Pia Leon Presents Mauka, A New Restaurant at Palacio Nazarenas, A Belmond Hotel, Cusco

The calm, contemporary interiors are further enhanced by a soundtrack recorded in nature with instrumentals composed by Peruvian artists. Tactile, handmade copper cutlery and pastel coloured ceramic plates – designed by the acclaimed Chef and inspired by local crafts – welcome guests to each table. 

An Epicurean Hotspot in the Andes 

The day-to-day running of the kitchen is led by talented Head Chef Leonel Almanza. The Cusco native, who specialised in culinary arts, joined Palacio Nazarenas’ kitchen team in 2015. Leonel is now in charge of executing, and deepening his knowledge of Andean gastronomy and its diverse produce. 

Mauka aims to introduce diners to a thoughtful vision of Cusco, where they can immerse themselves in a pleasant dining experience, surrounded by a sensory understanding of place, landscape, and the people of the Peruvian Andes. 

The restaurant offers an à la carte menu for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, with ingredients sourced from extreme altitudes around lagoons, forests, valleys, and the origins of the Amazon River. 

Palacio Nazarenas, a former 17th Century convent in the heart of Cusco, is home to original architectural features such as colonial frescoes with 21st-century elegance, Inca walls and an important collection of Cusco paintings. 

About Pia Leon 

Peruvian born Pía began her career in 2008 at Central, a world renowned restaurant concept that proposes a journey through Peruvian ecosystems at different altitudes for a unique culinary experience . Pia is co-owner with her partner, chef Virgilio Martinez. Together, they have also created Mil in Cusco and Maz in Tokyo. 

In 2018, she opened her own haute cuisine restaurant, Kjolle, named after an Andean tree, in which she expresses her ideas through an open, creative, Peruvian, pure, and modern cuisine. Only a year later, Pía won the Latin American Best Female Chef Award and, in 2021, the World’s Best Female Chef Award. Kjolle won Best Signature Cuisine in 2022. (Summum awards) 

About Belmond 

Belmond has been a pioneer of luxury travel for 46 years, building a passion for authentic escapes into a portfolio of one-of-a-kind experiences in some of the world’s most inspiring destinations. 

Since the acquisition of the iconic Hotel Cipriani in Venice in 1976, Belmond has continued to perpetuate the legendary art of travel, taking discerning global travellers on breathtaking journeys.

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