Pictured: Lomito al jugo saltado, stir fry beef, aji soy sauce, onions, cherry tomatoes and fried potatos at Almazonica Cerveceria. Photo by: Pascal Koch.

“Beer is food,” says Darwin Santa Maria, the chef and owner of Almazonica Cerveceria, a Peruvian-inspired eatery in south Sarasota that puts equal emphasis on the quality of the food and craft beer served to guests. Santa Maria, a longtime figure in the Sarasota dining scene, opened Almazonica in 2017 after spending time doing consulting work in Washington, D.C. and traveling back to his native Peru.

Peruvian flavors ground the restaurant’s menu. “We never forget our roots,” he says, referring to the way the country’s cuisine is highlighted in everything from the restaurant’s craft beer to the meals prepared with local ingredients. The menu changes based on trending flavors and guests’ preferences. “As customers’ habits change we develop as well. Right now, poke is popular, so we’re putting poke on the menu for a Peru meets Hawaii twist.” More traditional dishes include the skirt steak with chimichurri sauce and ceviche. The restaurant also offers vegan options and seeks to be accessible to all diners. While Santa Maria remains loyal to his culinary heritage, he’s eager to celebrate the traditions of other countries. One dish that will soon grace the tables at Almazonica is the molcajete, a hot stew-like meal served in a volcanic rock bowl. Instead of the typical Mexican mixture, he plans to serve Peruvian seafood.

He enjoys surprising guests with authentic flavors that they might not have tried before. “We have beef hearts on the menu, but it says ‘corazon meal’. People don’t read the whole description, they order it and love it. They say ‘Oh chef it's wonderful’ and I tell them ‘I’m glad you enjoyed it; it’s beef hearts.’ We really get to change their concept of the food.” Santa Maria also introduces new varieties of beer to his customers. His craft beers, currently brewed in Tampa, incorporate a taste of Peru in the form of purple corn, amazonian peppers, cacao and other ingredients. “One element from Peru has to be in all our dishes, but we let our customers guide the way.”

Almazonica Cerveceria, 4141 S. Tamiami Trail Sarasota, almazonicacerveceria.com

Pictured: Lomito al jugo saltado, stir fry beef, aji soy sauce, onions, cherry tomatoes and fried potatos at Almazonica Cerveceria. Photo by: Pascal Koch.