The Peruvian restaurant in Barcelona that will make you fall in love and understand why the sea can tell a whole life

Tomás de la Paz, Chilean by birth, will never forget how it all began with Gastón Acurio. “About twenty-five years ago, I showed up at the door of one of his restaurants in Peru, knocked, and blurted out: ‘I want to learn!’”. That audacity, almost unconsciously, changed his life forever. “After three months, he had already sent me to another establishment in Lima… and here I am today,” he recalls with a smile that still holds the spark of that first impulse.

Raised in Viña del Mar, Tomás knows the infinite potential of the sea well. “In Chile, we have an immense coastline, but we haven't been able to exploit it gastronomically. Peru, on the other hand, has built a very rich cuisine thanks to a mix of influences,” he explains. And it is precisely this intersection of cultures, techniques, and sensibilities that today defines his cooking as head chef of Yakumanka and right-hand man at Gastón Acurio's restaurant.

Opened in 2017, the restaurant was born with a clear idea: to find the balance between Peruvian tradition and the best local products, without unnecessary frills but with a very distinct identity. The essence of Acurio's restaurants is present: a lively, popular, and vibrant cevichería, with generous dishes and criollo soul, all wrapped in an informal atmosphere that turns every meal into a celebration.

We let ourselves be carried away by this philosophy without resistance. Tomás sets the pace, and we begin with a classic ceviche, which is only classic in name: Castellón prawn, Normandy oyster leche de tigre, and corvina in prawn head powder. The result is intense, deep, almost hypnotic.

Without time to settle in, the conchitas arrive, reinterpreted with parmesan foam and a salty panko crumble that adds texture and contrast. Immediately after, the shaomai (traditional Chinese dumplings made with pork) transport us to another culinary frontier: bathed in a sauce from northern Peru's chupe, enriched here with prawns, Iberian pork, langoustine, and eel. They are accompanied by a quail egg with huacatay sauce – “Like a hierbabuena,” he clarifies – which refreshes and balances. The journey continues with a surprising alfonsiño (red porgy) grilled with ajillo limeño, where garlic is transformed thanks to butter, chicha de jora, and ají panco. And when it seems like we've seen it all, the wantacos (classic tacos) and a prawn tiradito arrive, concluding the savory part with unexpected elegance.

The desserts don't fall behind. The tres leches, with coconut milk, fresh milk, and condensed milk, defies all clichés: “They are very cloying desserts that you can never finish… except these ones,” says Tomás. And he is right. The sweet ending culminates with a chocolate mousse with lúcuma ice cream, an emblematic South American fruit, which leaves a soft, yet persistent, impression. All paired with pisco sours, one classic and one mango, which round off the experience with freshness and character.

A good ambassador

Gastón Acurio, one of the most influential figures in international gastronomy and a great ambassador of Peruvian cuisine, christened this project with a name loaded with meaning: Yakumanka, “water pot” in Quechua. A name that is almost a declaration of intent. 

Because, in the end, Yakumanka is not just a restaurant. It is a journey. It is the story of a young man who knocked on a door without knowing that he would leave his life inside. It is the sea turned into language, into memory and into emotion. And it is also that shared moment at the table, when the flavors embrace you and time seems to stop, as if, for a moment, everything made sense.