CHICAGO, Aug 2 — The chef who gets a hero’s welcome in his native Peru and who’s been called the Jamie Oliver of Latin America has been named the recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award for the first Latin America’s 50 Best Restaurants list.
If you haven’t heard of his name by now, take note. Because chef Gaston Acurio is poised to become a household name with a restaurant empire that is aggressively expanding to the English-speaking world, and an unrivaled culinary influence in Peru — also described as the gastronomic capital of Latin America.
The announcement was made ahead of the inaugural edition of the Latin America’s 50 Best Restaurants awards, which will be held in Lima, Peru this fall.
After launching an Asian version of the World’s 50 Best Restaurants earlier this year, awards host Restaurant magazine is launching an edition for countries spanning Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean, South America, and Brazil.
For the inaugural awards, more than 250 industry experts from the region voted for the lifetime achievement recipient.
Acurio is lauded for doing more than teach Peruvians how to cook. Described as an unofficial ambassador for his country, the chef is credited with nearly single-handedly sparking a cultural revolution and restoring pride in Peru’s culinary heritage in part through his cooking school for the underprivileged, the Pachacutec Institute located in the Peruvian slums.
Instead of dreams of becoming a soccer star, for 80,000 culinary students in the country the dream is to become a chef and promote local cuisines.
Meanwhile, Acurio has more than 30 restaurants such as Astrid y Gaston and La Mar Cebicheria spanning 12 countries, including Chile, Brazil, Colombia, Mexico, Argentina, Venezuela, Spain and the US.
Astrid y Gaston is ranked 14th on the World’s 50 Best list.
His latest restaurant Tanta Chicago is set to open in the Windy City this month.
Alex Atala, of D.O.M. in Sao Paulo, Brazil is also expected to win big at the regional awards, as a regular and consistent winner on the global list.
The Latin America’s 50 Best Restaurants list takes place in Lima September 4. — AFP/Relaxnews
