A PLACE DEDICATED TO EXPLORATION, LEARNING, AND THE FREEDOM TO DEVELOP AND SHAPE A NEW CULINARY LANGUAGE
At Mayta, the year has begun by opening the door to new discoveries. It is a moment in which the land guides their search and invites them to welcome ideas that become reality, as well as projects that mark the start of a new phase of renewal and discovery.
This spirit of new beginnings and renewal frames the latest stage of Yachay, the project led by Peruvian chef Jaime Pesaque. Although Yachay has existed for years as the way the Mayta team research, reflect and develop new dishes and culinary ideas, based on constant exploration, testing and shared curiosity, this process now moves one step further.
Yachay now takes shape as a physical space of its own: a creative workshop located in a building opposite the Mayta restaurant, in the Miraflores district of Lima, Peru. It is a real place where knowledge comes together and is projected forward. Here, the team carries out tests and trials, designs tableware and shapes the atelier where everything is born before later reaching the guest at the Mayta table.
Yachay is Mayta’s creative exploration centre. It was conceived as a place for learning, curiosity and freedom around cooking. Its name comes from Quechua and means to know or to learn, perfectly capturing its essence. It is where acquired knowledge is transformed, through curiosity, into a new form of culinary expression.
Under Jaime Pesaque’s vision, Yachay is “the creative spirit of Mayta, the kitchen behind the kitchen. A warm, intuitive space, full of freedom to research and reinvent”. The work carried out here is nourished by constant journeys made by the chef and his team across Peru. These trips deepen their understanding of local ingredients, with a special focus on the Amazon as a living territory of knowledge, biodiversity and ancient cultures.
The Amazon pantry is one of the richest and most biodiverse in the world. It holds an extraordinary variety of fruits, roots, plants, fish and spices that now play a key role in Peruvian fine dining. For the chef, “the vast Amazon ecosystem is fascinating. Every journey brings new discoveries, not only ingredients but also culture and sources of inspiration. Yachay is where everything we find during our field work comes to life. It is a place of testing and movement, where curiosity turns into action.”
Yachay is the creative heart that feeds Mayta. It can be seen as the process, while Mayta is the result: Jaime Pesaque’s journey through Peru, told through a fine dining experience. In this sense, Yachay is the origin of the culinary narrative. It is where discoveries from each region are transformed so they reach the guest with deep emotional meaning. “At Yachay we explore, test and create the language that we later speak at Mayta,” explains the chef.
Within Yachay’s creative processes, tableware plays an essential role as part of this culinary language. Each piece is fully handcrafted, shaped by hand and respecting the natural rhythm of the clay. The result is unique objects where function and character exist in balance. These pieces are created alongside Peruvian artisans who inherit ancient techniques and maintain a deep connection with the land. Born from clay and fire, they accompany and enhance the story of each dish. At Yachay, the team thinks not only about what is served, but also how it is presented, so every element of the experience shares identity, territory and culture.
As part of this evolution, Mayta will introduce a new tasting menu from February. This menu brings together the learning and experiences from the most recent journeys made by Jaime Pesaque and his team. The inspiration and discoveries are translated into a personal interpretation that fits naturally within the restaurant’s style. It is a coherent evolution of his way of understanding cooking, rooted in Peruvian produce and the desire to give it visibility. Traditional recipes are reinterpreted and new ideas are created, always connected to the present.
This same way of understanding cooking and territory gives meaning to Yachay as a concept of learning, exploration and knowledge sharing. It supports and strengthens the constant evolution of Mayta and Jaime Pesaque’s work. Through the restaurant, Pesaque develops a contemporary vision of Peruvian gastronomy and territory, based on curiosity, deep product knowledge and long-term work with his surroundings.
Jaime Pesaque’s entrepreneurial spirit has led him, over the years, to develop several gastronomic projects under the umbrella of Jaime Pesaque Restaurants. The group’s flagship is Mayta, currently ranked number 11 on the Latin America’s 50 Best Restaurants list and number 39 on The World’s 50 Best Restaurants list. In 2020, it was also named Best Restaurant in the World by the World Culinary Awards.
In addition to Mayta, the group runs other dining concepts in Lima, including Sapiens, 500 Grados and Mad Burger. Internationally, Pesaque has taken his contemporary vision of Peruvian cuisine to different destinations, such as The Hague in the Netherlands, where he leads the restaurant Callao, and Miami in the United States, where he heads the NUNA project, focused on Nikkei cuisine.
Since being included for the first time in Forbes’ list of the 50 Most Creative Peruvians in 2022, Jaime Pesaque has remained a constant presence in this selection, which recognises the country’s most influential and visionary figures. This recognition was followed at the end of last year by the Summum Award for Best Author Cuisine. Both honours highlight his creative strength, his contemporary view of Peruvian cooking and his commitment to exploration, innovation and respect for the land and its cultures. These are key pillars of his work at both Mayta and Yachay.
Driven by this entrepreneurial, curious and creative spirit, Jaime Pesaque published his first book, Mayta, at the end of last year with Catapulta Publishing. Edited by Victoria Blanco, it features texts by British journalist Sorrel Moseley-Williams, based in Buenos Aires, and photographs by Jessica Alva Piedra. The book includes a special foreword by Jordi Roca and brings together more than 17 years of personal and creative work at the helm of his flagship restaurant.
These two milestones, the publication of his first book and the creation of Yachay, speak to each other as part of the same moment of reflection and evolution. While the book gathers the memory, territory and ideas that have shaped his cuisine, Yachay stands as the space where that knowledge is projected into the future, strengthening a creative ecosystem that connects learning, exploration and culinary creation.