A bridge between worlds

MAZ doesn’t simply serve a tasting menu — it is a gastronomic journey bridging two continents, from 25m below sea level to 3 680m high in the Andes. Each dish is an altitude marker. A memory. A reference. A moment in a dialogue between Peru and Japan, between ingredient and place, between nature and tradition.

The Tokyo expression of Virgilio Martínez’s culinary philosophy, MAZ is not a replica of the chef’s flagship restaurant Central in Lima, but rather its counterpart: a culinary mapping of ecosystems and altitude, here expressed through Japanese ingredients. At the helm is chef Santiago Fernández, who translates Central’s ethos with extraordinary clarity and restraint. Make no mistake, this is not fusion. It is a reverent, thoughtful recontextualisation. A love letter to Peru from Tokyo.

The journey begins below the ocean’s surface with three Japanese clams: Hamaguri, served beneath a cassava and aonori crust, is an homage to cau cau (a traditional Afro-Peruvian stew). Next, Akagai tartare is layered over seaweed like a taco. The Hokigai arrive in two parts — one with pickled cucumber and coastal plants, the other with yellow chilli sauce encased in clam jelly. It’s delicate and surprising — a cold-water conversation, part Peru, part Hokkaido.

Then, the jungle pond. Turtle, a protein enjoyed in both regions, is served here as a refined sopa criolla. The broth is poured tableside, over thin layers of tender turtle and bamboo shoots. A round of cornbread cooked on a spatula and a crumble of crisped turtle collagen sit alongside, designed for dipping, scooping, and repeating.

From there, the tempo builds as we plunge into coldest sea waters: in Japan, the Hokkaido Sea; in Peru, the Humboldt Current. There is an abundance of references, but here Hokkaido’s famed scallops take centre stage — wrapped in seaweed, resting on a gelled scallop emulsion, vibrantly coloured with the natural pigmentation found in seaweed. The prized morsels are countered with a leche de tigre sauce and accompanied by a crisp made from the roe of the same scallop. It’s clever, considered, and hyperconscious cooking every step of the way.

From the ocean depths it’s up to the Andean plateau, at the extreme altitude of 3 680m above sea level: the only place in the mountains where cattle be raised. Beef cheek is slow-braised and tucked into a squash, topped with airy summer-squash foam. On the side, a grilled sweetbread, encased in panca-pepper dough and blanketed in smoked wagyu, evokes both Andean tradition and Japanese luxury. It’s a dish of warmth, earthiness, and great depth of flavour.

Next, Botan ebi (shrimps) hide beneath a disc of wakame and akasuginori and are served with a citric foam made from roasted mekabu seaweed. The disc cracks open to reveal the glorious bounty that hides behind its surface.

Staying in the oceans, firefly squid — a luminous, fleeting spring delicacy from Toyama Bay — arrive in a deeply savoury parihuela (a Peruvian seafood broth). It’s an elegant, umami-rich middle course that bridges hemispheres in a single bite. The squid’s rich, briny, and slightly sweet flavour is wonderfully contrasted with the parihuela.

Then comes huatia — or rather, its reflection. The ancient Incan technique of earthen cooking is reinterpreted using yurine, a lily bulb grown underwater in Hokkaido. It’s paired with a vibrant uchucuta, a green herb sauce drawn from the Andean tradition, and served alongside the main of tender, charcoal-grilled Hokkaido venison. The yurine is particularly exciting, the unusual bulb offering a glorious taste somewhere between chestnut and potato with onion-like layers.

The sweet courses are no less evocative. In the high rainforest, maca-infused burnt butter meets açaí crisps and elderberry sponge, punctuated with frozen custard and elderflower cream. The textures are soft, smoky, and layered, echoing the density of the forest itself.

And finally, we reach the Amazon, where the cacao family appears in its full complexity: copoazú in sorbet and roasted seed paste; macambo in caramel custard and chewy fruit leather; cacao in sponge, meringue, jelly, and a molten-chocolate-filled sphere. Six textures. One idea. And an ode to a truly spectacular ingredient.

Each dish is expertly paired with a beverage, including the meads and ciders made by Central’s research and development project Mater, in addition to a magnificent array of South American wines.

It’s a place where everything is considered, from the cutlery and crockery (much of it made by the team themselves) to the cards that accompany each dish. Every element is there for a purpose, driving the narrative and telling a story.

At MAZ, Peru speaks through its ecosystems, and Japan responds with its seasons. The result is not just a meal, but an interplay between two worlds.

maztokyo.jp

From the July edition of Wanted, 2025