EVERYTHING WAS ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS. Presentation of food was beautiful. Service was amazing. Super friendly and attentive. The decor and vibe was very Zen like. Great way to celebrate my besties birthday. read more

Lima - Peruvian Near Me - London, XGL

Food is a nice experience, service is great a refined piece of Peru in London. The value for your money. read more

See all

A Michelin-starred restaurant in Fitzrovia that serves a legitimate Peruvian gastronomical experience. I would personally recommend their seafood offerings over the meat dishes. Would have given them 5 stars, but I'm docking one off due to slow service. // Black Bream Ceviche (£12) - 5 stars // Octopus (£16) - 5 stars // Black Cod (£32) - 5 stars // Beef Pachamanca (£30) - 4 stars read more

See all

We enjoyed one of the best lunches at Lima. The atmosphere & service were on point. Each dish was amazing. It is a family style type menu. We enjoyed three starters. The tuna, sea bass ceviche and the eggplant. The eggplant was my favorite and my husband loved the sea bass ceviche. We shared three entrees; The Rib of Beef, the Beef Saltado and the Cauliflower Quinoa. My 5 and 7 year old loved the Beef Saltado, my husband preferred the rib of beef and the Cauliflower Quinoa stole the show for me. We had to skip dessert due to traffic delays to our next reservation that afternoon. Our family enjoyed our lunch at Lima and would not think twice about returning. Lima served us the best Peruvian Cuisine of our trip. read more

This review is only for the drinks and service! We have walked past this place many times and I always wanted to come in, but the prices always turned us off, if I'm being totally honest. We finally came here for some pisco sours, because I'm a fan. The drinks were very good and the service was nice enough. I was a bit shocked though, that one guy in a small bar downstairs was responsible for all the drinks. The wait twas pretty bad, just for the drinks. I don't have a particularly great memory of being here just because the wait was so bad, which surprised me because it has a Michelin star and such high prices. Maybe the food makes up for it read more

Lima is an award-winning Peruvian restaurant in London with two locations: this one in Fitzrovia, plus "Lima Floral" on Covent Garden. We came for a group dinner out and had a great time. The ceviche and the suckling pig were satisfying, and the alfajores for dessert were delicious. The highlight was the pisco sours, which were appropriately sweet, very frothy, and Instagram-worthy with beautiful flowers on top. The restaurant interior is also lovely during the daytime, as mirrors and the high ceilings make it feel so bright and lively. Overall worth a visit if you want a treat of a Peruvian meal. read more

See all

After experiencing Central in Lima Peru, we found out that master chef Virgilio Martinez also opened a similar restaurant in London, so we decided to give it a chance. After a long taxi ride trying to find the restaurant we finally reached it and were surprised how small the establishment is compared to flagship location in Peru. Due to the cold weather, the exterior did feel very cozy and welcoming, while not overly modern, but with some Inca designs as well. First off the waitress brought us a special corn bread made from real Peruvian corn and a sample of spiced carrot soup. Both items were complimentary and were very good especially when dunking the bread into the warm soup. Next up we decided to order several dishes, so we can sample a little bit of everything, so we choose the Cobin Fish Tiradito, asparagus causa, king crab causa, braised octopus, and the prawn bisque. The first dish to arrive was the king crab causa, which used a red potato mashed and rolled up to balls with a rich king crab salad on top, it was really flavorsome and you can taste the chunks of crab within the topping. Then came the asparagus causa which mixed the yellow mashed potato with asparagus giving it a greenish color, and yellow pepper sauce gave it a good kick. The Cobin Fish tiradito was super fresh and the fish was perfectly cut and had the right amount of lemon, and mult-colored sauces did not overpower the plate. The braised octopus were very tender and perfectly season however I would of removed the lentil that were placed under it since I am not a big fan. The last dish was a prawn bisque soup for the each of us, it included multiple large prawns, rice, fresh cheese, and the season broth. When it came time for dessert we couldn't agree so we ordered two, the avocado mousse and the Chirimoya Parfait. The avocado mousse was a thick cream made with the actual avocado and a dark chocolate mousse in the middle placed in avocado shell in cased in dark chocolate. It had the right combination of sweet and a little bit of savory which is weird for a dessert. The chirimoya parfait is the a cream made from a Peruvian custard fruit, with a scoop of ice cream made from Amazonian chocolate. The dish was very refreshing but I would of prefer it to be a little bit sweeter rather then tarty. Overall a very good choice for a special dinner, and just like Central in Peru, the food and the experience will be remembered for years to come. read more

See all

Being Peruvian I've had my share of the cuisine. And unfortunately this restaurant doesn't come close! First I'll start by the Pisco sours and ceviche were good considering the location of a restaurant in getting fresh fish! But to my surprise the lomo saltado was 45 American dollars! Come on! So we ordered the Arroz Chafu. It came out with out anything in the rice and the pork belly on the side. So plain! Nothing in the rice ..no egg, onion, no aji! Nada. That's not arroz chafu! It's rice with soy and pork belly on the side! We were so disappointed! Don't call your restaurant Peruvian! Maybe Asian fusion! Not worth the money in my opinion! And Tres Leche is a Mexican desert! Que pendojos! read more

Great atmosphere, in-expensive food. We ordered beef, seafood (tiger's milk) and pork. Flavour is fantastic, I especially recommend the seafood with tiger's milk sauce and pork. The only thing I'd say is seafood dish was a little bit salty for me. Starter bits duck is the best, prawn and artichoke is also nice and maybe more suited for summer. These bits are very small in size, literally one bite each. Their cocktails are actually quite strong - go slow on those! read more

Ooh a difficult review to write. I usually write a review based partly on expectation - it wouldn't be fair to hold a mom and pop hole in the wall restaurant to the same standards as a Michelin star restaurant My dilemma is that Lima has been heavily trailed as being the first Peruvian restaurant in the world to be awarded a Michelin star, which will appear in the 2014 guide. Based on this, my sister kindly took me here for dinner on my birthday last week I'm not that familiar with Peruvian food, assuming it to be similar to Mexican and south American cuisine. Hence the fact that there were quite a few ingredients on the menu, which weren't familiar to us, such as chia seed, Algarrobo tree syrup and aji panca. Unfortunately, our waiter struggled to convey much about these mystery ingredients, so we just ordered what looked interesting on the menu We started with duck crudo and scallop tiradito. I must say that the plating of the scallop was exceptional with the delicate this rounds of white scallop meat being paired with vibrant bright orange oil, which looked like the scallop coral. The sweet scallop meat was paired with zingy flavours from the rest of the dish. My favourite dish of the evening was the duck crudo - soft, hardly cooked duck with sweet and savoury elements from the sauce and accompaniments that made it a perfect mouthful. Don't be put off by the appearance of the dish which looks like a Jackson Pollock painting when it arrives My sister and I both love suckling pig and we got a few slices of pork with a green and nutty sauce. Perhaps the skin could have been a bit crisper but this was a competent dish, both in concept and execution We shared a couple of desserts with unfamiliar names and ingredients but both tasted like ice cream with bits. Nothing memorable to report. Now, if this was a regular meal, I would have said it was a good meal but as much as I hate to be a party-pooper, it isn't Michelin star standard. I understand that Michelin do maybe have to have an eye-catching headline to sell their books but without wanting to put Lima down, which is a nice restaurant, I think Michelin have lost their minds and their palate when Lima gets a Michelin star and Kitchen Table, which has served me 2 of my favourite meals this year, doesn't get one. I'm just asking for consistency I hope that Lima won't be burdened by their Michelin star tag and suffer like Petersham Nurseries a few years ago, which was unexpectedly awarded a star and was unable to meet the expectation of eager foodies, who turned up and were disappointed, leading to the eventual departure of their star chef Skye Gyngell Having said all that, Lima gets 4 stars and I can recommend their starters read more

See all

Lima is absolutely outstanding. It is arguably the best South America food I've ever had (including literally in South America) and definitely the best Peruvian food. The restaurant is small, but large mirrors make it feel bigger than it actually is. The service is the quality that you would expect from a restaurant with Michelin Stars. In the two times I've visited Lima, i have ordered 6 dishes and every single one has been amazing. They are: Sea Bass - Avocado. Yellow Tiger´s Milk. Cancha Corn. Scallop Causa - Yellow Potato. Scallops. Red Quinoa. Ají Limo. Octopus Olivo - Braised Octopus. Purple Corn. Botija Olive. Lomo Steak Huancaina - Beef Loin. Yellow Ají Sauce. Coriander Cress. Amazonian Paiche Fish - Seaweed Brown Butter. Achiote. Yuca Root. Cacao Amazonia. Cobia Fish - Cobia. Black Tiger's Milk. Jerusalem Artichoke. Chia Seeds. read more

See all

It's quite rare that everything I order at a restaurant convinces me 100% from starter to dessert. It has just happened at this restaurant. Lima is a great place, great food, great presentation, pleasant decor, very kind staff. Can you wish for more? No wonder it got its Michelin star. I will surely come back read more

See all

4 big stars for Lima, arguably the best modern Peruvian restaurant in London and (I think) the only one to earn a Michelin star. Great creative dishes are on offer in an intimate but buzzing space in Fitzrovia. Among the memorable dishes we tried were the salmon tiradito and seared lomo (steak) for starters and the lamb shoulder and suckling pigs for shareable mains. The lamb and pork where fall off the fork tender and a highlight of the meal. All dishes were colourful and well presented---at almost picturesque level---perhaps the kitchen staff knew I take photos of my food! All in, if you're looking slightly off the beaten path high-end yet casual meal, Lima should be on your short list. read more

See all

When I first walked in I thought it was a bit rough around the edges.. for a Michelin starred restaurant. But then the food came and I understood. Our tuna ceviche starter had thick chunky tuna slices drenched in a delicious sauce. The black cod main was the stand out dish though. I don't know what was in it but it all paired perfectly together. My lobster main was a slightly disappointing. A bit too salty for my tastes and I couldn't taste the plantain mash underneath it because the soupy sauce was so overwhelming. To be honest I think it's a bit overpriced (~£30 for a small portioned main) but I know they do a very affordable set menu before 6pm which I would be happy to come back for. read more

See all

Fancy Peruvian Although Lima's dining room is a little too modern and bare for my taste, it is very calm place to enjoy a meal and actually hear what your friends at your table are saying. The menu really excites me. After visiting twice, I have been impressed with the presentation, bold flavours and colours in each dish. In fact, each dish looks like a piece of art. Great pisco sours and good service. Octopus Olivo, braised octopus, purple corn, botija olive is delicious and the purple colour is so vibrant. The olive adds a nice acidity to the dish. The sea bass ceviche with avocado, yellow tiger's milk and cancha corn was a refreshing start to the meal - as you would expect a ceviche to be. Although at £12 this is quite expensive, when I compare to the ceviche I've enjoyed at Andina/Ceviche/Senor Ceviche etc. The Artichoke Amazonia was one pretty dish, but unfortunately I found it very vinegary and could not finish the whole dish. My dinner dates ordered the Beef Pachamama with yellow potato puree, cows milk, aji panca juice and absolutely loved it. The beef was cooked perfectly. Equally as delicious was the Duck Cocona wth magret, plums, cocona syrup and cusco corn cake. This is a place that emphasizes presentation and sophisticated dishes. A little on the expensive side, but you can tell there is a lot of work behind each dish. I like it! read more

Lima - Artichoke Amazonia & Pisco Sour - Peruvian Near Me - London, XGL

my first peruvian! interesting flavours and texture. the bay scallops were the tastiest. the yellow aji sauce really compliment the raw slices of scallops well. the sea bream ceviche was refreshing and definitely wake your taste buds from their slumber. the toasted corn kernels added a crunchy texture to the dish. the crudo of duck was strong in flavour, sweetened by honey and enriched by foie gras shavings. the suckling pig was tender with a slightly crispy skin. the lentils and pear sauce worked well. lamb shoulder was fork tender and the white grape and black quinoa gave it a sophisticated edge. the crab with potato was underwhelming. crab meat was in small portion and not tasty enough. the 4000m potato was well cooked ala potato gnocchi. unusual and interesting sauce. desserts were great! organic coffee ice cream was delicious with multi level texture created by the cocoa leaf and coconut powder. cacao porcelana with mango granita and blue potato crystal was gorgeous! melt in your mouth chocolate, exotic mango and crunchy sweet blue potato chips. service was attentive and helpful. very healthy crowd too. read more

See all

We are from LA where Peruvian food is hip and hot right now. We were so excited to come to Lima and reserved way in advance. Sadly, it was just average in every way. Average decor. Average food. Average service. We got the tasting menu and pisco sours. Ho-hum. read more

Lima - Tiradito - Peruvian Near Me - London, XGL

See all

Wonderful impromptu meal with my wife. We have read about the new Peruvian restaurants opening in London and having travelled in Central America we thought we would give it a go. Well known Peruvian chef brings his cuisine to central London. What a treat. Super authentic Piscos some with a twist. The flavours and colours along with wonderful presentation made for a super meal. The corn bread - side, salad and desserts, areas so often ignored by chefs were great. Suckling pig main course and any dish with blue potato were great. Friendly and attentive service. Highly recommended read more

Lima - Peruvian Near Me - London, XGL

See all

I only had a couple of nibbles at Lima when I came with a friend. I had a beef tartare, a vegetarian rice, and a duck escabeche. Of these, the duck was the best by far. While the meat was tender, it was the bed of mash potatoes that really blew me away. The waiter told me that the potatoes are dried which gives them a texture that felt like an extremely-fine polenta rather than mashed potatoes. I would stay away from the vegetarian rice if I went again, while I appreciated the mushrooms, the taste of the sauce was overwhelming -- too tart and also too salty. Anyways - I'm glad I got the chance to come and try this out before heading out of London! read more

Lima London is an informal 1 Michelin star restaurant serving modern Peruvian cuisine. We arrived before 6pm to order by 6.15pm from the lunch/pre-theatre 2 or 3 courses set menu at £20/£23. We opted to order and share all 6 dishes on the set menu. Preferred dishes are marked with an asterix. Starters * 1) Salmon Ceviche 2) Tuna Causa Mains * 1) Lamb Seco 2) Swordfish (replaced Bacalao) Dessert 1) Lucuma fruit cream, soft meringue * 2) Alfajores, ice cream, sweet beetroot The lamb stew main was nicely presented although we both found the lamb to be overly salty. The swordfish main was rather disappointing looking and tasted overcooked, dry and chewy. Overall the plating was creative with the exception of the swordfish main which looked like just a pile of foodstuff in an oil slick. I would have to say that generally the dishes looked prettier than they tasted. Perhaps I had too high expectations given the other reviews. Service was slow and needs improvement to reach the standard expected of a 1 Michelin star restaurant. Dishes were not described in any detail when they were served. The ground floor dining area is tightly packed with very little space between tables, once full the noise level was so loud that we had difficulty hearing each other speak. The basement dining area is much more spacious with a bar and a lot quieter. read more

See all

First, I ate on my own, on a weekday for dinner. Food: great display of contemporary kinda style of dish. Personally, I enjoyed looking them. However, I found a little pricy for two courses What I had: Starter- OCTOPUS OLIVO, Braised Octopus. Purple Corn. Botija Olive. 14£ Overall, it has the Peruvian kinda ingredient, such as corn down there. The octopus is nicely cook. Chewy and flavored. Main- SUCKLING PIG. Giant Corn. Piquillo Pepper. Green Rocoto. Cashew Nuts.26£ This is a pork dish. It is decent. The skin is a little overcooked and hard to bite. Others are on point. Finish- none read more

Lima - Octopus - Peruvian Near Me - London, XGL

See all

I want to premise this by saying that had I not been to Casita Andina a month prior to this, it would've got an extra star. So, I came here on a TimeOut deal - two courses and a pisco sour for £19 at a Peruvian Michelin star restaurant. I love Peruvian food, pisco sours make me merry (in every sense of the word) and it had been awarded that special star, so I came in with pretty high expectations. Here's the excellent: The standout winner of the night for me, was the pisco sour. All the ingredients are homemade and fresh in this restaurant and, on that front, the cocktail was deliciously outstanding. Something else that deserves a shoutout is the bread (which we weren't expecting). It was spongy, a bit salty (but not overbearingly so) and unexpectedly a little spicy. So delicious! The service was spot on too and I can't fault our lovely waiter. The fine-nothing-to-write-home-about: Unfortunately, the food. I ordered a ceviche, which I've had on multiple occasions and a chicken pachamanca, was nice, but not out-of-this-world, Michelin-star worthy in my opinion. I thought the presentation was lacklustre and lacked creativity. And whilst the flavours were there and it was tasty, I also felt it fell a little short. I'm not sure if less effort was made on the food front because we were dining on a deal as opposed to paying the full price, but if that is the case, I don't think they should promote it as Michelin unless they intended on truly embracing that title for their bargain-loving customers. If you want more succulent Peruvian dishes with nicer surroundings - but I should add not for a bargain price, two courses and a drink would cost around £40 - go to Casita Andina! read more

the restaurant is absolutely gorgeous, and the food tastes incredible, servers & chefs were extremely helpful to make my food vegan, and would definitely eat here again. pricy but absolutely worth it. read more

Lima - wild mushrooms (made vegan) - Peruvian Near Me - London, XGL

I really love this place. It's a great place to catch up with friends, the atmosphere is casual and comfortable. The food is great, it's traditional Peruvian food with a modern twist but the portions are not large. The food presentation is amazing. read more

See all

Another wonderful discovery I made in London. This is a wonderful place. And I just heard it is the first Peruvian restaurant awarded with a Michelin star in the world! I came here because I was craving for good ceviche. No hesitation after I was seated, I immediately chose to order the sea bream ceviche, then the salmon one. Well presented, the seafood is marinated and it has the bitterness like it should be! Fish is fresh and served in great portion. Then, I decided to try their meat. No disappointment with the sweet potato mash topped with minced lamb. I just wish to go back soon! I was wondering how the dessert would be. And.. again it is pleasant to eat the chef dishes. I got the white biscuit with dulce de leche in the middle. The restaurant is bright and is quite busy at lunch time, book your table! Service is really nice. Price is competitive for the lunch. Amazing experience! read more

See all

This culinary experience was amazing.... Peruvian living at USA and visiting London was amazing! Great great flavors mixtura and the details on the plates! Great champagne here! read more

I came here as saw the MIchelin star relative to price which seemed reasonable. The pisco sour was great as was the ceviche which was outstanding. Main course of bass was not as refined and more manufactured. Dessert also very tasty. Like the atmosphere. Overall a very nice restaurant. read more

At first we didn't see anyone at the front of the restaurant when we walked by and was surprised bc of all the great reviews and it was a Friday night when most of Fritzovia was hopping but we decided to go and have dinner anyway and so glad we did! Each dish was so full of flavor and delicious! read more

Lima - Peruvian Near Me - London, XGL

I found Lima on Yelp, as I find lots of places these days. I was looking at the categories and I thought, "Ha! Peruvian in London?" But then I found Lima. I believe Lima's relatively new though they're not hurting for business. I arrived to a reasonably empty room that filled up completely in about 45 minutes. What they serve is pretty exotic and I can see how their average customer would need to ask what a few things are. I think they'd find it useful to put a bit more explanation into their menus. I observed that the wait staff spent lots of time describing the dishes on the menu, as the explanations you get from the menu of each dish consist of ingredients (a few of which I'd never heard of) and not much else. More on this later. They have yummy cocktails and we felt spoilt for choice. My starter was so good the person across the table from me started laughing because I got that look on my face, you know, the one you have when it's like angels are singing because of that first blissful bite? The mains continued the trend. I've never had what they served me cooked that well and there was a lovely punch of red pepper sauce that rounded this out perfectly. I had removed every molecule of food from my plate when they arrived to clear it and marveled over how fab my meal was so far. So, why not five stars? Dessert, and the way they handled turning our table, left us feeling that we'd return -maybe at some point--instead of the next humanly possible moment. So, here's the story: Remember when I mentioned that the wait staff spend lots of time explaining the menu? Our waiter patiently did this (for about 20 minutes straight) for the rather large table next to us. We didn't mind this too much at the time though it did mean that we waited a long time to order - about 40 minutes after we arrived. So, when the hostess delivered our desserts (the drinks we ordered were nowhere in sight) and cheerfully informed us we had to vacate the table in 5 minutes, we were not pleased. When I tasted my dessert and discovered it was basically a very small amount of quinoa floating in a small amount of yogurt with 3 very small bits of chocolate I was even less pleased. And when we had to prompt our waiter to bring our drinks when he cleared our dessert plates we were losing our senses of humour. When he delivered them and cheerfully confirmed we had five minutes to drink them and pay our check, we were pissed off. I'd say this place has lots of promise and I understand having more than one seating in a night - I can't imagine the ingredients they work with are cheap (though the portions certainly aren't large) and on the face of it, 2 hours sounds like enough time...If things get started reasonably quickly. If this doesn't happen, the result's unhappy customers. So, I'll return. Maybe. At some point. It'll probably be a while. read more

Excellent flavors and a very cool atmosphere. Scallops, octopus, and beef starters followed by beef, lamb and a native Amazonia fish. Oh my. Pisco sours strong and yummy. read more

See all

You almost don't want to eat the food here, because it's so beautifully plated the dishes look like paintings. Don't bother ordering the brunch menu; indulge and go à-la-carte for a fuller spectrum of what the kitchen is capable of producing! And yes, the pisco sour is excellent! read more

See all

Well well well... Well done Lima. Let's get the Michelin star thing out of the way... yes it's been awarded one, and does it deserve it? Probably. Food is superb in terms of taste and presentation, but unlike most other Michelin star restaurants it has a nice relaxed atmosphere whereby the food is the real star. I might not have understood everything on the menu but it wasn't because Lima was pretentious. It's probably the most relaxed Michelin star environment I have been in and that's not to say that the decor or service is bad (although it is a little tight in terms of space). And perhaps this lack of stuffiness allows anyone and everyone to really enjoy the food, this can b put down to not o my the ambience of the space but the friendly nature of the waiters too. Like tapas or dim sum, you have the best experience at Lima by going with more people as all the dishes are great for sharing. We went as a party of four which allowed us to explore the menu but there were still dishes I wanted to try but didn't. Presentation of all dishes were beautiful and not a single one of the 10 starters/mains/sides disappointed. The octopus, scallops, duck and halibut where the stand out dishes for us. All the dishes had a great balance of flavour often mixing subtle tones of sweet, sour, spice and savoury. Plus a few flavours that aren't common in western European cuisine. The warm bread is amazing too. Lima ticks one of the best boxes for me in terms of food: interesting and tasty plates of food that are not overly trying to be. read more

I truly enjoyed every single course I had hence the very high marks. I started with the black bream ceviche which couldn't have been fresher and more flavorsome. Then we ordered the halibut and the beef pachamanca again the combination of flavors and the fresh ingredients were just incredible and we finished it all with the guava ice cream. The only criticism I have will be the space itself, it's rather small and feels just a tad claustrophobic but the food is excellent so you get over the lack of intimacy very quickly. read more

So this is a bit of a weird review - I've now been to Lima twice. And had different experiences. The first time was a client a la carte lunch. Well that was amazing, the food was delicious, fantastic combinations of flavours. The ceviches are of course absolutely amazing, but the menu itself is just full of excitement. Desserts are not bad either. Of course, must bear in mind it's not cheap... But I do not think it's crazy priced either, especially for a Michelin stared restaurant. The second time, I went for the bottomless brunch for my birthday. Bottomless booze is always a winner, nothing else to add to that!! However, the menu itself really wasn't breathtaking. The ceviche was great but the rest of the menu really wasn't special. I'd even go as far as saying the chicken wasn't even good. I appreciate you must also keep in mind the price, which was cheap! But still I really wasn't convinced this was michelin starred quality, I wouldn't say it was good either. I definitely wouldn't recommend the brunch and I definitely wouldn't go back for the brunch. Nonetheless I definitely want to go back and have the a la carte menu. One more little anecdote - my friends have the Lima cookbook. They fell in love with Peruvian food during the Peruvian holiday. They invited us for dinner and cooked for us, three course meal & even made a few pisco sours! it was delicious! Conclusion, the cookbook is pretty rgeat too! :) Here's my literary review of the day! read more

Lima was recommended to me by two friends. I heard that since it got a Michelin Star, it has been quite hard to get a booking. I tried several times and finally got one on a week night. I was quite excited to try it and I have to say I was impressed. The restaurant itself is quite relaxed and understated which I really like. The services are warm and personal. I guess the South American attitude prevails here. The restaurant serves updated Peruvian food. Don't expect to find Lomo Saltado or Anticucho. However, Ceviche you can feast on and it is done right here. My friend and I ordered sea bream ceviche which was perfectly "cooked" in lime juice: fresh, firm and flavorful. We also had the octopus and quinoa with purple olive sauce. The plating of this dish was beautiful and the purple olive was a taste I experienced for the first time. We got the raw tuna with purple potatoes as well. It was delicious and purple potatoes were something you don't get to eat everyday. For main course, we shared a suckling pig and Amazon fish. The pork dish was nice, but the Amazon fish was totally amazing! According to our waiter, the fish was native to the Amazon and was freshly shipped in. The preparation of the dish was also quite unusual. The fish was cooked in Seaweed butter which gave it a slight sweet taste. And besides other seasonings, the surprising element was cocoa. I guess this has the similar effect as the Mole sauce, but I have only seen Mole sauce used with heavier meat like beef. Cooking delicate fish in cocoa takes guts. I guess that is why the restaurant has that Michelin star, they experiment and push the boundary. The fish dish definitely the highlight of the meal and I couldn't have enough of it. We were full by the time we fished our main course, so we will have to come back to try the desserts another time. read more

See all

With only three days in London and lots of lovely friends to catch up with we had to really think carefully about where we wanted to eat. Plenty of exciting restaurant openings to consider - and I guess our main goal was to sample cuisines that are yet to launch on Melbourne's scene (or have been attempted but to no avail - for example - Japanese ramen - see post here). With this in mind, we opted to meet a couple of our leading ladies at Lima, stopping off at nearby Bourne and Hollingsworth first for a few cheeky cocktails in their charming retro living room. The peeling floral wallpaper, teacups and chintzy tableclothes have a kind of 1940s wartime austerity about them. Might explain why the drinks are half the price they are in Melbourne. Feeling well-oiled and ready to dig into some South American share plates we trot down Rathbone Place to Lima, which is empty. That's what you get when you manage to secure a booking two days before the evening you want to dine at one of the most talked about places of the year - a table downstairs at 5:30pm. Luckily, the place feels warm and inviting, and we soon forget we are the sole customers for at least the first half hour. Or that might have been the Pisco Sours tricking us into a false sense of security. None of us have ever partaken in Peruvian food outside of Peru (which apparently when you are on a backpacker's budget isn't that great - WordMonkey takes great delight in telling me about the potato, carrot and onion soup she once ordered, that consisted of a whole potato, a whole carrot and a whole onion floating in a bowl of hot water) so we aren't sure what to expect. We know about the much-hyped superfood quinoa - and have even learnt how to pronounce it properly - but that is about it. Luckily, chef Virgilio Martinez hails from fine stock - the now multi-location acclaimed Astrid y Gaston and most recently Central in Lima, Peru. There are nods to the restaurant's South American heritage - cushions covered in Peruvian print with colourful Inca prints and a wall downstairs dedicated to indigenous artists, but on the whole the place is light and airy, and understated. Which perhaps means the insanely colourful food comes as even more of a surprise. The nine starters and eight mains (four from the sea and four from the land) are described in a minimalist fashion - usually the main protein and the style in which it is prepared. Underneath, a list of the main components are listed. Not much else. So when the bright yellow Artichoke Amazonia landed on our table (artichokes, fava beans, white onion, tree tomato and molle pink pepper) we were pleasantly dazzled. Light with a slight citrus zing it was one of the best veggie dishes I have had in a while. But it couldn't compete with the Duck Crudo (Magret duck, algarrobo tree syrup, foie gras, green leaves). Satisfyingly rich and fatty without being greasy the duck was cooked perfectly and for 10 quid was a great size serve. The other two starters we ordered, in my mind, didn't quite hit the mark. Perhaps they were trying too hard to include a myriad ingredients sourced from the Andes to the Amazon, or perhaps it was just me struggling to get to grips with so many new flavours, textures and unfamiliar components on one plate. Tuna Causa (yellow fin tuna, blue potato, ghoa cress, ginger confit) was plated up to look at pretty as a picture with pansies or nasturtiums perched on top of the tempura-ish fish. But the slightly startling blue (more purple than blue) potato just didn't look appetising and was grainy and starchy. The presentation of Octopus Olivo had clearly been thought about a lot, and the dots of pink something were reminiscent of the creature's tentacles, but again, the ingredients (braised octopus, organic white quinoa, botija olive, red shiso) didn't combine to create anything special. On to the mains - Suckling Pig 'Andes' (giant corn, ghoa cress, piquillo pepper, green rocoto) - well-seasoned and succulent meat, just the right balance of flesh, fat and crackle. Lastly, Olluco Tuber '4000 metros' (queso fresco, red quinoa, asparagus Peru, yellow aji pepper). Very earthy, lots of root vegetable action happening here. We didn't stick around for dessert - we could have done - as we weren't stuffed. But then we hadn't gone overboard in the ordering and all the plates were very light. Instead, we checked out Bourne and Hollingsworth's new sister establishment, Reverend J. W. Simpson. More shabby chic but in a larger space. More great cocktails but in smarter glasses (as opposed to jam jars). We like. read more

I live in California and I was on vacation in London and we had dinner at Lima. I have to say their ceviche was one of the best ceviches I have ever had and I am Peruvian .!!! read more

Enjoyable fresh food, very attentive service. Delicious fruit cocktail and warm bread cubes with butter did a good job in getting up your appetite. Refreshing asparagus for starter, soft lamb shoulder for main, and lemon tea with chocolate ice cream to finish. These were not spicy dishes. All enjoyable, well-presented and worth the price. Tasting menu available. Recommended for a pleasant informal dinner minutes away from Tottenham Court Road tube station. http://estonianfoodie.com read more

I went to Lima tonight with my son and it was highly disappointing ! We ordered the tiradito and it was good and interesting. We also ordered the causa to start and it was bad. I am Peruvian so I know what a good causa is all about. This one had lots of potatoe mash and mayonnaise -not a lot of scallop filling. The causa was cold when it should be room temperature. My son ordered the lamb and it was v good but the portion size tiny. I ordered the root vegetables and it was unbelievably bad. It was a soup plate of ricotta cheese with a small beetroot cut in half and a baby carrot. I obviously ordered the vegetables because I wanted something healthy but I did not get it. We also ordered a side dish of yellow potatoes- they gave us the mash for causa. Pudding was v good. Alfajores were excellent and the Lucuma ice cream too! I am not coming back! read more

A friend recommend my family try Lima's Restaurant. The restaurant is bright and airy. A very inviting place. The hostess that sat us was warm and friendly. This was our first experience with eating at a Peruvian Restaurant. We started off by having drinks. My husband ordering a Cuento Del Diablo, which had cute little red peppers on the rim of the glass that looked like devil horns & I ordered my first Pisco sour. I can not remember what we all ordered but we all agree that everything they brought to our table was excellent. The food presentation was also excellent. Our server was excellent... The next time we are in London we will definitely go back to Lima. read more