Explora

Sacred Valley, Peru

Pioneer of Peruvian cuisine Virgilio Martínez Véliz has given Explora Valle Sagrado’s menu an overhaul. Instead of having you sing for your supper, Martínez will have you hiking for it with a menu consisting solely of high-altitude Sacred Valley produce. Bringing flair from his flagship restaurant, Central, and the botanical research from Mil, he’s pulled together a banquet that’s equal parts substance and style. Start with the smoky duck ceviche, then move onto the beef rib glazed with black corn atop
a bed of Lima beans and sprinkled with dehydrated cushuros (an algae found at the bottom of lakes in the Andean highlands).
A hunk of pork neck cooked for 14 hours comes next, served with a bowl overflowing with purple potatoes the colour of a witch’s cloak. Potatoes feature heavily on the menu, given Martínez’s close work with farmer Manuel Choqque Bravo and his family, who have together modified more than 4,600 variations of native potato. Demolish the lot. If you’re hiking any of the mountains beyond Explora’s furrowed fields, you’ll need the sustenance.

00 51 84 300 000, explora.com