Tulum IV: Sushi in a Treehouse

Nature, Art, and Spirituality – We end up by chance in architect Roth’s Azulik project

By Renate Rüger, April 13, 2026

In the evening, after visiting the ruins and the Gran Cenote, we treat ourselves to a meal at the Japanese restaurant, which is tucked inside a very special treehouse-jungle complex—something we only notice once we arrive. The organically built structure is called Azulik, a resort featuring art, a spa, accommodations, and several restaurants. The hostess points us in the right direction, and we follow the winding path over bridges, boardwalks, and elevated walkways to the next hostess, who shows us where to go next. Up a wooden staircase, then through a multi-level restaurant that offers round tables in “nests” connected by walkways and suspension bridges—with views of the sea and over the jungle, secured with nets just in case someone should fall out of their nest. Are we still on the right track? In front of a long suspension bridge, another hostess indicates that the Japanese restaurant is waiting at the other end. And indeed: we’ve made it, deeply impressed by the overall architecture. So it’s not a big deal if the sushi is okay, but not quite as excellent as the high prices would suggest.

Humans sit “as if in a nest” in nature: this is part of the concept by architect Eduardo Neira, known by the artist name Roth. He works intuitively rather than through planning, views architecture as “letting things grow as in nature,” and consciously rejects right angles. Roth says that straight lines do not exist in nature and restrict human well-being. As a rule, no trees are felled for his buildings; instead, the walls are built around the trees. Forms develop during construction; there are no finished blueprints. Fittingly, Roth prefers to use regional materials such as bejuco vines, wood, and natural stone, but also organically shaped concrete. The Azulik project in Tulum, started in 2010, is considered a holistic architectural concept that combines nature, art, and spirituality. Work is still ongoing today—building, changing, and expanding.