to the most exclusive and sophisticated. Some of them have been internationally recognized for their quality, creativity and excellence, and have entered the prestigious lists of the best most recognized restaurants in the world.
In this article, we present you some of the most renowned restaurants in Latin America, according to the lists of Latin Americas 50 Best Restaurants and The Worlds 50 Best Restaurants, which are prepared each year with the vote of gastronomic experts from all over the world. These restaurants are just a sample of the variety and talent in the region, and we invite you to discover them and explore others.
Central (Lima, Peru)
One of the most renowned restaurants in America
Central is the restaurant of chef Virgilio Martínez and his wife, chef Pía León, who has become one of the references of Peruvian and world cuisine. Central is characterized by its exploration of the ecosystems and biodiversity of Peru, from the coast to the jungle, through the Andes and the Amazon.
Each dish is a representation of a landscape, an altitude, flora and fauna, which is made with local ingredients, many of them unknown or little used. The tasting menu, which changes according to the season and availability of the products, is a sensory and educational journey through the Peruvian territory, which surprises and delights the diner. Central has been chosen as the best restaurant in Latin America on several occasions, and has ranked 6th on the list of the best restaurants in the world in 2022, is one of the most renowned restaurants in Latin America.
Maido (Lima, Peru)
Maido is the restaurant of chef Mitsuharu Tsumura, better known as Micha, which fuses Peruvian cuisine with Japanese cuisine, giving rise to so-called Nikkei cuisine. This cuisine is the fruit of the influence of Japanese immigrants who arrived in Peru in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and who adapted their recipes and techniques to local ingredients and flavors. Maido offers a creative and contemporary proposal, which respects the essence of both cultures, but also dares to innovate and experiment.
The tasting menu, called the Nikkei Experience, is a sample of the diversity and quality of Nikkei cuisine, which includes dishes such as ceviche, strip, sushi, sashimi, nigiri, chaufa rice, sautéed loin and cuy. Maido has been recognized as the best restaurant in Latin America in 2017 and 2018, and has been in the top 10 on the list of the best restaurants in the world in 2019, it is one of the most renowned restaurants in Latin America.
D.O.M. ( Paulo, Brazil)
D.O.M. is the restaurant of chef Alex Atala, who is considered one of the pioneers and leaders of Brazilian cuisine. D.O.M. is the acronym of Deo Optimo Maximo, which means “To God, the optimal, the maximum,” and which reflects the philosophy and passion of the chef for his work. D.O.M. is based on the rescue and valorization of Brazilian native ingredients, especially from the Amazon region, which are incorporated into dishes that combine tradition and the avant-garde.
Some of these ingredients are the aaa, the tucup, the cassava, the jambu, the pyrarucú, the palm and the priprioca, an aromatic root that is used in perfumery and that Atala has introduced into gastronomy.
The tasting menu, which varies according to the station and the inspiration of the chef, is an expression of the identity and diversity of Brazilian cuisine, which seeks to surprise and excite the diner. D.O.M. has been chosen as the best restaurant in Latin America in 2013 and 2014, and has reached number 4 on the list of the best most renowned restaurants in the world in 2012.
Astrid and Gastón (Lima, Peru)
Astrid y Gastón is the restaurant of chef Gastón Acurio and his wife, chef and pastry chef Astrid Gutsche, who is one of the most emblematic and old in Peruvian cuisine. Astrid and Gastón opened in 1994, and since then has been a reference of national and international cuisine, and a promoter of the dissemination and recognition of Peruvian cuisine in the world.
The restaurant offers contemporary Peruvian cuisine, which respects the roots and diversity of the country’s culinary culture, but which also incorporates influences from other cuisines, such as French, Spanish, Italian, Chinese and Japanese. The tasting menu, called Memories of my land, is a tribute to the history, geography and people of Peru, which is reflected in dishes such as cebiche, anticucho, chicken pepper, tacu tacu, sigh to Lima and Peruvian chocolate.
Pujol (Mexico City, Mexico)
Pujol is the restaurant of chef Enrique Olvera, which is one of the most representative and prestigious of Mexican cuisine. Pujol is characterized by its reinterpretation of traditional Mexican cuisine, which is based on the use of local, organic and seasonal products, and the rescue of ancestral techniques, such as nixtamalized, smoked and fermented.
The restaurant offers two tasting menus, one called Maize and the other called Mar, which reflect the duality and complexity of Mexican cuisine. Both menus include dishes that combine the classic and the modern, the sweet and the salty, the spicy and the acid, the raw and the cooked, the vegetable and the animal. Some of these dishes are the mom, the new mole, the barbecue taco, the octopus to the shepherd, the huauzontle, the elote, the tamal and the corn flan. Pujol has been recognized as Mexico’s best restaurant on several occasions, and has ranked 12th on the list of the world’s most renowned restaurants in 2020.
Boragó (Santiago, Chile)
Boragó is the restaurant of chef Rodolfo Guzmán, which is one of the most innovative and original of Chilean cuisine. Boragó is defined as an endemic cuisine restaurant, that is, it uses exclusively ingredients that come from Chilean territory, from the Atacama desert to Patagonia, through the Andes mountain range and the Pacific Ocean.
The restaurant has a team of collectors who are in charge of searching for and collecting the freshest, wildest and unique ingredients, which are often unknown even to the Chileans themselves.
The tasting menu, called Endemic, is a gastronomic experience that invites the diner to discover and taste the nature and culture of Chile, through dishes that are inspired by the landscapes, seasons, ceremonies and legends of the country. Some of these dishes are the pyure, the hedgehog, the congrio, the lamb, the pinion, the maqui, the copihue and the ulpo. Boragó has been recognized as the best restaurant in Chile on several occasions, and has ranked 32nd on the list of the world’s most renowned restaurants in 2019.
Don Julio (Buenos Aires, Argentina)
Don Julio is the restaurant of chef Pablo Rivero, which is one of the most famous and popular in Argentine cuisine. Don Julio specializes in grilling, the art of roasting the meat to the wood fire, which is one of the most entrenched and beloved culinary traditions of Argentina.
The restaurant offers a selection of cuts of beef, pork, lamb and goat, which come from animals raised in natural pastures and which are matured in special chambers to achieve maximum flavor and ternity. The menu also includes other typical dishes of Argentine cuisine, such as empanadas, grinds, achuras, salads, chips and desserts, such as flan with milk candy and sambayon ice cream. Don Julio has been recognized as the best restaurant in Argentina in 2020 and 2021, and has ranked 34th on the list of the world’s most renowned restaurants in 2021.
Leo (Bogotá, Colombia)
Leo is the restaurant of chef Leonor Espinosa, better known as Leo, which is one of the most influential and renowned in Colombian cuisine. Leo stands out for his research and innovation in Colombian cuisine, which is based on the use of native ingredients, many of them from indigenous, Afro-Colombian and peasant communities, which are rescued and revalued by the chef.
The restaurant offers a tasting menu, called Cycle-Bioma, that changes every year and reflects the diversity and richness of Colombia’s biomes and ecosystems, ranging from the Caribbean to the Andes, through the Orinoquia and the Amazon. Each dish is an artistic and conceptual creation, which seeks to convey a social, cultural and environmental message, and which surprises with its flavors, textures, colors and aromas.
Some of these dishes are the anthillguero, the chontaduro, the knob, the copoazú, the chigairo and the drag. Leo has been recognized as the best restaurant in Colombia in 2017 and 2018, and has ranked 49th on the list of the most renowned restaurants in the world in 2018.
These are just some of the most renowned restaurants in Latin America, which demonstrate the quality, creativity and diversity of the region’s gastronomy. We encourage you to visit and enjoy them, and also to know other restaurants that are not on the lists, but also have much to offer.
Bibliographical references
- Central Restaurant (Peru) – World’s most renowned restaurants.
- D.O.M (Brazil) – World’s most recognized restaurants.
- Boragó (Chile) – The most renowned restaurants in the world.
- Leo (Colombia) – World’s most renowned restaurants.
- Maido (Peru) – World’s most renowned restaurants.
