
03 Dec 2024
Zuaya is a Latin American fusion restaurant situated just off Kensington High Street that opened in July 2018 and has quickly established itself as one of West London’s best dining experiences. Owned by twin entrepreneurs, Alberto and Arian Zandi, Zuaya was their first restaurant venture in the UK.
Zuaya was the twin entrepreneurs’ first restaurant as part of The Emerald Hospitality Group. Sister restaurants include Como Garden, an Italian restaurant inspired by Lake Como, located in Kensington next door to Zuaya.
El Norte, Mayfair’s latest hotspot, is the group’s third restaurant – a modern and luxury Spanish restaurant and bar on Dover Street.
Zuaya is spread across two floors, with its interiors reflecting the jungle landscape of Latin America. Expect brightly coloured exotic flowers and evergreen foliage brought to life via a chic and immersive interior.
There’s also a resident DJ playing Latin American tunes on selected nights of the week, which lends to Zuaya’s upbeat and fun ambience, making it ideal for a great night out.
The menu at Zuaya is a selection of dishes that draw influence from Brazil, Peru and Mexico, all of which are encouraged to share thanks to their tapas style dishes.
From the starters, we’d highly recommend the lamb tacos. These mouthwatering bites are great warm-up acts for the stars of the show.
If you’re after fish or seafood then go for the Wild Sea Bass Ceviche with fresh berries and passion fruit. Feeling extra carnivorous? The grilled Iberian Pork with Butternut Squash is absolutely delicious, while the Argentinian Sirloin with Chimichurri is also fantastic.
For a sweet finish, Dulce de Leche and Coconut Flan is a Latin American triumph, whilst the Passionfruit Crème Brulee makes the very best of this exotic fruit and creates a modernised version of this age-old classic dish.
To compliment the food, Zuaya also boasts a top-notch cocktail and wine list. Zuaya’ s mixologists are proud to curate a selection of much-loved classics such as espresso martinis and negronis, which sit alongside bespoke Latin-American alchemies including London to Lima (Pisco, Falernum, Lime, Agave Syrup, Egg White) and Pink Rainbow (Vodka, Rhubarb Liquor, Lemon, Watermelon, Rose Petal Jam).
The Zuaya wine cellar is also packed full of stellar vintages from Latin America’s finest wine regions, including Mendoza in Argentina and Maipo Valley in Chile.
With exciting plans afoot for 2022 and beyond for both Zuaya and Emerald Hospitality as a whole, the Zandi twins are most definitely making their mark on the London restaurant scene. Watch this space…