Last Updated on January 4, 2026
Bringing the Llama to London via New York
Restaurant of the Month is our chance to choose a new London opening we think will be a winner. For September I’ve picked a New York import, albeit one that serves contemporary Peruvian food. Llama Inn has taken over the rooftop restaurant and terrace at The Hoxton in Shoreditch, where there’s a concise but appetising and intriguing menu of Peruvian dishes, some great cocktails and a selection of low-intervention and biodynamic wines. Now, there are already numerous Peruvian restaurants in London – and some of them are very good indeed. We love Coya and will never turn down an invitation to Lima for example. But, in terms of location, you don’t get much better than Llama Inn – opposite Nobu Hotel and a few minutes walk from Brat, it’s a food destination for London’s cognoscenti.
It has all the trappings of success too, from the ‘secret’ entrance to one side of the main hotel through to the truly stunning terrace and cosy indoor bar and restaurant. You can pop in for just a drink but my guess is you’ll be tempted to stay for food too, stripped-back and contemporary-styled dishes with a focus on fresh fish and vegetables. For example, Cau Cau – a traditional Peruvian tripe stew, is made with zucchini/courgettes, making for a light, spicy and delicious late summer dish. The London opening comes hot on the heels of Llama Inn New York, co-founded by Chef Erik Ramirez who grew up in the USA, with Peruvian immigrant parents. In happening Brooklyn, it’s been an astonishing success with rave reviews and a bib gourmand from Michelin. In the UK, the kitchen is led by Marcin Maliczowski who previously worked alongside the famed Peruvian chef Gastón Acurio at Yakumanaka in Barcelona.
Sitting outside in September on one of the first nice evenings this summer was a treat in itself – and a classic Pisco sour was, for me, the perfect aperitif. My companion was braver and picked one of Natasha Bermudez’s signature drinks, a ‘Supertini’ made with a blue cheese olive. As she doesn’t particularly like a ‘dirty Martini’ made with olive brine, I think she was concerned it might be too salty. Testament then to the mixologist for creating something that was so carefully balanced that she loved the extra ‘tang’.
Meanwhile, our food order went in. At Llama Inn, they kindly explain all the dishes in as much detail as you need and also recommend how much food to ask for. Many of the options are designed for sharing and, there’s a little glossary on the back of the menu that explains some of the Peruvian and Japanese ingredients used. 
Rather than more cocktails, in some effort at restraint, we ordered a bottle of Funabul Brut Natur – a lovely, light (11%ABV) and minerally wine made from a blend of the classic cava grapes (Macabeu, Parellada, Xarel-Lo) which was an excellent foil for our ceviche of scallop, yuzu kocho, pitaya and nori – a beautifully refreshing dish with delicately seasoned dressing. It looked stunning too and we left not a drop of the delicious tiger’s milk nor a scrap of the nori
Pastel de choclo croquetes were utterly delicious with a crisp shell filled with melting mouthfuls of choclo corn from the Andes. Light smoked mozzarella added a gooey texture to the centre of the croquetes and a generous dollop of ocopa provided a piquant and spicy sauce to offset the sweetness of the corn.
The Cau Cau, as previously mentioned is a traditional Peruvian stew with Creole influences, at Llama Inn made with zucchini or courgettes and a generous seasoning of turmeric. Served with slider buns and a little bowl of corn and pickle it somehow managed to feel decadent. Morsels of perfectly cooked courgettes and potatoes were laced with the fragrant sauce and garnished with mint. The sliders, made up, were light and wholesome – a great vegetarian dish.
Of course, the star of the show was the Whole Fish Patarashca with Aji Amarillo Curry and Jasmine Rice. We were served a whole seabass, carefully deboned and wrapped in banana leaves before being cooked on hot coals. The Aji Amarillo curry sauce was delicate and fragrant rather than super hot and the fish itself was perfectly cooked, moist and tender. My companion remarked how lovely it was not to have to try to navigate the bones – I just got on with eating as much of it as I could.
Having navigated through the savoury dishes without picking anything too indulgent, we both decided that a dessert was in order.
Lucuma Tart might not win any beauty pageants with a heavy sprinkling of matcha, but was a mouthful of deliciousness, with a light butterscotch flavour from the Lucuma (a fruit native to Peruvian coastal valleys) contrasting with the fresh notes of matcha and a crisp pastry shell adding textural interest.
Pavlova was deconstructed, with a base of berry compote, whipped cream and meringue, studded with seasonally appropriate fresh blackberries.
The food at Llama Inn cleverly manages to be healthy but somehow still ticks all the comfort and indulgence boxes. It’s somewhere to hang out where you won’t feel hurried while you enjoy a menu of delicious dishes and great cocktails. In short, we are sure we’ll be back. This is the kind of place where you might meet up for drinks with friends and end up staying for the night to explore the really quite delicious yet simple Peruvian cuisine.
Llama Inn
1 Willow St
Shoreditch
London
EC2A 4BH
What else is new:-
We are huge fans of Peter Lloyd’s Sticky Mango restaurant on Bankside, so quite delighted that a new Sticky Mango restaurant has just opened, on 22nd August at Tower Bridge – watch out for our review coming soon.
At some point, our carnivorous streak will take us to Origin City – a new nose-to-tail restaurant at Smithfields which is getting excellent reviews.
And, for those who live in West London, there’s a new Richmond branch of Napoli on the Road (we’ve reviewed the Chiswick branch here)
What’s coming up:-
Fine dining restaurant London Stock has a new home at 6 Sackville Street, Mayfair and will be opening on Wednesday 4th October. This restaurant has made waves on the South London food scene since its opening in Wandsworth in January 2020 and we are looking forward to trying it out!
LIMA Cantina will replace Floral by LIMA and The Lost Alpaca in September this year. As you may have noticed we love Peruvian food so we are looking forward to checking this one out too
EVE restaurant, bar and café is set to open in Kensington on Wednesday 13th September and looks like a worthy addition to the casual dining scene there with an all-day menu that takes inspiration from the diverse flavours and breaking-bread cultures of the Eastern and Southern Mediterranean
Finally, we are secretly rather excited to hear that Bob Bob Ricard has a new baby due in the near future. Bébé Bob in Soho will specialise in rotisserie chicken alongside affordable wines and Champagnes and we are planning to find a way to meet the new arrival as soon as possible!
For all our previous restaurant of the month reviews do check our round-up here – they are all places we know you’ll want to try!
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