As a Peruvian, food has always been part of my family, my culture, and myself. I’ve carried this love for food around the world by eating as many local dishes as I’ve been able wherever I went. Any cuisine is so ingrained in the culture that when you try something new, you are enjoying being a local, even if it’s only for the duration of your meal.
Nevertheless, after traveling the world, I can honestly say that Peruvian food is, after my family and friends, what I miss the most about Peru. I know it’s something cliché to say; everyone gets nostalgic about food back home. However, I believe there’s something special about Peruvian cuisine that I’ve only seen in a few places around the world.
Now, I’m not trying to convince you that Peruvian cuisine is the best in the world, it’s a very subjective and personal choice (I do believe it could easily be in anyone’s top 3 favorites). However, I do want to convince you why, if you haven’t yet, try Peruvian food. Or even better, visit Peru and experience it like a local.
So I’ve tried to make a semi-scientific approach to explain why Peruvian food is so special. Every year we get bombarded with hundreds of “Best of” lists and rankings; some of them are a great reference while others just marketing placement. So it doesn’t matter what ranking I choose, there’s always going to be criticism.
So I decided to use Latin America’s 50 Best Restaurants as a reference, the most recent edition published in October 2019, and with more than 15 years of experience.
In the top 50, Peruvian restaurants won the first two spots, but even more impressive, placed eleven restaurants in the list, or 22% of all winners. The only other country with so many winners is Mexico, also with eleven restaurants and a population four times larger than Peru.
With these results, Peru has the highest top restaurant per capita in Latin America, equivalent to one restaurant per 2.8 million inhabitants. Next would be Uruguay, with one restaurant per 3.5 million inhabitants.
I haven’t met a single person that after a visit to Peru, didn’t fall in love with our cuisine. I miss having Aji de Gallina for lunch. Or for dinner Papa a la Huancaina, Lomo Saltado, and finish with Suspiro a la Limeña and Pisco Sour. I long for a fresh cebiche on the weekends to cure the hangover and chifa on Sundays.
As a Peruvian, I might be a little biased, but the results aren’t. Allow yourself to enjoy life and experience the Peruvian cuisine.