Llama Inn Menu: Peruvian-American Dishes, Prices & Legacy (Williamsburg)

No. Llama Inn closed permanently on December 20, 2025, after ten years of operation. Chef-owner Erik Ramirez and managing partner Juan Correa announced the closure via Instagram without disclosing a specific reason, thanking Williamsburg for a decade of support. The space at 50 Withers Street subsequently became Cafe Bar J.F., a South American-inspired bar and restaurant. (Source: Greenpointers, Dec 2025.)

Llama Inn was best known for its Peruvian-American tasting menu approach to Williamsburg dining -- seasonal, shareable plates anchored by Peruvian classics (ceviche, anticuchos, lomo saltado) with strong Nikkei (Japanese-Peruvian) accents. Signature dishes included beef heart anticuchos, a rotating ceviche program, the jalapeños tequeños snack, roasted beets with muna mint, and the lomo saltado served with scallion pancakes. The quinoa salad with bacon, banana and cashew was described as a permanent menu fixture that 'will probably never leave.' The restaurant earned a Michelin Bib Gourmand and appeared on the New York Times 100 Best NYC Restaurants list in 2024.

Llama Inn was led by Chef-owner Erik Ramirez, a Peruvian-American chef who trained at Eleven Madison Park, Raymi and Nuela before opening Llama Inn in November 2015. Ramirez was a finalist for the James Beard Award for Outstanding Chef and expanded the Llama Inn concept to London and Madrid. He also opened Papa San in Manhattan (Hudson Yards), a Nikkei-focused restaurant serving Peruvian-Japanese fusion, and Llama San in the West Village (which closed earlier in 2025).

The Trust the Chef tasting menu was $80 per person and included approximately 9 dishes across snacks, ceviches, vegetable courses and a main -- the full arc of the kitchen's seasonal program in a single sitting. Reservations were required (via Resy) and the format was recommended by most reviewers as the best way to experience the restaurant. The a la carte dinner menu was also available for those who preferred to order individually.

Llama Inn was a $$$ restaurant. The Trust the Chef tasting menu was $80 per person; the lomo saltado (hanger steak version) was documented at $38; signature cocktails ran $18 each. Review sources placed a typical dinner at approximately $65-100 per person including drinks. The restaurant did not publish a fixed online price list -- the menu was seasonal and rotated regularly, so individual dish prices varied.

Lomo saltado is a Peruvian stir-fry that blends Chinese wok technique with Peruvian ingredients -- one of the classic dishes of Chifa (Chinese-Peruvian) cooking. The traditional version uses beef (typically tenderloin or sirloin) stir-fried with soy sauce, tomatoes, yellow chili peppers, onions and garlic, then served with french fries and white rice. At Llama Inn, Erik Ramirez's version used hanger steak ($38) and was served with scallion pancakes and a rocoto cream sauce -- a Peruvian-American interpretation of the street-food classic.

Anticuchos are Peruvian street-food skewers -- traditionally made from beef heart marinated in aji panca (a smoky dried red chili) and vinegar, then grilled over charcoal. The dish originated with the Quechua people of the Andes and became a fixture of Lima's street-food culture. At Llama Inn, beef heart anticuchos were a menu mainstay since opening; the restaurant also served seasonal vegetable anticuchos (such as cabbage) that changed with the produce calendar.

Llama Inn held a Michelin Bib Gourmand designation -- the Michelin Guide's marker for restaurants that offer exceptionally good food at moderate prices. The restaurant also appeared in the New York Times 100 Best NYC Restaurants list in 2024, and chef Erik Ramirez was a James Beard Award finalist for Outstanding Chef. In 2015, New York Magazine included Llama Inn in its 'The Thousand Best' list shortly after opening.

As of 2026, the Llama Inn name and concept continues in London at The Hoxton Shoreditch (seventh floor) and in Madrid. Both international locations serve an equivalent menu to the Brooklyn original -- ceviches, anticuchos, quinoa salad, lomo saltado and Nikkei cocktails. The Brooklyn location (50 Withers Street, Williamsburg) permanently closed on December 20, 2025. Chef Erik Ramirez's Papa San in Manhattan (Hudson Yards, The Spiral) continues his Peruvian-Japanese Nikkei cooking in New York.