Kuala Lumpur has no shortage of restaurants looking beyond familiar culinary borders. The more interesting arrivals, however, are those that bring a specific place and point of view to the table.
Opening this October at W Kuala Lumpur, HOJA takes its cues from the Pacific coast of Colombia, Peru and Chile, while neighbouring cocktail bar HOJITA explores Latin America through its spirits, flavours and drinking traditions.
At the centre of HOJA is Chef Diana Matute, W Kuala Lumpur’s first female Chef de Cuisine. Raised in Lima and influenced by generations of Peruvian cooking, Matute approaches the menu through the ingredients and techniques of the region rather than treating Latin American cuisine as a single category.
A Taste Of Latin America
Chef Diana Matute.
Fresh seafood, bright citrus, native ingredients and open-fire cooking form the backbone of the menu, alongside slow-roasted vegetables and contemporary interpretations of traditional dishes. The focus is on the distinct culinary identities of Colombia, Peru and Chile, three Pacific-facing countries connected by geography but each with its own ingredients and traditions.
The experience becomes particularly intimate at HOJA Mesada, a 26-seat chef’s counter overlooking the open kitchen. Guests can also opt for HOJA Privado, where five- and eight-course tasting menus explore the ingredients, stories and culinary traditions of the Pacific coast.
If HOJA is concerned with food, HOJITA turns the attention to Latin America’s drinking culture.
The cocktail bar places mezcal and pisco alongside cachaça, Colombian sugarcane spirits and regional distillates that remain relatively unfamiliar in Southeast Asia. Rather than organising the menu around conventional cocktail categories, drinks are grouped by flavour profile, moving from smoky and herbaceous to floral, savoury and citrus-led.
Music and design add another layer, with Latin sounds, tropical rhythms and curated vinyl sessions shaping the atmosphere as the evening progresses.
Together, HOJA and HOJITA add another perspective to Kuala Lumpur’s increasingly international dining scene. Their appeal lies not simply in bringing Latin America to the city, but in narrowing the lens to a particular coastline — its ingredients, spirits and culinary traditions — and allowing them to speak for themselves.
HOJA and HOJITA open at W Kuala Lumpur this October.
