Chef Mitsuharu Tsumura—or Micha, as he is affectionally known to most—has gone from being a Limeño champion of Japanese-Peruvian nikkei cuisine to, this year, the chef of the Best Restaurant in the World, according to World’s 50 Best.
His destination restaurant Maido embraces nikkei techniques and culinary traditions of the Japanese diaspora, with flavors from every corner of Peru—fish from the waters of the Peruvian Amazon; chilis dried in the Andean sun; and fermented beverages made with endemic fruits that pair perfectly with ingredients like bluefin tuna, carved tableside like a Spanish jamón. “We really don’t want to be just a check in your life,” Tsumura says, of the 16-year-old restaurant’s dining philosophy. “We want to be the place you go back to. That’s what Maido means: Thanks for coming again.”
Sitting in Maido’s dining room, you can really feel that mentality at work. There’s not just a tasting menu here, but also à la carte options—something you don’t often see at elevated establishments like it. There are travelers who have traveled far to experience Maido, as well as locals hoping to score a seat at the bar. Maido is part of the city’s fabric, as is the team behind it. So, when asking Lima-born Tsumura for his favorite places to eat in Lima—beyond Maido’s walls—we knew we were in for an expert tour of this food-loving city. And a fun one.
“You need at least two weeks of eating in Lima,” says Tsumura. “And you still won’t try everything. There’s nikkei food, Italian-Peruvian, chifa (Chinese Peruvian), regional cuisines, and creole cuisine. They are all very different, though there’s some shared Peruvian DNA, like the chilis we use.” He describes it a bit like a roller coast, going from one meal to the next in Lima, bobbing and weaving through dishes with roots as far-reaching as Asia, the Amazon, and Europe. But all of these flavors from throughout the world, and country, come together in this one city. “Lima’s food scene is very diverse,” he says.
His favorite way to eat? Around a sunlit table laden with ceviches and cocktails, enjoyed over hours with friends. At a 50 year-old family-run restaurant where the homestyle stews never disappoint. Or maybe, quickly, at a casual chifa or pollo a la brasa (he even opened his own rotisserie chicken spot, called Tori, honoring one of Lima’s most casual and beloved foods). In a city where new restaurants are constantly popping up, Tsumura keeps his finger on the pulse—but enjoys returning to the classics over and over again.
