The stunning plating of the dish is particularly evocative, placing the ants back into a technicolour representation of the earth. Red powder, made from a mixture of bread and achiote oil, represents the colour of the ground after the rain, black quinoa replaces soil and a scattering of edible flowers adds further earthy elegance. Kiwicha, coloured with coriander and beetroot, also helps to create a vibrant colour palette on the plate, contrasted by dots of creamy Greek yoghurt.

Ants aside (there's something I never thought I'd say about a plate of food), one of the most striking components of the dish is the little pile of green balls sitting at the side of the plate. These balls, which have a squishy texture reminiscent of the liquid-filled bath balls popular in gift baskets in the nineties, are another Peruvian delicacy known as cushuro. A product of rainwater solidifying in the freezing temperatures of the Andes, the liquid forms small, pliable balls before hitting the ground and absorbing colour and flavour from the surrounding landscape. The chef compares them to a naturally occurring caviar, full of proteins with a slightly grassy taste.

Toasted ants have a similar salty taste to pork scratchings, with a very crisp outer shell and lingering aftertaste that is not unpleasant. If you're reading this and still feeling unconvinced, then you might be surprised to know that the flavour of these ants could be more familiar than you think. As Robert explains, 'these ants are used a lot in other things for flavour and colours, including yoghurt, syrups and liqueur'. By this logic, the chef reasons, there's no need to be squeamish: 'I don't think people should be afraid to eat these, because they've probably already tried them!'.

Ants sales are unlikely to outstrip those of lobster or scallops anytime soon, but hopefully this dish will go some way to helping people appreciate insects as an ingredient with meaning outside the initial shock factor. For Robert, meanwhile, to serve ants on a menu like this makes perfect sense. With such a short availability during the year these ants are extremely special, and there is something romantic (in the old fashioned sense of the word) about these stubborn little ants who bring pleasure to so many people.