Lima Fitzrovia - Soho, London

One of the most exciting happenings in the London dining community in recent years has been the introduction of Peruvian cuisine to our collective culinary vocabulary. By 2013 it has become a byword for trendiness, with food critics devoting gallons of ink to its modishness and new South American openings blossoming across the capital, running the gamut from traditional eateries to boisterous ceviche bars to laidback fusion joints to buzzy fine dining. LIMA is the best of a good bunch, falling neatly into the latter categories as a relaxed bistro-style venue serving fusion dishes that you'd expect to eat in a fine dining restaurant. It's astoundingly enjoyable. 

Located on Rathbone Place in Fitzrovia, Peruvian culture is apparent throughout the design scheme at Lima, which embraces the strong native influences of South America to create a playful and elegant space bathed in natural light from the massive skylight above.  Spread over two floors with an open plan kitchen in the ground floor dining room and a vibrant subterranean bar area in the basement, Lima boasts an inclusive environment in which both diners and drinkers are absorbed in the preparation. 

The menu at Lima was devised by culinary wunderkind Virgilo Martinez, who at just over thirty has headed up famous kitchens in France, Italy, London, New York, Singapore and his native Peru, where he was executive chef at Astrid y Gaston, included in San Pellegrino's list as one of the world's Top 50 restaurants. Following the success of his own Ristorante Central in Lima, he brought all of his talent to bear in creating his first international venture, with a mainly Peruvian menu that nods to its setting with some markedly British ingredients. The dishes at Lima are brilliantly colourful and mostly raw, with a plethora of ceviches (citrus cured fresh fish) and tiraditos (thinly sliced uncooked fish with a spicy sauce). Standout starters included a charcoal-kissed octopus served atop organic white quinoa with dollops of emulsified botija olives and red shiso, which was only outshone by the visually arresting salmon tiraditos, backlit by a vivid yellow rocoto pepper sauce, with lime, local samphire and red amaranth.  We recommend that you order more than one per person to get a fuller experience of the flavours, particularly if you are a newcomer to Peruvian cuisine. 

The mains live up to the promise of the starters, with sumptuous options including an intense, slow cooked suckling pig belly with perfectly friable crackling, giant corn, ghoa cress, piquillo pepper and green rocoto. Desserts are equally excellent, particularly dulce de leche ice cream with a beatroot emulsion and Andean maca root crust which underpins oozing sugar with an earthy, organic subtlety.  

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