For some, a trip to Peru is as much about visiting Machu Picchu as it is about taking a bite out of Peruvian cuisine. As Cusco is likely on your Peru trip itinerary, we have a new restaurant to suggest for you: Mil. This restaurant perched 500 meters above the archaeological complex of Moray is run by none other than Virgilio Martinez, the chef behind the famous Central in Lima.
The Concept
Mil offers a creative 8-course menu
Like Central, Mil offers a creative 8-course menu that takes you on a journey through Peru’s high altitude ecosystems. The underlying mission behind Mil is to introduce diners to ancient local ingredients and culinary practices in the hope of bringing them back from the brink of extinction. The restaurant in cooperation with the nearby farming communities of Kacllaraccay and Mullaka’s-Misminay.
Martinez’s well thought out mission is evident in every course, or “moment” as the menu calls it. Diners can engage with and play a role in the revival of these ancient ingredients and techniques while dining next to the very Incan agricultural complex that was once used to produce the ingredients on their plates.
The Moments
Culinary Adventure
Without spoiling the culinary adventure that is dining at Virgilio Martinez’s Mil, we’ll let you in on a few of the moments, or creative courses you can expect during your dining experience.
Preservation: not your average chip and dip, this dish employs an age-old technique practiced by the local community involving potatoes doused in a flow of cold water, then sunlight, and finally freeze-dried.
- Andean Forest: a beautiful dish of colorful lupinus legumes served in a leche de tigre sauce.
- Diversity of Corn: similar to muesli, this course features native varieties of corn including white corn, chullpi, and piscoronto.
- Extreme Altitude: featuring blue-green algae plucked from an Andean lake, this course introduces alpaca and black quinoa to you palate, staple food products of the high Andes.
How To Get To Mil
500 meters from the Archaeological Complex of Moray
The address is quite literally “ascending 500 meters from the Archaeological Complex of Moray.” In this way, the restaurant’s location is idyllic, if not slightly out of the way and high altitude (11,706 feet above sea level).
From Cusco, Mil is about a 90-minute drive by private vehicle or 15 minutes from the nearest town of Maras. We recommend having your reservation coincide with a day trip into the Sacred Valley and visits to the adjacent archaeological complex of Moray and Maras Salt Mines before or after your unforgettable meal.
Will Mil Be On Your Peru Itinerary?
Let your Kuoda Travel Designer know that Mil is on your must-do list in Peru and we’ll sort out the rest of the details for you, from reservations, transportation to and from the restaurant, and where it best fits into your itinerary.
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