Diego Oka is a legend.
If you are from Miami, or have not been living under a rock for the past 12 years (when he relocated from San Francisco), you have heard of the man behind La Mar by Gastón Acurio.
Spicing up Miami’s culinary scene since taking the helm at La Mar in 2014, this born in Lima and of Peruvian-Japanese heritage chap, Oka has spent more than two decades cooking his way around the world…with stops in Bogotá, San Francisco and Mexico City along the way.
Inspired by his grandmother’s kitchen in his childhood home (she lived with the fam), he always learned that creativity doesn’t stop at the plate. A ceramicist who created AMANO by Oka, an intimate eight-course tasting experience served on ceramics he handcrafted himself, we learned would be an industrial designer if cooking weren’t in the cards.
When he’s not cooking, creating pottery or championing the next generation of Latin American chefs, you’ll find him representing Miami and Peru on the international culinary stage. And most recently, with Hispanic Heritage Month happening until October 15th, at JARANA in Aventura “I chose some of La Mar’s classics to create a seven-dish sharing menu for guests to enjoy together on Saturday nights and there are three more to go.”
Learn about Chef Diego Oka- AKA ‘Oka’ below. And scroll to the bottom of his quickie to book this incredible experience which runs through October 15th.
Name: Diego Oka
Nickname: They call me Oka!
Your role at La Mar: Executive Chef of La Mar. I go by that. At the moment, I am the only employee for La Mar in Miami while supporting La Mar locations in Chile, Madrid, Argentina and San Francisco.
Why Miami? I chose to come to Miami in 2014 because La Mar was inside the Mandarin Oriental, and it was the perfect place for me to learn about the corporate system and structure. Before that, I was in San Francisco, which was very different.
What is your favorite childhood leftover memory: Yes, every family has those! In my home, my grandma lived with us, and my dad was a foodie. His business was by the Mercado Central, where all the chefs bought their food, so it was the best combination. He would bring home fresh seafood and scallops, fish and my grandma would cook for us. Although we would never repeat a meal, and we had a menu for the week that would interchange, so one day of vegetables, one day of meat, it was always different which kept it interesting. But if I could have one memory that stuck it would be of a dish called Tacu Tacu. It is the best leftover, ever, and it is made ofbeans and rice, and the next day you mix them together, and it’s even better. You recook it almost like a Tortilla Española.
What is your favorite restaurant to take leftovers home from? Now my dining style has changed because we have three kids. I would love to eat out more, but Chinese food has the best leftovers—always. Kon Chau, near Tropical Park, is one of my favorites. The stir-fried noodles are unreal. I love the morning glory vegetables, turnip cake and eggplant with shrimp. I always order the same things and leave with whatever we can take home. The dim sum is excellent, and they have it every day!
What would your last meal be? Something from my mom’s kitchen, like her famous Minestrón, which is inspired by minestrone soup. It’s a basil soup with yuca and beef cooked for hours, with lime and rocoto.
If you were a guest in your own restaurant, what would you order? The Tiradito Lujoso. Tiradito has a Japanese influence, with thinly sliced fish. This dish has confit vegetables and leche de tigre with celery, onion and garlic. It’s emulsified with the leche de tigre and served with chips, smoked trout roe and avocado.
What music is playing in your kitchen at home? I cook every day. I make lunch for my family and then go to JARANA, where I work with Chef Martha. Every morning, I support the team and cook. It’s my everyday restaurant and part of the group’s comfort-food concept.
Cooking at home is hard because cooking is both my work and my passion. I do it every day, so it’s not always easy for a chef to come home and do it again. I don’t usually play music while I cook because the job moves too fast.
But back to music - if I’m chilling, I like Pandora. I like surprises, so no pre-set playlists. I choose a channel and go!
What do you wear when you cook at home? Whatever I have on!
What is your favorite thing about the Miami restaurant scene? For sure, the community. When I came here in 2014, I was the new guy and knew nobody. I chose Miami because La Mar was inside the Mandarin Oriental, and it was the perfect place to learn about the corporate system and structure. San Francisco had been very different.
Here, I connected with these wonderful people who I now consider my friends. Olee is one of them! I don’t see her often, but there was a group of local chefs who came before me who had created this culinary community, and they hugged me. It was so beautiful.
I remember helping Cesar Zapata paint the walls at Phuc Yea. We were all going to one another’s homes. Olee, Carla, Steve Santana, Eric Saltz, David Morales, Gio, William Crandall, Brad and Soraya….the list goes on.
Now, everyone is so successful. We’re all grown up, married and have kids. I don’t know another city that has that. In other places, there can be so much envy and competition. We went to the movies together. We partied together. It was so much more than just restaurants.
What is your least favorite thing about the Miami restaurant scene? We don’t have a Chinatown.
What do you drink after work—alcoholic or non-alcoholic? I love to go out, but I don’t really drink, so I stick with sparkling water! I love being surrounded by drunk people, though.
I think I have an allergy to alcohol, like a lot of Asians do. But if I sneak in a drink, it’s Mezcal de Pechuga, which is traditionally distilled with a turkey breast! Anything else makes my head explode.
What would people be most surprised to know about you? I have no mysteries! I’m kind of boring. People know now that I have other passions. I love art, ceramics, design and architecture. As people have gotten to know me more, they realize I’m more than a chef.
What are your go-to spots in Miami? Cotoa, Sunny’s, and now I choose more family-friendly places. I also love ViceVersa, Tam Tam and Recoveco. I think they are some of the best, and the people behind them are super talented.
What kitchen tool do you swear by? My green Nenox sashimi knives. I love their design.
What is the most overrated culinary trend? Everyone trying to make things Japanese to make them fancy, or because it sells.
What are your thoughts on MSG? About 20 years ago, I was invited to Ajinomoto in Japan. It’s a brand most people know. They explained the process to us, the poor reputation MSG had developed and the controversy surrounding it.
I don’t have a definitive opinion on it, but in Peru, many people use it. I will say that a leche de tigre or ceviche made with it tastes different than one made without it. But glutamates also occur naturally in many ingredients, like dashi and sun-dried tomatoes, so you can achieve that flavor naturally without using the powder.
We don’t use it at La Mar—not because we think it’s bad or wrong, but because when I moved to Miami, people were very against it, so I stayed away from it. It’s been 11 years since I’ve used MSG powder.
What is your favorite thing to cook at home? Peruvian classics and comfort food, so I would say that is usually soups. My kids love soups, and it’s amazing that they have the opportunity to eat so well. It’s a tradition I’m passing down to them: sitting together and eating properly with meat, potatoes, and rice.
If you weren’t a chef, what would you be doing? I would be an industrial designer.
What advice would you give aspiring chefs? Enjoy what you do, not only in the kitchen, but in general. I’m so lucky to enjoy what I do.
Being a chef is about so much more than cooking. It’s talking to journalists and wonderful customers. It’s motivating and guiding my team. It’s being creative. Being a chef means learning to enjoy every part of it.
What’s your #1 guest-order pet peeve? I don’t have one! All the customers are very nice to me. The ones who suffer are the servers.
What is your favorite city to visit for food? Tokyo, for sure.
Guests can book a table at JARANA or La Mar Miami. It’s not a traditional set seating and the experience is available from 6:00 to 9:30 p.m. at $90 pp.