Chef Carlos Delgado is diving into his first solo venture with Maru San. This Capitol Hill restaurant is D.C.’s only solely Nikkei-style restaurant, which is a fusion of Peruvian and Japanese cuisine.
Carlos Delgado is on a mission. Already, he’s made a name for himself as the chef of Blagden Alley Peruvian restaurants Causa and Amazonia, having won multiple awards and accolades while there — including the James Beard Award for Best Chef: Mid-Atlantic, a Michelin star and the Rammy for D.C.’s Best Chef of the Year.
But what it all boils down to is his passion for showcasing as much Peruvian culture as he can in the District.
With that, Delgado is diving into his first solo venture with Maru San. The Capitol Hill restaurant is D.C.’s only solely Nikkei-style restaurant, which is a fusion of Peruvian and Japanese cuisine.
Maru San is not the first or only restaurant in the city serving Nikkei-style food, as China Chilcano by Chef José Andrés serves Nikkei cuisine as well as chifa (Chinese-Peruvian) and criollo (Creole). It’s worth noting both Delgado and his partner at Maru San, Chef Simon Lam, previously worked for Andrés at China Chilcano.
The restaurant opened late February with a lengthy list of handrolls, plus dishes such as tiradito, ceviche and pulpo al olivo. The last dish consists of cooked, tender octopus tentacles covered with a creamy, purple sauce made from botija olives and is served with sliced avocado and saltine crackers sourced from Peru.
Many of the ingredients are sourced “from all over,” according to Delgado — fish markets in Japan to Hawaii to the Gulf of Mexico and beyond.
Guests can enjoy the handrolls either in a prix-fixe set or a la carte, with premium options such as uni (sea urchin), dry-aged bluefin toro (tuna), wagyu zabuton and foie gras with miso. Drinks vary from sake and a selection of beers to non-alcoholic offerings such as chicha morada, which is a traditional Peruvian beverage made from boiled purple corn, fruits and spices.
“I’m a consumer of my own product. I love hand rolls,” Delgado told WTOP. “As a chef myself, I have tried to source the best ingredients to mimic what I think would be the best hand roll.”
The space itself is narrow and intimate, only hosting 25 seats, all at the counter. There is a large mural of an octopus on the ceiling, courtesy of Brooklyn-based muralist Carson DeYoung. It’s a dark and moody atmosphere, but according to Delgado, it offers the chance for conversation with strangers.
“The counter service allows you to be very direct towards the cooks, chefs and people working there,” Delgado said. “It seems like a lot of people make friends there, is what I’ve noticed lately. Since they’re sitting at a counter all together, they end up talking to each other.”
For those seeking hard-to-get tasting menu experiences in the District, Maru San is certainly up there.
At the time of this article’s publication, the earliest available reservation for the 15-course experience, which is reserved for four people maximum, is July. The cost is currently $115 per person, plus tax and gratuity, booked via Resy.
“The demand has been a little bit crazy,” Delgado said.
On what’s next, Delgado said he has interest in opening restaurants in Los Angeles and New York, but, “I feel like my roots and my career started and worked here, so I want to open concepts that will allow me to showcase more Peruvian culture to Washingtonians.”
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