Cusco: this is Limbus, the curious bar with the best view of the entire imperial city

Going up the slope of San Blas, halfway between the Plaza de Armas in Cusco and the tip of the mountain, we arrive at Limbus, a restobar that is characterized by having an eclectic style and an extremely impressive cocktail bar.

From the entrance and the reception with neon lights, the exhibition of the Peruvian artist Rafael Lafranco surprises at the entrance and leads us towards a ‘tunnel’ covered with tumbo vines, the citrus fruit used to make ceviche, before the arrival of the lemon.

Limbus makes you doubt its definition: is it a bar? a restaurant? an art gallery? everything at once? With a spectacular view of the Cusco valley (by day and by night), Limbus does not intend to define itself so easily: “It has not been managed as a restaurant or a bar; rather, as a tourist destination where you can see the entire city of Cusco and enjoy live music. It is to meet people and be in a cosmopolitan environment that does not necessarily land on the product”, defines Joseph Corimaita Cuba, creator of the space, unstoppable curious and lover of disruptive cocktails.

“We put emphasis on the environment,” Corimaita adds, giving us as an example that, in addition to the visits from national and foreign tourists, a good percentage of the people who use Tinder in Cusco end up making their appointments in Limbus: “We came to understand the real value of this place, which is human contact. People do not come just to drink, it is not what they are looking for, ”she emphasizes.

Between limbo and distillates

At 133 Pasñapakana street, an area that used to be considered dangerous, the first ideas – relaxed and informal – were born 9 years ago, giving rise to a concept that matured over time: “Initially, we only had two little tables, two umbrellas and a bar. wood. I attended in shorts and sandals. We started in an austere way and with a lot of flexibility”, recalls the owner about the place that was at the same time the house of his parents and where he grew up.

In 2018 they bought an adjoining hotel in order to grow, as the queues of impatient visitors became uncontrollable. After closing during the pandemic, they devised a new way to continue in business to be able to sustain themselves and, by chance, managed to create a chicha de jora whiskey when in reality the intention was to obtain isopropyl alcohol for hands and put it on sale: “When I I tried it, it seemed strange to me because it was rich and so, accidentally, we made a Moonshine-style whiskey based on chicha de jora”, says Joseph Corimaita with a laugh.

Thus began the sale of one hundred percent Cusco whiskey, an idea that did not stop and gave way to the production of rum, gin, chartreuse, oxalis wine, Japanese shōchū and other distillates. “We think about making a whiskey that has the purpose of changing the world. If we make it viable, we can impact three or four families. It is a high-end whiskey, unique, it is exciting. The people who work at the distillery highly value the quality of the seed, a raw material with which we are surrounded”, highlights Corimaita, thinking of the coming years of his business and of a sustainable and collaborative future with society.

How did you come to have your own brand of beers? As for many, the pandemic has become an exercise in creativity and ‘punch’ to undertake new survival formulas. The same thing happened in Limbus. Unstoppable, craft beers added to their production and created their own brand called Bardock Beer Company. The success was such that a month ago they opened their own plant with a capacity of up to 50,000 liters in the heart of the Sacred Valley (Urubamba). This same space will house the Central Cusco Distillery and a tap room.

high altitude cocktails

between the pieces of Jose Tola, Harry Chavez, Wilfredo Cala and many more artists that dazzle in Limbus, the cocktail menu by bartender Jhinmi Kinmi offers more than 30 options that will not be found in other spaces: “We have tried to do table theater, an ‘ice braker’ proposal between the person they are sharing” or a multi-sensory experience.

The must-sees: the experimental Limbus, a cocktail made with the house gin and Andean caviar. Or you can travel to Eden with this cocktail that contains a dehydrated apple, 18 aromatic herbs from the area and alcohol made from Andean chartreuse. Other original options are Sátira, Bardock Punch, David Jones, Brichero, Moai, as well as their mocktails and calientitos. Their brewery offers 7 styles such as porter, IPA, pale ale, red ale, quadrupel, witbier and Belgian golden strong ale.

Spirits and beers that can be accompanied with à la carte dishes and appetizers such as its famous alpaca hamburgers or others that explore traditional Peruvian food and its regions, such as leche de tigre, solterito cusqueño, as well as malaya de res, tomahawk and its desserts. It will depend on the taste and mood of each visitor, since variety and a good atmosphere are guaranteed.

More data

• Limbus Restobar is located at Calle Pasñapakana 133, near the Plaza de Armas of Cusco.
• The Bardock Beer Company brewery plant represents an investment of 7 million soles and 3,500 square meters.
• The beers are found in restaurants such as Maido, Central, Astrid y Gastón, Westin, Osso, Carnaval Bar, La Gloria, among other exclusive venues that are part of the 50th Best list.