As a city renowned for having excellent versions of practically every cuisine on the planet, it can be hard to find a niche in London’s restaurant scene. However, Mareida, a new fine-dining Chilean restaurant in Fitzrovia, has found one: London has never before had a high-end Chilean restaurant. 

‘Unlike Peru and other South American countries, the gastronomic identity of Chilean cuisine had not been mapped extensively, and there are not many offerings outside of the country,’ says Mareida’s founder, Prenay Agarwal. ‘It seemed like an incredible opportunity to showcase this in a flagship space in London.’

Mareida opened in June on Great Portland Street, with a launch menu co-created with acclaimed Chilean chef Carolina Bazán (who once won the title of Latin America’s Best Female Chef) and head chef Trinidad Vial Della Maggiora taking the reins soon after. Chile is infused into every element; your feet will patter over custom tiles crafted from combarbalita (a semiprecious volcanic rock unique to Chile), your ears will be filled with a soundtrack created by Chilean DJ and producer DJ Raff, and your eyes will gaze upon artworks created by Chilean artists specifically for the restaurant. 

It’s not really a restaurant at all – it’s more of a full-scale cultural immersion. It’s also the first venture by founder Prenay Agarwal and his Chilean husband (Benjamin), so we sat down with him to talk about how it all came together – plus, where he eats in London when he’s not chowing down on Chilean dishes at Mareida.

Mareida brings together food, wine, music, design and art – but it’s all anchored in Chile. What first drew you to Chilean culture as the foundation for your first London restaurant?

After marrying my partner Benjamin Figari, who is from Chile, I spent nearly a year in the country and immersed myself there. Chile is a place with so much to explore and, outside of the most iconic destinations, also offers an incredible, vast and diverse geography with fascinating aspects of culture, food, design and art in each region.

Following Covid, there has also been a wave of innovation in the food scene, with a younger generation of chefs coming back to Chile and implementing techniques they have learned abroad with local ingredients (which are incredible). It seemed like a great opportunity to showcase this in a flagship space in London. 

Mareida is London’s first properly high-end Chilean restaurant, introducing flavours and techniques that might be unfamiliar to Londoners. How did you strike the balance between staying true to Chilean tradition and adapting to a British palate?

We spent a year developing the branding with Constanza Gaggero – one of Chile’s most established designers, who could see how to represent the country in a modern way that could be understood by the London audience. Then, we hosted a series of pop-ups in Santiago with opinion leaders from a variety of sectors. Following the success of this, we adapted the menu and tested it at Carousel in London, where we held a five-night residency. The feedback was excellent, and we gained the confidence to initiate works on the permanent site.

The idea with the menu is to maintain Chilean identity by focusing on the use of certain flavours that are only found in Chile, such as merkén [a smoked chilli spice blend], and adapting traditional preparations to have dishes that can match the style and standard that is expected in London. We plan to have seasonal variations to the menu, and have a list of plates that we have tried – we want to keep the menu small in order not to overwhelm guests. 

You’ve assembled a heavyweight creative team – including Carolina Bazán, DJ Raff and architect Macarena Aguilar. How did you go about curating that talent, and what were you looking for beyond technical skill?

The team formed very naturally. I happened to meet Macarena by chance over a New Year’s lunch at the beach in Chile and, through her networks, the project took shape very rapidly. There was a lot of interest from very talented people that wanted to be part of Mareida; I felt that everyone was proud to have this representation in London and the energy was a very positive and fun one. I believe this communal effort was the reason why we were able to test, implement and launch Mareida in such a short time.

What’s your idea of the perfect evening at Mareida? Where would you sit, what would you eat, which cocktails are you reaching for?

I love sitting at the kitchen counter and watching the dishes being prepared while speaking to the chefs. My favourite dishes include the mussels in edible shells that have a rich sea flavour, the Wagyu sliders and the chupe de jaiba – a creamy crab stew served in its shell. The desserts are also wonderful and bring back memories of childhood; the quince cheesecake requires you to crack open a sugar sphere, and the flan is simple yet irresistible. And my favourite cocktail is the Mareida martini which uses seaweed tincture. 

What’s the one thing you hope every guest walks away remembering – whether or not they know anything about Chile?

We want every guest to feel like they want to visit Chile and see everything the country has to offer. We aimed to bring a part of that to London and hope that by trying something unexpected, and in an environment that is so connected to materials from there, guests will want to go to Chile themselves.

When you’re not at the restaurant, what do you cook and eat at home? 

My husband and I love to cook. We love getting fresh produce from the farmers’ market and making simple but delicious dishes, usually inspired by Mediterranean countries such as Greece or Italy (where we lived for six years).

London has one of the best food scenes in the world – are there any restaurants you love and want to give a shoutout to? 

There is an abundance of options in London, and it is difficult to keep up. Recent favourites include Miga, an outstanding family-run Korean restaurant in Hackney; Rambutan for an incredibly flavourful and spicy Sri Lankan experience; and the neighbouring Oma for a sensory journey to Greece. Plus, the pastries at Don’t Tell Dad and the cookies at Foreign Exchange are out of this world.

Mareida, 160a Great Portland Street, London W1W 5QA; mareida.co.uk