Where to Eat in Santiago, Chile: Best Restaurants According to Chilean Chefs

Visiting a new city can be overwhelming and make you suspicious: did you accidentally end up in a restaurant that caters only to tourists? Are you conspicuous? Are you missing out on the best thing you’ve ever eaten because you didn’t have reliable intel?

Related: The Chilean Mystique: Why Chile is South America’s Next Food Frontier 

Here’s help: A list – curated by Chile’s hottest chefs – of the best places to see, eat, and experience true Santiago culture. You’re welcome.

Lastarria

For a bohemian vibe, check out Lastarria, found between the Plaza Italia and Santa Lucía and the Alameda and Parque Forestal. Historic homes and examples of Art Nouveau architecture are found throughout the neighborhood and art galleries and cultural centers such as the Centro Cultural Gabriela Mistral, named after the Chilean writer, are located in Lastarria as well. According to Patricio Cáceres Pérez, a specialist in Chilean cuisine, Les Assassins is a classic French bistro that should be on any visitor’s list. Rolando Ortega, a chef who made a name for himself with Salvador Cocina y Café, adds vinobar Bocanáriz. Wine Spectator has touted the extensive wine list here and the classic Chilean dishes that go with them. [pagebreak]

Providencia

Providencia, a vast neighborhood that stretches out along Avenida Providencia, is located between upscale and artistic outlying neighborhoods closer to city center. Chef Ortega recommends Fuente de Soda Las Cabras. Here, the owners have succeeded in reviving a type of dining experience that was typical for older generations of Chileans. One restaurant critic noted that the location of this two-year-old establishment also signifies a shift in what could be considered the “center” of Santiago – and, in that writer’s opinion, the Providencia location of Fuente de Soda Las Cabras, near the metro stop of El Golf, is the actual “center” of the city these days.

Christian Hayes, the co-founder of Sukalde Secreto, puts restaurant 99 on the “must-visit” list. Hayes knows what he’s talking about, he caters to individuals who travel from as far away as the United States (a group of multi-millionaires flew down to South America from New York just to experience Sukalde Secreto) and he also serves a local crowd during lunch at 2661, a restaurant that is open in the same location on weekdays. (Dishes at 2661 are priced so that the those who live and work in the area don’t feel they have to splurge the same way that diners at the once-a-week private gatherings of Sukalde Secreto do.) Why 99 and why now? The restaurant is open for lunch and dinner, the meals are light, and the emphasis is on Chilean products. Wooden tables and a large terrace provide the stage for Kurt Schmidt’s team to demonstrate their considerable culinary talents – reviewers are taking note and 99 was ranked #22 on the list of Latin America’s Top 50 restaurants last year. [pagebreak]

Vitacura

For fine dining, check out Vitacura, home to approximately eighty thousand people in an eleven-square-mile area. Luxury shops and private schools can be found in this part of the city that’s about thirty minutes by car from the city center. Vitacura has only existed since 1991; it was created out of portions of the neighborhoods of Las Condes and Lo Barnechea – and many green spaces, including a large park called the Parque Bicentenario, can be found in this tranquil zone. So, if strolling on tree-lined streets that edge ever-closer to the Andes mountains, the Cordillera as “Santiaguinos” call it, appeals, head over.

“Ambrosía is there,” Ortega states, referring to the restaurant led by Carolina Bazán, a Chilean chef who trained in France before taking over the market-to-table restaurant several years ago. Bazán, the daughter of a diplomat, gained culinary experience in Peru, Brazil, and Thailand, in addition to her training in France, before starting to work with fellow female chef, Rosario Onetto. At Ambrosía, they serve up eclectic meals inspired by Bazán’s travels and they’ve gained international attention as well as praise from residents of her hometown of Santiago.

Chef Alvaro Romero has another pick for Vitacura: Boragó, Rodolfo Guzmán’s celebrated temple to the exploration and deconstruction of native Chilean ingredients and recipes. Those who decide to try the tasting menu at the current number 42 on the World’s 50 Best Restaurants list, need to be prepared for a meal that will be similar in cost to other fine dining establishments in major cities throughout the world. That being said, the tasting menus at Boragó will provide a comprehensive introduction to “the most invaluable products coming from an isolated corner of the planet,” as the menu indicates.