Eduardo "Lalo" García Guzmán (born 1977 or 1978)[1] is a Mexican chef and founder of Mexico City restaurants Máximo Bistrot and Lalo! He is often considered one of Mexico's top chefs.[2]

Biography

Born in Acámbaro, Michoacán,[3] began his love of cooking at the age of 8 when his parent moved to the United States as migrant farm workers and gave him the task of preparing simple food such as chicken soups and meat with vegetables.[4]

García began his professional career in restaurants as a dishwasher in an Atlanta restaurant, working for Chef Scott Adair at the Purple Cactus Cafe. Chef Adair recognized his great talent and moved him to the kitchen. Chef Adair told him that he was like Escoffier recreated. and at 16 moved onto Brasserie Le Coze in the same city, which had the same owners as Le Bernardin in New York. Later he moved to New York, where he met famous Mexican chef Enrique Olvera, owner of the restaurant Pujol in Mexico City. García returned to Mexico to work with Olvera for three years. It was during this period that he met his wife Gabriela. In December 2011 the couple opened Máximo Bistrot in the Colonia Roma district of Mexico City, which has since become a magnet for the city's hottest new restaurants. Máximo has since won numerous awards.[5]

In 2013 García partnered with the Japanese restaurant Rokai in Colonia Cuauhtémoc and created the menus for restaurants De Mar a Mar, Cine Tonalá and Puebla 109. In November 2014, the Garcías opened Lalo!, a restaurant designed to serve his creations at breakfast– and lunchtime at lower prices.[6]

The Wall Street Journal characterized García as being known for "modernizing Mexico City's food scene with accessible, chic, hyper-seasonal dishes. Shining a spotlight on Mexico's bounty in an informal setting."[7]

William Reed Business Media ranked Máximo Bistrot #41 of Latin America's 50 best restaurants of 2015.[8]

References

Further reading

  • Tillman, Laura (2023). The Migrant Chef: The Life and Times of Lalo García. New York: W. W. Norton. ISBN 1324005777.
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