Chef dubbed 'Jamie Oliver of Peru' to open first London restaurant
Celebrity chef Gaston Acurio -- who receives a hero’s welcome in his native Peru and is credited with inspiring a food revolution in his country -- has announced plans to open his first London outpost later this year.
Described by some as the Jamie Oliver of Peru for his ubiquitous media presence, savvy and for a passionate crusade that helped restore pride in his country’s culinary heritage, Acurio is a household name in Peru and hopes to expand his popularity to the rest of the world.
After opening his first North American restaurants in New York and San Francisco in recent years, Acurio will be partnering with another popular Peruvian chef, Virgilio Martinez, to jointly open a restaurant in London that will showcase the rich, complex flavors of Peruvian cuisine, he announced in London last week.
Details on the collaboration were sparse, but the restaurant is expected to open later this year, reports trade publication BigHospitality.
The stars seems to be aligning for Acurio, who emerged as the fastest climber on The World’s 50 Best Restaurants list at a gala event last week, leapfrogging 21 places to climb to the 14th spot on the ranking.
Organizers of the event from UK-based Restaurant magazine also announced plans to launch a Latin American version of their influential awards in the same way they did for Asia earlier this year.
Furthermore, Latin America’s 50 Best Restaurants awards will be held in Peru this fall, a region that’s been described as the gastronomic capital of Latin America where Asian immigration collides with the traditional, indigenous flavors of Peru, creating whole genres of cuisines such as Nikkei -- a fusion of Japanese and Peruvian gastronomy -- and Chifa -- Chinese-Peruvian cuisine.
Among some of Acurio’s restaurant chains include Astrid y Gaston and La Mar Cebicheria which span Peru, Chile, Colombia, Venezuela, Spain, Argentina, Mexico and the US.
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