For the first time, a Latin American restaurant, Lima’s Central, tops the list of The World’s 50 Best Restaurants. The Peruvian chef Pía León, co-owner and manager of her kitchen together with Virgilio Martínez, explains what the new recognition of the gastronomy of a country and a continent means that, according to her, still has a lot to tell and a rich pantry and tradition to rediscover. In addition to celebrating number one for Central, León has managed to make Ella Kjolle’s restaurant, located in the same building, break into the influential list at number 28.
It feels?
It’s intense, amazing. There are somewhat contradictory feelings: on the one hand you are excited, you are happy and you feel proud; and on the other, you are afraid of what is coming, there are nerves, anguish, uncertainty, because the responsibility is much greater. I feel vertigo, but the positive side weighs much more.
Central has completed 14 years that you have lived since the beginning, first as an employee in the kitchen.
I’ve been at Central since day one. I met with Virgilio when the space was under construction and I have lived it one hundred percent. I have grown with Central and Central has grown with me, and that makes me feel very proud, but not only for myself and my work, but also proud of the team that has put so much effort into it. And happy for Virgilio Martínez, who is passionate and an artist. I’m not saying this because he’s my husband and I understand people wondering what else I’m going to say about my partner, but I’m really honest: he’s an artist and he deserves everything good.
If Virgilio Martínez is the artist, how would he describe what Pía León is?
We are both artists, but each in our own way. Virgilio is much more philosophical, much more analytical, much calmer: he, with three things, can create beauty. I’m not that calm, I tend to react faster, I like action more. I think we are different and that each one is aware of his role and his virtues, and that is very nice after so long.
Are these roles very differentiated?
It is important to accept those qualities and it has nothing to do with the ego, but you identify what you are good at and you have to focus on that. I know my role and Virgilio and Malena theirs, and I think that’s why the three of us have managed to make an amazing team in which we respect each other, we organize ourselves, everyone knows what to do and we help each other a lot.
What is your part?
I like and really enjoy the fact of leading, organizing, motivating. I think that this is a very important role that I have been assuming for a long time and it fills me with satisfaction. I’ve been in Central for 14 years and I have it deep in my heart, and I’ve also opened Kjolle for four years, although I’m still in Central. Over time I already know what I like to cook and what I like to eat. Virgilio and I are different and that’s fine. This evolution takes time and I still have a long way to go, but I am gaining confidence day by day.
Central is a matter of three: Who is Malena Martínez, in addition to Virgilio’s sister?
Malena, who is a doctor, is the base that supports that pyramid in which the three of us are. She is curious, she is studious, an artist. She is passionate, super detailed. We are three, I always say it. Male is knowledge, she is information.
The one that is ahead in its facet of explorers of the ecosystems of Peru through that project called Mater that encompasses everything they do?
Yes, it is the one that explores, the one that studies, the one that knows, the one that understands. Then comes the other part: Virgilio who is the creative one, the visionary, the one who is thinking all day. And I am the one who lands, the one who executes, the one who takes action, a bit of a mother. I’ve always been told that and I like it. The one with the team, very close to them, the one who feels that they are her friends. Before Central changed location and Kjolle or Mil opened in the Cuzco valley, the group was much smaller, but with those changes Mater gained weight and we were afraid of losing control. Time had to be dedicated to each piece of equipment, and that has been something very important that we have worked on and that I love.
He once told that he had an interview with Virgilio Martínez to work at Central and as a boss he did not make it easy for him.
I met with him, he delayed me for a couple of months saying that he would call me and I was very, very insistent. And finally he did it, and he made me the assistant in the cold dishes area and a month later he made me head of the batch. It was very hard, I suffered and cried a lot.
Because?
It was physically and mentally exhausting work. It was another time and we were just two women and you had to prove your worth every day. I never received bad treatment, nothing like that, but it was a very personal struggle, always wanting to demonstrate. “Don’t worry, I’ll take it for you.” “No, I can”, and resist at all times. They were not tears of misfortune but of fatigue, frustration and struggle, but also of joy, because you were showing a little more every day. I asked a head chef who left to recommend me to replace him, but Virgilio hired another guy. I cried for everything, because I was very emotional and those were my first steps in this gigantic world of haute cuisine, and that’s why I cried for many things.
Then the complicity arose.
It was after a year. When I entered Central I had a boyfriend, but with Virgilio there was always a complicity; we looked at each other and understood each other in many situations. The restaurant closed for a few months and many people left. He asked me if he would stay and I told him that he would wait for him and that he could count on me. He knew we would open again and we did. In those months I began to help him with other things and that’s where we really met.
When El Celler de Can Roca reached number one on the list of The World’s 50 Best Restaurants for the first time, Josep Roca confessed that he was terrified that success would go to his head. Does it happen to you?
Honestly, I think it won’t happen to me; Yes, it is very easy for you to be misplaced, but with Virgilio we have been working on this for many years and I think that as a family we are very clear about what we want and what values ??move us. Definitely, there is an ego and one likes to be recognized, obviously, and you have to enjoy it. But I don’t think I’ll get too fussy, I think it’s a nice opportunity to continue being ourselves.
Have you ever believed it too much?
Yes, but when it has happened we have scolded each other. Sometimes we touch each other and one tells the other to please situate himself. For this reason, I feel calm and we are lucky to be together and to have matured as people together. We have just celebrated ten years of marriage and we are in a magical moment in which everything is mixed: the personal, the professional, the family part… I think we have it very clear: we must continue working and the family is the most important thing. I am calm in that aspect.
What has Central contributed to world haute cuisine?
Central is not just a restaurant. It was born as one thing and over time it has changed. Malena’s participation helped a lot because she paved the way for us and made us see that a restaurant was not just about going, having a good time, eating… Behind it was a gigantic world. Hence Mater’s motto: “There is more out there”. Because Central goes much further and today I can say that, more than a restaurant, it is an experience that will give you a lot. Because you are not only going to see products and biodiversity of Peru, but to feel, breathe, see, listen, touch. Because Mater brings together many disciplines and allows you to see a community.
Does Mater collect his thought and his roadmap? What exactly?
It is a research center where many disciplines beyond cooking participate and contribute different points of view; many other references that allow those who visit us to fly. All our projects are fed back as part of Mater, which is the base from which Central, Kjolle, Mil… We are all united and have the same vision.
Was there a before and after since Central opted to structure its tasting menu based on the altitudes of the different Peruvian ecosystems?
Of course. That marked a change and when we opened 14 years ago we were something else. The idea of ??focusing on the different heights was not a stage but the great change from which there is no way to return. Malena lived in the United States and Virgilio invited her to come when she was doing her master’s degree as a doctor, and when she joined, the work arose from different altitudes and that awoke in us an enormous desire to go deeper and deeper.
It was his way of differentiating himself internationally and having his own line.
Totally, you have to be unique. And it’s nice to be influential.
Do you see your ideas replicated in other houses when you travel?
Yes, it happens and one feels proud. It’s nice that after so much time and so much effort you can be a reference or inspire someone. We see it as a sign that you are doing a good job and as the result of being a unique, very special restaurant. I always say that Central is very honest, it is from the heart, and we want whoever comes to feel that authenticity.
Within Peru, do you feel understood?
At first we were the restaurant that was not understood within Peru, while outside it was understood.
Perhaps because the price was too high for the country’s wages?
Yes, but also because it seemed strange to them and over time people in the country became curious and began to go there with a more open mind. The desire to discover products increased that, even though they were from here, they had not seen in their entire lives. And nowadays local people go.
Peru is one of the countries most proud of its gastronomy. Also from that haute cuisine that few people can access?
There are people who do feel very proud of all gastronomy; there will always be those who make derogatory comments, as happens in other countries, but in general there is pride because gastronomy is what unites and has made the country progress. The common denominator of all Peruvians is the pride of food. In the midst of misfortunes, crises and all the bad things that happen, the country is the only thing that unites us. There will always be someone who criticizes, but I have the feeling that cooking is that total pride that unites all Peruvians.
Would Central not have reached number one without the figure of Gastón Acurio, the great ambassador and the most international of Peruvian chefs?
Of course, Gastón led the way. He was the one who started, the one who moved, united and fostered that pride. In Peru, Gastón is highly valued and that’s nice. Because that union that makes us all try to row in the same direction and push was born with Gastón Acurio, who explained Peruvian cuisine to the world. We will always be grateful to him, because he started and wanted to.
Both Virgilio Martínez and you have visited their kitchens.
I did my first cooking practices at Astrid y Gastón in 2005 when I was studying. And Virgilio already worked there, he in the restaurant in Colombia, where he was for four or five years, and then in Madrid, where he was for a couple of years. We will always be grateful to Gastón for making us feel more proud of Peru and for giving us that security without which we would not be here today.
Reaching number one is recognition for a country that loves gastronomy and for all of Latin America, which for the first time has a restaurant at the top of the ranking.
This is an award for the Central team, of course, but also for Peru and from there for all of Latin America. And that is very strong, very beautiful and deeply gratifying, and it makes me feel deeply proud and strong as a Latin American cook. We are sure, confident and convinced that Latin America has a lot to tell. And that is very positive to motivate, to be a reference, to be an example.
You have said that Latin America has a lot to tell. Do you foresee a long journey for Latin American haute cuisine?
Absolutely. We are no longer just talking about Peru, there is much more: Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador… we are a large group that is moved by the same passion and the same feeling. And we have so much in common it’s amazing. Because I was recently in Ecuador and I had the feeling of being in my country. Not only are our markets alike, but also the people, customs, ways of cooking that you thought were only from Peru. You realize that we are all united, with certain differences, but we are the same.
Are you also united by the concern to explore the pantry and ancestral wisdom?
We always talk about it in Mater, first you have to know, because what is the use of wanting to do a lot or teach a lot if you don’t understand and know, and it happens a lot that you want to skip this step. You have to know, understand, investigate, process and then follow. Because diversity is rich.
The luxury in Latin American haute cuisine is not caviar.
Not at all, that has already changed. Here luxury is really living the unique experience; if you go to Mil you are going to take a tour and at the end you are going to sit down to eat. Luxury in Latin America is not caviar, it is eating a potato that has just been dug out of the ground, that you met the person who harvested it and who told you how she started and how she eats it at her house. That is luxury for us: an authentic experience.
Noma changed the concept of luxury in its staging. Have you also contributed to changing that concept of luxury in different aspects?
They are restaurants that break; it can be Thousand or it can be Central. We were talking about caviar, our caviar is cushuro, that’s it, and the concept has totally changed. Luxury is that you drink something in a place that you can’t drink anywhere else and you won’t forget it. It will be memorable. And if suddenly whoever visits sits for three or four or five hours, he will learn many things. He went to Lima alone, but I assure you that he will remember and feel that he was in the Andes, in the Amazon, in the desert, that he met his people, that he saw the colors.
Have they played anthropologists?
We have known very ancestral customs. Before opening Mil, the work was in the fields. Getting to know the communities, listening, sharing, knowing what they like, how they do it, creating that link. Now there is a lot of talk about sustainability. And the most difficult thing is to be sustainable with these human relationships, to understand. And we have learned a lot.
What would you say to those who consider creative haute cuisine exhausted?
That nothing ended, if not, how boring it would be. That creative cooking is challenging and every day pushes you to continue doing new things, to continue inspiring you, to continue being a benchmark for new generations. Much remains to be done and nothing is over.
What are the great pending subjects of haute cuisine?
The human part. The relationships between people. Because people fill their mouths talking about sustainability, the product, the land, and all that is very good, but there is a part in which work has begun and in which much remains to be done; I mean meeting, listening, talking to the team. And I’m not saying that I do it well and you have to be self-critical to keep improving every day, and sometimes you fail, and you’re not so happy. But you have to be aware and work on it.
Is the great challenge caring for people?
Listen, dialogue, understand, respect. I think that is it and I know that it is difficult to get a rapprochement between generations. You have to adapt, these are other times and it is good that things change. I enjoyed, I learned and I don’t regret the hours and hours I worked, because I think they made me who I am today. But if something could be improved, I think it goes that way. Although the line is very fine and the situation is complex, a balance must be found: I listen to you and I want to help you, I am going to do my best, and you do your part. Build together. In general, they are trying to improve in this area of ??work relationships and they are beginning to make progress, but there is still a long way to go.
It is also the first time that a woman is number one as a cook, in her case in complicity with a man. Is it time to talk about female leadership?
Yes, obviously, I am the first woman and I am proud, yes. But the case of Central is a story of complicity with Virgilio. His good results are mine, or I feel they are mine, and vice versa. We have been a super team and focusing only on the fact that I am a woman is not the complete picture. I want to be understood: it is obvious that it is spectacular and serves as an example and it will be positive that for the first time a woman is in what has been chosen as the best restaurant in the world. And that this allows me to remember that if that is what you like and if you are passionate, love your profession and are willing to sacrifice everything, you can achieve what you set out to do. That’s great. But, in my case, I am an accomplice with Virgilio, and not only professionally but personally, he is my husband and I believe that we are very strong, very powerful and that we do great teamwork, always together with Malena.
Is it time to remember that leadership can be shared among several people?
I believe in the complicity of several people, whether you are a man or a woman. And Central is a story of complicity that goes far beyond being a man or a woman. It has nothing to do with it. I don’t feel comfortable focusing all the discourse on the fact that I am a woman, but on normalizing it. I know I’ll get hit, but I don’t care if I’m a man or a woman. Whoever wants can, and it’s over. All it takes is that you make the decision that you want to do it. If you feel like it, you can. In my case we were lucky to meet and create all that. There is a lot of strength, a lot of passion, a lot of enthusiasm. He pushes me and I push him. And he is cute. El Celler de Can Roca is something similar, a story of complicity between three brothers. You walk in there and feel like it’s family. Central too, and there are three of us. These are the values ??with which I was educated and that Virgilio and Malena were educated with, and we transmit them to the team.
It is also the first time that someone who runs the new number one has seen another of his restaurants enter the list, as has happened with his restaurant Kjolle, which has burst this year, ranking 28th.
I don’t even want to think about it, it’s double pressure. Kjolle is my place, it is mine. You enter and you can identify very well that it is Pía’s space. Like the other little part of my heart. Like my second son. It is a restaurant that will show you all the diversity without the limits of heights. A free kitchen, with a lot of color, where you will see the territory, you will feel the vibe, you will meet the team, you will feel it.
Is the list tremendously competitive among restaurants?
I am competitive, being honest. Obviously, there is a part of competition but that is not negative, it has the good part that it is that competitiveness that allows you to advance every day, the one that pushes you. But you have to learn not to compare yourself with others, but with the cook that you yourself were some time ago, in order to evolve.
Are there also complicities between the big restaurants?
A lot of complicity and we are very good friends. For me, the Roca brothers, for example, are friends and a love of people; I admired them all my life and we always had a very honest relationship. Who was going to tell me, that I worked there, that one day we would be real friends. The beautiful thing about gastronomy is that you meet people with good feelings, that there is affection. Disfrutar chefs are also friends. Not everything is competition. Because it would be unsustainable, I couldn’t, I’m not like that, I would suffer a lot. And before suffering, I would prefer to retire.
You have grown as a cook but also as a person, overcoming tremendous shyness. It is not the same one that came looking for a position in the kitchen of Central.
I don’t know what happened to me, but I have completely changed. And I think this recognition comes to me when I’m ready. I have been very shy, it has cost me a lot. In the professional part, I have evolved although my personality as a cook has been maintained, but personally I have changed completely. Shyness and the fact of being very sensitive have made me suffer a lot, it has cost me horrors. And today I’m still sensitive, but before I didn’t enjoy going out to a table to talk, nor did I dare to speak in front of 100 people because I felt like I was dying. And today I get to enjoy it.
How did you get it?
One day I made the decision and said: “That’s enough, Pía, either you advance or I don’t know where you will go.”
And what happened?
That a couple of years ago I answered myself: “Okay, come on, you’re another Pía and forget about the previous one.” I suppose it is part of the security and confidence of showing yourself that if you believe in yourself, you will advance. And much more accompanied by a team that helps you achieve it.
Could motherhood influence?
Obviously, motherhood changes you. Because it is something that makes you stronger, more secure, more confident; You don’t care so much what they think and you think you can do everything. And Virgilio has also always encouraged me. He is super generous, patient, he likes to teach. He gives you peace of mind.
Is there complicity among Latin American cooks?
There is a good group and I love it. They are women who have cultivated a friendship, who understand each other; women who have a great time together and it is a beautiful group with which I am very happy. Some have been my references for years: I listen to them, I observe them, I learn from them. This didn’t happen before and it’s unstoppable and cute.
Is it time for Latin America in haute cuisine?
Of course, I think so. And not only from Peru. It is time to believe in ourselves, to be proud and this will help. I think that the recognition of Central is a great example of not having to compare yourself with anyone, or get self-conscious. You know what you are and what you want to give and share. And realizing it is very nice.
