The restaurant will open at 17 Frith Street in London's Soho next year, on the site of Cafe Emm where it will serve, unsurprisingly the marinated raw fish dish ceviche, alongside Peruvian classics such as Anticuchos and Causas - whipped cool potato cakes stuffed with crab or prawns.
Morales told BigHospitality that the site, which has been home to restaurants for the past 100 years, was chosen for its 'heritage and character'.
"With our contractors Metz we are doing our best to save and recycle as much as we can to keep the original features and ensure we don't create more waste for our planet. Through work, I've practically lived in Soho for the last 15 years so feel very at home here. We feel humbled to be next to such great food places such as Koya, Barrafina, Mooli's, Siam and Arbutus," he said.
Menu
Morales, who decided to forge ahead with his dream of opening London's first ceviche restaurant after a Twitter campaign showed strong support for the idea, has recruited chef Alejandro Bello to head up the kitchen.
Food will be served mainly as small sharing plates but larger plates, such as Beef Saltado and the traditional Arroz con Pato will also be available. Peru’s superfood Quinoa will be served in a variety of salads and Peruvian Giant Corn Choclo with Huancaina Sauce will be served as one of several sides.
Desserts will include Pumpkin Picarones Donuts and Lucuma Ice Cream and a drinks menu will see Pisco Sours sit at the top. The restaurant will also feature a Ceviche Bar where diners will be able to watch chefs prepare the fish ready for marinating in citrus juice.
“Lovers of sushi and sashimi will be blown away by our Ceviches," said Bello.
Latin American cuisine
Latin American cuisine is set to take the capital by storm next year with at least five restaurants due to open. Peruvian chef Virgilio Martinez is planning a new venture called Lima while restaurateur Arjun Waney plans Villa Rose. Jamie Barber's Brazilian concept Cabana also opened at Central St Giles last month.
Peruvian food has been creating a buzz among chefs and foodies over the past year. Fans of ceviche include World's 50 Best chefs Ferran Adria and Rene Redzepi.
Morales said: “When you first try Peruvian food it’s like love at first bite. This is still a secret in Britain but we want to change that with Ceviche. With every dish, our unique flavours, passion and history will be served”.