Xaak: Culinary memory and contemporary technique at the heart of Hotel Xcaret Arte

Xaak evolves. The contemporary Mexican cuisine restaurant at Hotel Xcaret Arte opens a new creative chapter under the leadership of chef Karime López, within the gastronomic universe of Apapaxoa.

A new step for Xaak and Apapaxoa with the arrival of Karime López

Xaak, a contemporary Mexican cuisine restaurant inspired by the country’s culinary memory, has been a fundamental part of the gastronomic offering of Hotel Xcaret Arte since its opening.

As of January 15, 2026, the restaurant enters a new creative stage under the leadership of renowned Mexican chef Karime López, marking the beginning of a new chapter within Apapaxoa, Grupo Xcaret’s gastronomic platform.

With the arrival of Karime López at Xaak in Hotel Xcaret Arte, Apapaxoa’s positioning is reinforced as a platform that promotes creative voices with a strong sense of identity—voices capable of engaging with tradition from a contemporary and deeply personal perspective.

Karime López, Michelin-starred Mexican chef, takes the lead at Xaak

Karime López is one of the most influential Mexican chefs today and the first Mexican woman to earn a Michelin star. Her international career—with training in Spain, Japan, and Peru—has shaped an exceptional culinary sensibility, where Japanese discipline, European sophistication, and a profound Mexican root converge.

This cross-cultural background translates into a poetic, delicate, and emotional cuisine. Each dish is a narrative built through precise contrasts, refined techniques, and an aesthetic that borders on the sculptural, while always maintaining respect for the ingredient as the starting point.

Her culinary vision is grounded in the use of seasonal products, a contemporary reading of tradition, and a creative honesty that defines her style. Karime does not simply cook: she interprets, connects, and tells stories through flavor.

By joining Xcaret’s Gastronomic Collective to lead Xaak at Hotel Xcaret Arte, she begins a new stage that celebrates creativity, origin, and memory from an intimate and feminine perspective. This new chapter strengthens Grupo Xcaret’s culinary proposal and places Mexican ingredients at the creative core, honoring their ancestral heritage through a modern and deeply emotional lens.

A cuisine rooted in territory

The culinary proposal that Karime López brings to Xaak is built on respect for the ingredient and for Mexican gastronomic memory, understanding territory as a living source of flavor, narrative, and identity. Ingredients such as plantain, Mexican chiles, and ferments engage in dialogue with seafood—oyster, scallop, sea urchin, and kampachi—as well as with locally sourced cheeses and meats, shaping a cuisine that honors origin without renouncing a contemporary perspective.

Inspired by the Riviera Maya—its jungle, humidity, and proximity to the sea—the project is conceived through a direct relationship with its environment, where technique elevates the ingredient without overshadowing its essence. Each preparation follows a logic of process, seasonality, and depth, prioritizing clarity of flavor and respect for the raw material.

A dinner that celebrated the arrival of Karime López at Xaak

During the dinner that marked Karime López’s arrival at Xaak, guests experienced a 16-course tasting menu conceived as a sensory narrative, in which each course builds a dialogue between product, process, and contemporary sensibility.

The experience began with a sequence of welcoming bites that set the tone for the journey: a sikilpak gordita with caviar, followed by small plates such as an herb bundle with chintextle and plantain, a dried shrimp marquesita, and a gaznate filled with Valladolid-style sausage and Cotija cheese.

The menu then moved through preparations that explore contrast and depth of territory, including a watermelon shaved ice with muicle and roses, oyster with habanero sambal, Margarita-style scallop with hibiscus and guajillo chile, lime soup and its aromatic perfume, and a sea urchin tlacoyo with green chiltomate.

Before the main courses, coconut with serrano chile and charred orange served as an aromatic and sensory bridge within the progression.

The main courses articulated the proposal through two dishes that encapsulate technique and character: kampachi with Veracruz-style sauce and a marine mole with diezmillo, expressions that connect coast, product, and author-driven cuisine.

The sweet finale reinterpreted flavors and gestures from collective memory through a sequence of nata with pink guava and lime, pink pine nut with pulque, Mexican sweet bread with toasted dough soft serve, and gems of xorbo and fruit.

A personal and contemporary vision

Karime López brings a creative vision that understands cooking as a sensory and cultural ritual. Handcrafted ceramics, broths served tableside, and the presence of natural aromas—such as rose and orange—are part of an experience that reconnects diners with the act of cooking and sharing.

This evolution becomes part of the continued growth of Grupo Xcaret’s gastronomic portfolio, which brings together author-driven restaurants, specialty cuisines, and a network of chefs, sommeliers, and culinary creators who share a common philosophy: celebrating Mexican gastronomy as a living expression of culture, memory, and creativity.

Within this context, Xaak positions itself as a space that enriches Hotel Xcaret Arte’s culinary offering, contributing a narrative centered on origin, process, and contemporary sensitivity, while strengthening its appeal as a gastronomic destination.

A new chapter for 2026

With this evolution, Xcaret reaffirms its long-term vision in the gastronomic field, investing in projects that transcend the notion of a restaurant to become cultural platforms. Xaak thus reaffirms its journey as a meeting point between territory, technique, and creativity, positioning itself as one of the key proposals within the Apapaxoa universe for 2026.

The Xaak tasting menu is priced at MXN $4,200 per person. Reservations are available via OpenTable.

For more information, visit apapaxoa.com and follow @apapaxoafestival on social media.