At Leo, Colombian Ethnobotany Meets Top Tier Dining

Introduction

Leo is a cultural institution that has redefined what Colombian haute cuisine means on the global stage. At the helm is Leonor Espinosa, one of Latin America’s most acclaimed chefs, whose career spans nearly two decades of culinary exploration, cultural advocacy, and gastronomic innovation. For Espinosa, food is never just about taste; it is about narrative, heritage, and the delicate ecosystems that give Colombia its unmatched biodiversity.

The central philosophy of Leo is encapsulated in CICLOBIOMA, a concept that treats dining as an exploration of Colombia’s diverse biomes and their interconnectedness with human culture. Here, eating becomes a way to engage with the Amazon, the Andes, the Caribbean, the Pacific, the Llanos, and the desert—not only through flavors but through stories of people, traditions, and ecological stewardship.

In 2025, Leo celebrates its 20th anniversary, marking the occasion with a commemorative midday menu that revisits and reinterprets the dishes that first defined Espinosa’s career back in 2005. This anniversary menu exists alongside the restaurant’s signature tasting experiences, offering both a window into its origins and a vision of its future.

More than fine dining, Leo functions as an anthropological, ecological, and artistic experience. Every plate is a narrative fragment, every service moment a performance, and every visit a reminder that gastronomy can be both luxurious and deeply rooted in cultural memory.

At Leo, Colombian Ethnobotany Meets Top Tier Dining

1. The Concept of CICLOBIOMA: More Than a Menu

At the heart of Leo lies CICLOBIOMA, an innovative framework that transforms the restaurant into a living map of Colombian biodiversity. The term merges ciclo (cycle) with bioma (biome), reflecting the interplay between ecological systems and human life. Through this approach, Espinosa designs a menu that traverses Colombia’s landscapes—the lush Amazon, the snow-tipped Andes, the vibrant Caribbean, the wild Pacific, the vast Llanos, and the arid desert.

CICLOBIOMA emphasizes ethnobotany, the study of how communities use plants for food, medicine, and rituals. Ingredients such as jungle fruits, native herbs, and ancestral grains are not chosen for novelty but for the cultural wisdom they embody. By weaving these elements into haute cuisine, Leo ensures that traditional knowledge is not only preserved but also elevated to the world stage.

Behind each dish is a network of local producers, indigenous groups, and Afro-descendant communities who provide the ingredients. This collaboration supports sustainability while promoting economic empowerment in often marginalized regions. For guests, the result is more than a gastronomic experience: it is a narrative of resilience, heritage, and innovation that frames Colombian cuisine as both deeply local and globally relevant.

Cicliobioma

2. A Ritual of Service: Performance Meets Precision

Dining at Leo is not simply about what arrives on the plate—it is also about how it arrives. The service is choreographed with almost ceremonial precision. At key moments, multiple servers step forward simultaneously to present or clear dishes, creating a sense of harmony that mirrors the cyclical philosophy of CICLOBIOMA.

This synchronized movement transforms dining into a kind of ritual performance. Servers narrate the origins of each dish, connecting guests to the producers, landscapes, and traditions behind every bite. Their role is part storyteller, part guide, ensuring that the experience resonates beyond flavor.

Despite the formality, the warmth of Colombian hospitality permeates the ritual. Guests are never made to feel intimidated; rather, they are invited into a cultural journey. This balance between meticulous fine-dining standards and approachable human warmth is one of the subtle achievements that makes Leo exceptional.

3. The Anniversary Menu: Homage to Origins

To celebrate its 20th anniversary, Leo offers a special midday menu that reinterprets some of the iconic dishes from its early years. This commemorative selection provides a more accessible entry point into the restaurant’s world while honoring the foundations of Espinosa’s trajectory.

One highlight is atún chocoano con hormigas culonas, a dish that unites the flavors of Chocó’s Pacific coast with the edible ant tradition of Santander. Another is pulpo en brasa con salsa de corozo, a nod to the Afro-Colombian heritage of the Caribbean and Pacific coasts, where smoky seafood and tropical fruits converge. There is also arroz de carne oreada con plátano en tentación, a dish that channels the robust flavors of Santander through dried beef and sweet plantain.

These plates bridge past and present, demonstrating how Leo has evolved while remaining grounded in tradition. By offering this menu à la carte, Espinosa also opens the doors to a wider audience, making haute cuisine encounters possible in a more approachable midday setting without compromising on artistry.

Platos Fuertes LEO

4. The Tasting Menu: A Twelve-Step Expedition

For those seeking the full experience, Leo’s tasting menu—available in 5, 8, or 12 steps—is a true expedition across Colombia’s territories. Each dish is a vignette, a fragment of narrative that together builds a portrait of biodiversity.

The journey might begin with Amazonian ants, their crunch paired against silky coconut milk, or with exotic jungle fruits that awaken the palate. Smoked rabbit carimañolas reimagine a coastal street food snack with elevated technique, while native tubers and endemic fish showcase the Andes and river basins. Techniques like fermentation, smoke, and botanical infusions deepen the flavors and textures, grounding them in ancestral practices while pushing them into the realm of avant-garde.

The tasting menu is also a visual and tactile spectacle. Some courses arrive wrapped in leaves, others presented on volcanic stones or artisanal ceramics designed to echo natural forms. Each presentation reinforces the connection to landscape, blurring the line between plate and terrain.

For vegetarians, Leo adapts creatively, ensuring biodiversity is represented without compromising integrity. From crunchy tubers to delicate infusions, the plant kingdom receives the same narrative depth as meats and seafood.

In this 12-step sequence, flavor becomes a language: rivers, deserts, and forests are not just evoked but embodied in taste and texture. The result is both deeply intellectual and sensually immersive.

5. The Drink Pairings: Botanical Dialogue

Leo complements its food narratives with two distinct pairing options: the traditional wine curation and a more experimental non-alcoholic botanical pairing.

The wine selection integrates international bottles with a strong emphasis on Colombian vineyards and Latin American producers, ensuring that the pairings resonate with both local and global contexts. For those seeking innovation, however, the botanical pairing is a revelation. Fermented drinks, herbal infusions, and exotic fruit concoctions provide a dialogue that mirrors CICLOBIOMA’s ethos. Yuca-based beverages, fermented corn, and jungle herbs illustrate that Colombia’s drink traditions are as complex and diverse as its food.

Adding another layer to this world is La Sala de Leo, the restaurant’s cocktail bar, where mixology embraces the same ethos of biodiversity. Here, cocktails experiment with native botanicals, tropical fruits, and fermentation, offering a more casual yet equally profound extension of Leo’s philosophy.

Beverages Leo

6. Sensory Storytelling: Beyond Taste

Leo does not stop at flavors—it engages all the senses. The dining room is designed with earthy tones, natural light, and minimalist elegance to create an atmosphere where food becomes the focal point. The ceramic vessels, leaf wrappings, and organic presentations extend this narrative, immersing guests in Colombia’s natural cycles.

Beyond the visual, the stories narrated by servers become part of the sensory tapestry. With each explanation of an ingredient’s origin, diners are transported to distant landscapes—the humid Amazon, the windswept deserts, the Pacific’s coastal mangroves. Dining here feels like an ethnographic journey, where anthropology and gastronomy converge.

The tactile contrasts of textures—crunch, silk, char, and smoke—complete the multi-sensory immersion. Leo ensures that each guest leaves with more than a memory of flavor; they leave with an embodied sense of Colombia’s cultural and ecological complexity.

7. Service, Atmosphere, and Reputation

While some reviews note occasional lapses in service, my experience was one of flawless coordination and warmth. The staff operated with precision while maintaining a sense of relaxed generosity, ensuring the meal felt both polished and personal.

The restaurant space itself is elegant yet understated, deliberately minimal so that the dishes and their stories remain the protagonists. The clientele reflects its prestige: international travelers, diplomats, critics, and discerning locals who recognize Leo as a culinary landmark.

With repeated recognition in Latin America’s 50 Best Restaurants and the Michelin Guide, Leo has positioned Bogotá firmly on the global fine dining map. It is no exaggeration to say that Leonor Espinosa’s work has reshaped the world’s understanding of Colombian cuisine.

Service, Atmosphere, and Reputation

8. Who Should Go?

Leo is ideal for those who see dining as a form of cultural exploration rather than mere consumption. Travelers with a deep curiosity about biodiversity, sustainability, and indigenous knowledge will find the experience transformative.

This is not casual dining—it is more akin to a culinary pilgrimage. Celebratory occasions, milestone trips, or a desire to understand Colombia through its most innovative flavors make Leo the perfect choice. For adventurous eaters and cultural travelers alike, it offers not just a meal but a revelation.

Conclusion – A Living Archive of Colombia

Leo is far more than one of Bogotá’s most celebrated restaurants—it is a living archive of Colombia’s biodiversity, traditions, and future possibilities. To dine here is to engage with the country’s past and present, to listen to its ecosystems and communities through the medium of taste.

The anniversary menu bridges roots and innovation, reminding us of Espinosa’s beginnings while pointing forward to new narratives. Meanwhile, the CICLOBIOMA tasting menu continues to expand the boundaries of gastronomy by proving that food can be a vessel for anthropology, ecology, and cultural memory.

Ultimately, Leo does not simply serve food—it narrates, educates, and connects. It invites guests to journey through Colombia without leaving Bogotá, offering a perspective that is as intellectual as it is pleasurable. As a cultural laboratory and gastronomic landmark, Leo proves that haute cuisine can also be a powerful act of storytelling.