As you may know, Lima London recently won its first michelin star, and deservedly so. This Peruvian restaurant off Oxford Street has everything going for it; a beautiful dining area, good location, stunning "on trend" food and pucker service.
My friend and I were given a great corner table. We nibbled on some quinoa bread and sat back to take in the view of the restaurant and its diners. The crowd was varied but everyone seemed rather distinguished and I had the feeling that many of the diners were regulars.
I started off with a cool and punchy pisco based cocktail called The Ponche (pisco, pineapple, lime, mint and sparkling wine).
The wine list was surprisingly accessible for a michelin starred restaurant with many bottles on or around the £30 mark.
The menu was, as expected split between starters and mains but we ended up sharing everything to get a full range of flavours. We tucked into our first dish, the Sea Bream Ceviche and we agreed that the Ceviche was the best we have had to date. In fact, it was so good that it deserves two photographs...
The red onion crisp was a lovely little edition that made the dish "pop".
Next up was the Organic Salmon Tiraditos with Native Blue Potato and a Celery Cress.
The potato crisp added texture and contrast to the super soft salmon.
We then moved onto what I would describe as a "mid-course"; it was a small portion served on a large and beautifully presented plate. This dish is a Lima signature - Braised Octopus, White Quinoa and Botija Olive.
And a close up...
The Octupus was very pretty, but a tad salty.
We picked a meat and a fish for our mains...
The Hake Plancha with Corn, Rocoto Pepper, Queso Fresco and Amazonian Cashew.
This dish was a little too nutty and creamy for my liking but my fellow diner devoured it.
The second main was the Beef Pachamanca with Black Quinoa and Cusco Corn. The Queso atop the Corn looked a little manufactured but the rest of the dish was lovely. I love the way that Peruvian restaurants flavour their beef - the flavours are spicy and enhanced.
Dessert was yummy Alfajores, Dulche de Leche Ice Cream and Chancaca Honey. Alfajores are a little like shortbread and the ice cream was sweet and cooling after a flavour-filled meal. The swirls of honey were amusing though...
My favourite feature of Lima was the huge skylight. The restaurant would look beautiful on a summers day with the fresh flavours of the food and the punchy cocktails as perfect accompaniments.
Aside from the food, I really should comment on the level of service. Our waiter, Camilo was extremely hospitable and attentive and he had a great understanding of the menu. Big thumbs up.
To top it all off, there was a promotion that gave us 50% off the food bill! I'm sure you can guess how many forks Lima is going to get...
Rating:
http://www.limalondon.com/
