When we had decided to visit Peru the one place I really wanted to eat at was Central in Lima . I had watched the episode on this restaurant on Chef’s Table and was fascinated with Chef Virgilio Martinez.

Reservation

I used their website to make a reservation. Initially they didn’t have spots available for my chosen date so we were wait listed . Closer to the date they had availability and we were able to secure spots .

Atmosphere

The restaurant is located in a secure compound surrounded by a garden . We went at night time so didn’t get to see it in detail.

Inside the restaurant reminded us of a research lab ! Everything was meticulously designed . You can see the chefs making the food , there are glass rooms where people were having meetings and there was a table with all the ingredients from different elevations laid out .

Service

The service is personalized and thoughtful. From the people welcoming you to the waiter explaining every course in detail . The chefs will change up each course based on your dietary restrictions. They did forget my dietary restrictions halfway through our 12 course meal but regardless it was an incredible experience.

Food

We had their 12 course based dinner . Each course is made from ingredients from different regions and altitude in Peru .

The food is incredible. As you eat each course you can sense the research that went into it and the application of advanced cooking techniques!

Photos of some of the dishes we had below . The presentation was also elaborate. For a lot of the dishes the food itself was just a small part of large presentation display.

List of the different regions and the key ingredients from that area :

Place Setting

Cocktails – Delicious

Dishes from the 12 course menu . I had some substitute dishes since I have dietary restrictions. My partner ate all of the dishes from the menu . I made sure to take photos of both our dishes so there are more photos than 12 dishes !

The dishes not only looked incredible, most tasted amazing. There were a few that I was not a fan of . Could be due to my palette limitation.

Overall it was an experience. Definitely once in a life time kind of experience. I wouldn’t do it again given the cost . I also preferred the food at Maido compared to Central. If I had to pick one I would pick Maido . Simply preferred the flavours at Maido . However if you have the time and money Central is definitely a restaurant you should try in Lima .