Lorena Garcia Transcript
Kerry Diamond:
Hi, everyone. You are listening to Radio Cherry Bombe, and I'm your host, Kerry Diamond. I'm the Founder and Editor of Cherry Bombe magazine. Today we're bringing you our new travel miniseries, Destination Cherry Bombe, and we are going to Las Vegas. Each Wednesday this month I'll be celebrating bright lights on the Vegas culinary scene. Join me to discover the chefs, mixologists, and innovators defining the city and taking the food scene to new heights.
Today I'm talking to chef and restaurateur, Lorena Garcia of CHICA. Lorena opened the first CHICA in 2017 at the Venetian in Las Vegas. She grew up in Caracas and studied to be a lawyer. However, her true passion was cooking, and lucky us the culinary world won out. Today, Lorena owns multiple restaurants, is the founder of the nonprofit, Big Chef, Little Chef, which teaches young people about healthy eating, and she is a frequent presence on TV. Some of you might even remember Lorena from Season 4 of “Top Chef Masters,” which filmed in Las Vegas. Lorena is also passionate about sharing her Latin culture with the world. She and I cover a lot of ground from Las Vegas to her career, to her business and life advice. This mom, chef, and restaurateur is a force as you are about to learn. Stay tuned for my chat with Chef Lorena Garcia.
Our Destination Cherry Bombe series is presented by Las Vegas. I visited Las Vegas last month and had the best time. I'd been watching all this amazing Vegas activity from afar and having lots of FOMO. New resorts, The Sphere, all the great residencies and most interesting to me, all the new restaurants and incredible female talent. From chefs to restaurateurs to mixologists and pastry chefs, the city has become such a culinary destination that the 2024 World's 50 Best Restaurants Awards took place there earlier this month. Las Vegas is packed with an incredible array of restaurants and you can find the best of the best from around the world right in this one city. Truly, no matter what you're looking for, from Omakase to steakhouses, dinner and a show, lively poolside cafes, or fab food halls, Las Vegas is fully focused on hospitality and making you and your taste buds happy. Plus, whatever your food and drink preferences are, there's something for you. Zero-proof, vegan options, gluten-free. It's all there. If you're like me and plan your trips around food, then put Las Vegas on your must-visit list. Learn more and plan your trip at Visitlasvegas.com/culinary.
I'll be back in Vegas this Monday night, June 24th for a special event to celebrate our miniseries. We'll have networking, a panel conversation, and great food and drink. Our venue is the beautiful La Fontaine Restaurant located inside Fontainebleau, Las Vegas. Come meet members of the Vegas Bombesquad, folks from the hospitality world, and learn about those shaping the city's culinary landscape. For tickets, head to Cherrybomb.com or check out our show notes. That's Monday, June 24th from 6:00 to 8:00 P.M. I hope to see some of you there.
Now let's check in with today's guest. Chef Lorena, welcome to Radio Cherry Bombe.
Lorena Garcia:
I'm so excited to be here. This is amazing.
Kerry Diamond:
I'm so excited. The last time I saw you, it literally was the day before you opened CHICA in Miami.
Lorena Garcia:
Yes. What a party that was.
Kerry Diamond:
I would love to go back, pre-restaurants, pre-all the things. You were going to be a lawyer.
Lorena Garcia:
Yes.
Kerry Diamond:
Why are you not practicing law today?
Lorena Garcia:
I don't think it was for me, to be honest with you. I graduated, about to be 17 years old from high school, and I didn't know what to do, and my family wasn't the type of family that said, "Oh, take a sabbatical year and figure out what you want." Uh-uh. My mother, an attorney, my father, a doctor, my brother, an attorney. So it was just a natural progression to go to law school and my mother said, she's a very strong woman. "Whatever you're going to do in life, this will help you even if this is not what you want to do." And that's what I did.
But as soon as I finished my last year of law school, that's when I figured it out. Maybe on my fourth year I figured that I love cooking. I just didn't have the opportunity or even didn't even know how to go about in terms of studies and having a preparation. And then of course, Johnson & Wales University, I was able to get my bachelor's, my major. I have a doctorate right now and I'm part of the board, so I went through the whole education process of being a culinarian, if you will.
Kerry Diamond:
How do you wind up at Johnson & Wales?
Lorena Garcia:
Yeah, so I finished my law school career, my studies, and I came to Miami. Since I was six years old I always wanted to live in Miami. I loved the sun, I wanted to speak English. It is something that I always attract me. So as soon as I finished, I came to Miami. I went to actually a law firm. I remember Ferraro, Fertel, right in the Continental Building in downtown, beautiful law firm. And the first day of my first job, I was assigned to a case and I ran. That's when I had a mini panic attack when I had to study all those books and cases and I said, "This is not for me." And I quit the same day that I was hired.
Kerry Diamond:
Stop. You quit on day one? Oh my gosh.
Lorena Garcia:
Of course my family, "Lorena, what are you doing?" I say, "I realized that this is not what I want to do. I want to be a chef." I was so blown away by entertaining and making people around me feeling welcome. And I remember as six years old, I did a breakfast for my parents in the living room of my house as a picnic. When I was 11 and 12, I would invite my friend from school to do a study group, and I will end up cooking and make them taste. I always had that hospitality feeling on me, right. When I realized what I didn't want to do, that's when I jumped to what I wanted to do. It wasn't easy, but I did it.
Kerry Diamond:
Take me back to your childhood. Who was cooking?
Lorena Garcia:
My mother and my grandmother were great cooks. They didn't like the kitchen itself, but when they went into the kitchen to cook for family, I remember Sundays the door was open for family and friends to come in, so it was always something cooking, right, and it was just delicious. But my mother was never the type of person that she wanted to be in the kitchen. She was working and she's been a social worker all her life, so the kitchen was something that she knew how to do really well because of my grandmother. But she loved her long nails and her makeup. She was very girly girl, my mom, so I guess that I was always exposed to it. And my Nana, Leo, a beautiful woman that helped raise me, and she was such an amazing cook, and she really taught me also the tricks of the trade and the little secrets in the kitchen when I was younger.
Kerry Diamond:
What were some of her specialties?
Lorena Garcia:
Oh my God. I remember she used to make this incredible orange sauce that she will put in a roasted chicken or a roasted piece of pork, arepas, which is something that I can eat every day. It's a Venezuelan staple, which is almost like a bread in Latin America, almost like a Mexican tortilla, a little thicker, and you can bake, fry, steam and you can eat it for breakfast, lunch and dinner. It's a big staple. So that's something that I still, today, if you go to my restaurants, you will find an elevated version of it.
Kerry Diamond:
You quit on your first day. Where do you even go from there?
Lorena Garcia:
When I was going to law school, I remember stopping in a French brasserie on my way to the class. I will stop there every day for lunch, and in the weekends I will stop by for dinner. It was very small restaurant. And one day I told the chef, "Chef, would you need an assistant? I will work for free." And I also internally wanted to know if this is what I wanted, and this was the first person that put on a chef jacket on me, and he allowed me to be in the kitchen in the afternoons or in the mornings over the weekends. And I immediately fell in love.
And that's when I really realized this is what I want to do. And then of course, I enrolled in Johnson & Wales. My mother said, and my dad, "If you really want to do this, you need to study it." They were very big believers of a bachelor's degree or university degree. That's something that they always said, "This is what you need to do." They believe a lot in that. The campus of Johnson & Wales University opened a couple of years before, and I enrolled right in. That was it.
Kerry Diamond:
And how was your culinary school experience?
Lorena Garcia:
It was amazing. It's something that I still, until today when I wear my chef jacket, something in me changes. It's almost like a general when he wears his uniform, it changes, right? Something changes in me. I don't know how to explain it, but I put my apron, always my hair up, my hands, clean nails. It's something that it was ingrained in me through going to culinary school, right? If my uniform wasn't perfectly pressed, I will have to be sent back to my home and get dressed properly. So they were very strict about that, and just opening up my world of the culinary arts of techniques and history and where everything come from, why we do the things that we do when it comes to food. I never missed a day, not even once. I had a perfect attendance.
Kerry Diamond:
Were there many female role models for you at the time?
Lorena Garcia:
Yes. Julia Child came to Johnson & Wales University, and she happened to visit. I was in my very first year. I probably didn't know who she was right at the moment, or probably heard of her, but never really understood the importance of her presence in the culinary years as a woman in the United States. She happened to swing by the university, visited three classrooms, and mine was one of them. And then I realized, my God, this woman is everything. It was such a gentle, beautiful, full of knowledge visit. It was five minutes, but such a impactful five minutes in my life. At the beginning of my studies, it was very impactful. So that is somebody that I carry as a role model for sure.
Kerry Diamond:
What happens next?
Lorena Garcia:
So I go to the Ritz in Paris, not speaking a word of French, of course, and you know-
Kerry Diamond:
All right, I got to stop you. That's a mic drop. You're like, "I go to the Ritz in Paris." Not everybody just graduates from culinary school and goes to the Ritz in Paris. How did that happen?
Lorena Garcia:
Yes. It was amazing. It was my internship and I moved heaven and earth, to be honest, to be able to do that internship. And I was accepted and it was amazing. It was a beautiful experience. Then I did Italy with Chef Gennaro, Esposito. I spent also a year there, again with sign language and trying to understand my way around because they didn't speak English. I didn't speak Italian. You always end up communicating. You don't even know how. But I was a fly on the wall in observing. I was a sponge. I dove into being a sponge and learning as much as I could from the people that I look up to and that I research. And I said, "This is my favorite restaurant. I want to work here." And I did it through, of course, offering my services always.
Kerry Diamond:
Did that experience change your approach to food? Did it change your palate? What were your takeaways?
Lorena Garcia:
My takeaways was that I needed to train my palate. I had so much to learn in terms of techniques, and I still continue to do after 20 years of career, something that never ends. You have to continue, study, be updated with the techniques, the flavors, the ingredients, what the trends. There is so much in our career, right, in our path that you have to stay current. The way that our customers eat today, it's something that evolves throughout time. And my takeaway at that time is that I needed to expand my library of tasting, of understanding ingredients, combinations to be able to create recipes. Because at the end of the day, you have to find your voice, what makes you different than everybody else? And I needed to find that voice. And it took me a minute too. It took me a few years to realize which one it was.
Kerry Diamond:
How did Vegas become your first big restaurant?
Lorena Garcia:
So this is what happened. Of course, I did my career, I started doing a lot of television, “America's Next Great Restaurant.” Then I did “Top Chef Masters.” I had a fantastic run doing-
Kerry Diamond:
Oh, so all that came before CHICA and Vegas?
Lorena Garcia:
Yes.
Kerry Diamond:
Okay.
Lorena Garcia:
Yes, yes, yes. And actually, I remember being on “Top Chef Masters.” It was shot in Vegas. Went through the last episodes. I was already in the semifinals and it was in The Venetian Resort. And I remember seeing the wall of culinary titans, and it was Emeril and Thomas Keller and Wolfgang Puck. I mean, all the major chefs that you always look up to. And I say, "Wow, being in that world must be incredible." And I really put an intention of what I needed to do to be at that level. Right? And of course, I was competing, grinding, working in my restaurants. It was just a lot of work. My entire life was about the culinary arts working and making it happen, not making happen a name for myself. Like Julia Child brought French cuisine to the United States, I wanted to bring Latin cuisine to the United States and be that translator of that culture of my culture.
And few years after I felt that I was ready, I had my voice, I knew my food. I have a beautiful, my first cookbook, my second cookbook already published. I said, "Who can I work with in having my dream restaurant?” And 50 Eggs, John Kunkel, great friend. I presented my idea. I reached out, he answered me back. We started talking. He already had Yardbird in Las Vegas at The Venetian, and we learned that a space was being open in Las Vegas at The Venetian, and we went in as well as few other groups. And yeah, we were so blessed that that vision board became a reality. And yeah, CHICA, it was born.
Kerry Diamond:
Tell us-
Lorena Garcia:
Seven years ago.
Kerry Diamond:
Seven years ago, congratulations.
Lorena Garcia:
Seven years ago. Thank you.
Kerry Diamond:
And you join this very elite group. There are not a lot of women who own restaurants on the Strip.
Lorena Garcia:
Can you believe it? Yes. Almost 6,000 restaurants on the Strip. There is only probably five women on the Strip that own restaurants, and I'm the only woman on property at The Venetian. So yes, it's very few. I feel very blessed with a huge honor and responsibility to continue to open that window so we can be more.
Kerry Diamond:
What made you feel ready for the leap? Vegas is something altogether different. It's big, it's 24 hours, so many eyes on you, people from all over the world. How were you ready?
Lorena Garcia:
I think that being confident in myself, I think that that started right there. And I think competing at that level, like “Top Chef Masters”with I was one of the food fighters for NBC Universal. And at that level you gain confidence. And that's I think where everything is born. If you are confident in what you're doing, your voice, your art, your food, then you start putting all the pieces together, my investors, the group, my operators, then your relationships. And that confidence takes you there, right, in creating a system that allows you with your team, because I'm nothing without my team and with my partners is the only way to really make it at that level. But depart from that, knowing your voice, being confident of it, and just moving forward as focused, as responsible as it can be.
Kerry Diamond:
You made me think of Julia Child as you were talking about all that when she talked about having the courage of your convictions.
Lorena Garcia:
Yes.
Kerry Diamond:
That's you.
Lorena Garcia:
That's it. Wow. You just gave me a huge... Yes, that's exactly it. The same words from a Latina, right?
Kerry Diamond:
In telling your story about you as a child and your first day on your legal job, there doesn't seem to be a lot of fear in your life. You don't seem risk averse.
Lorena Garcia:
It's funny because the anxiety of fear of what's next and the unknown is something that I manage a lot in my mental health daily. So it's funny that you say that, but that I took and I continue to take in the future as the fuel to move forward, is that uneasiness of life that keeps the fire going. And when I understood that, I was able to pass through the fear instead of running from it. And I think that that's something that it's very humbling. And I think at that point when I realized that, I said, "Wow, I'm growing up. I'm growing up as a human being for sure."
Kerry Diamond:
Talk to me about the process of opening CHICA. You're in a brand new city. I mean you knew it from competing on “Top Chef Masters,” but you had made a name for yourself in Miami. What did you have to learn and understand about Vegas to open CHICA?
Lorena Garcia:
This is something that John Kunkel actually helped me a lot is to understand that I had a conviction of the authenticity of my culture, my food, even the names of the dishes. But being in Las Vegas is so broad, right, that I needed to think and be more open and without losing my essence and authenticity, being able to understand how can I be approachable to every culture? Not only the one that actually comes to Miami or the Latinos and Latinas that will understand my food. And he actually opened my eyes so much I remember. And I told him this one day that he calls me, "Lorena, the cachapas, a dish in Venezuela. It's a Latin dish that is beautiful. It's a corn patty that is sweet and it's served with cheese. It's so delicious." And he called me one day and said, "Lorena, unfortunately we're going to have to call them corn pancakes."
And it broke my heart. I'm like, "John, no, we cannot do this. These are not pancakes, these are cachapas." And I understood well, in order to sell cachapas, we're going to have to call them in a name that everybody can understand, and our customers can be educated about it and they were ahead. But that I have 100s of examples of understanding how can I be more approachable without losing my essence? So yeah, every project that I had in my life that has been a blessing, but also is national in the United States and international, allows me to open up a little bit more and not be so closed in into my ideas what I think is right in stubbornness. You're right, that comes with it. But be more open and try to be more accessible. That's the word that comes to mind to everybody that comes to the restaurants.
Kerry Diamond:
Is there anything that was on the opening menu that's still on the menu today?
Lorena Garcia:
Yes. My Lorena's Arepa baskets going to the Arepitas, a big seller, big, big, big seller. And in my grandmother's Asado Negro, which is this beautiful braised short rib that has been marinated for 24 hours. And then I make a sofrito and I cook it with a little bit of burnt piloncillo, which is this raw sugar that we use, and it's a beautiful braised beef that is still today in the menu. Both in the three restaurants that I have, we still have that contact with creating new dishes, and it's always evolving. But you have those staples that I incur the menu that they're just amazing.
Kerry Diamond:
All right, we have to go back to the arepas basket. What is in that? That sounds amazing.
Lorena Garcia:
It's this beautiful patty that is made with precooked corn. And what I did is I infused different flavors with it. So I have one with beets that I can serve with a beautiful goat cheese crema and tomato marmalade. I have another one with cilantro, which is one of my favorite ingredients. So you have those beautiful herbaceous notes. I have the plain cheese, which is my son's favorite. He's eight years old, and when he come to CHICA and said, "Mommy, you know what I want? I want arepitas." And that's a staple, right? That's a classic. I also have one called Domino's, and the Domino's is black and white because it's black beans with specks of white cheese, queso fresco, amazing.
So you have this jewel of a beautiful basket with all these different colors, and when you bite into them, it's my home on Sundays. And then what I do is I serve it with a Venezuelan Nata. It's a combination between a butter and a sour cream, if you will, and it's the butter that we use in Latin America in a lot of dishes and also Central America. So I put that beautiful citrusy, creamy, delicious butter in the middle so you can actually taste it and go back and forth. I can spend hours here talking about it.
Kerry Diamond:
Oh my gosh. I have more menu questions because your menu is amazing. What is on the menu in Las Vegas that's not on your other two menus?
Lorena Garcia:
We have breakfast and brunch every day in Las Vegas. In Miami we have lunch and dinner, so it definitely changes, right? You have a more of a robust, complete... For example, my Latin breakfast is something that I have in Las Vegas that I don't have here, which is the arepitas with the eggs and the beautiful bacon, and it's just a straightforward Latin breakfast, right? That is something that we don't have here probably. I serve it in brunch Saturday and Sundays, if you order it's off the menu. I would say 95% is the same menu. Maybe I have a couple of more ceviches in Las Vegas. The tacos are different as well, right?
Kerry Diamond:
How so?
Lorena Garcia:
Yes, so it changes also the availability of ingredients, the cheeses that I can find. So I try to also represent the city that I'm in about a 5% ratio of each one in Aspen as well, and here in Miami as well.
Kerry Diamond:
How is hospitality different in Las Vegas? Because here you have a city that is truly completely focused on hospitality.
Lorena Garcia:
You have to be excellent. I think that's one of the cities that you are as good as your last service. We are as good as last night. Today's all over again. A new day is like we're starting a new business, right? The opening of the restaurant doors. It's, "Okay, we're starting all over." That's what I think Vegas requires. It's very demanding. It's a high pace. Hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of people come to the restaurants every day. So you have to have a very high quality focus professional team in order to execute at that level. That's what I think is the difference because you have these mega properties, right? And each property have 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 100 restaurants in this mega property. So if you're not good within your property, you have property, but then you have almost 6,000 restaurants in the street alone. So there is a lot of choices. So you really, again, like I said, you have to be on the top of your game all the time.
Kerry Diamond:
Vegas has changed so much in the past seven years. What's the biggest change that you've seen?
Lorena Garcia:
More restaurants, more people. We had in the same year, the Super Bowl and Formula One, right, all in couple of months difference. It is the entertainment city of the world I will say. We have The Sphere, this incredible, amazing building right next to The Venetian. So imagine, it's just everywhere you go is the top of the top of entertainment and culinary and the best chef in the world. Everything is concentrated in that strip in these incredible properties. Yeah, I think that through the years that I have been in Vegas, I have noticed that, it's the increment of people that actually visit Vegas. The expectations of the experience that you're going to have, it's higher as well. If it used to be in your face, now it's even bigger, right? It's just there.
Kerry Diamond:
So if someone's a first timer coming to Vegas, aside from CHICA, of course, where would you send them?
Lorena Garcia:
Listen, I don't think I'm biased because even before having CHICA, The Venetian I think is one of the best properties, if not the number one in the strip. Just because all the rooms are suites. I mean, you cannot beat that, right? You have a regular room and boom, there you have a beautiful two-level suite, and I think the restaurants are incredible. You have the best chefs on restaurant row. Then you go to the second floor and you have this incredible gondola. So that is amazing, of course. I am a golfer, so I always invite people to come to the one incredible golf course that you have right in the middle of the strip. It's incredible. It's amazing. When it comes to food, Lotus of Siam is at this...
Kerry Diamond:
Oh, Lotus of Siam. Everybody loves it.
Lorena Garcia:
Oh my goodness. And actually I was able to meet the owners for “Top Chef Masters,” one of our episodes and challenges was based on them and Thai cuisine and wow, that's probably one of the best, if not the best Thai cuisine compared to going to Thailand of course, and having it right there. And that's one of the things that I love about Vegas, that you have such a availability of ingredients from all over the world and the best, right, and that is something that is so special. Another restaurant that I love is WAKUDA also at The Venetian, but I love Japanese cuisine and what WAKUDA is doing there and the level of service. And again, the cuisine is like no other. And there are so many places really to come and see. And I believe the Caesar Palace is fantastic as well.
Guy Fieri is at Caesar, and if you want to go to the biggest and best sports bar, probably that's a place to go. And it's hard to choose, because everywhere you go is amazing. And if you want to relax, you have to go to the Red Rocks, right? That's a 45-minute ride and it's just so special. Then you're in the desert and the colors and the walks and the hikes are so beautiful. It really has a little bit of everything. Yeah.
Kerry Diamond:
That's amazing. Have you made any tweaks to the restaurant over the past seven years?
Lorena Garcia:
Yes. Yes, we did, we did. Actually when we opened Miami with our partners at Rockwell House, they're based in New York, our design was so amazing it came to live that we actually did a complete renovation of Las Vegas a couple of years ago, and now you see the similar look. It is the same look, the same design that we have in Miami. We have it now in Las Vegas.
Kerry Diamond:
Now I know we talked about ownership on the strip and there's still not parity, but it's getting better. I couldn't help but notice though there is so much incredible female culinary talent in the city from chefs to sous chefs to mixologists, so there's no shortage of talent. How are things for women in Vegas these days? Any folks you've got your eye on or interesting people you've encountered?
Lorena Garcia:
Always, the numbers were staggering. I don't have the exact number right now, but I work very closely with MAPP, this organization that is specifically for women in the industry and how we can not only empower, but also open opportunities for more females to work in the culinary arts. I'm actually working on a scholarship for Latinas to come to study and come to Vegas. So one of the things that I think is continued to change and continue to evolve, I think that there is a long way to go still. But listen, we have so incredible, amazing... My friend Chef Dayanny De La Cruz, she's the VP for Levy Restaurants and they do all the stadiums and she's super a Dominicana that is such a powerhouse. I love her.
You have Jessica Scott, Chef Jessica, I believe, one of the top pastry chefs in the country. I love her. She's so creative and eager and great leader. And we have so many beautiful, talented leaders as a female chef that I admire. And I continue to also see and try to mentor when I see that seed. When I see these female chefs that they have the feeling, you can feel it, you can see it, that they're going to go far. When I recognize that, I always try to mentor and pay it forward as much as I can.
Kerry Diamond:
And you mentioned one way you're doing that is through MAPP, which stands for mentorship, advocacy, purpose, power of community. And if folks want to learn more about it, the website is MAPP with two P's, impact.org. How did you get involved?
Lorena Garcia:
So yes, through John and 50 Eggs. We came to the premiere of their movie, A Fine Line. It was amazing. I immediately fell in love. That's when I started learning the numbers of how small the percentage of female chefs are working as Vegas and Nevada, and trying to open up and the things that we can do and the positions that you can achieve, and almost being an example for them to see, "Oh, okay, so there is a chance that if I go through culinary arts, I can be an executive chef, I can do so much." That's the idea. Empower and inspire and mentor and open opportunities. That's what I'm all about.
Kerry Diamond:
You've got a great thing coming to Fontainebleau later this year with Contramar opening.
Lorena Garcia:
Yes.
Kerry Diamond:
You must be excited. Gabriela Camara.
Lorena Garcia:
Yes, she's fantastic. I had the chance to be at a show in Netflix. It's the biggest competition that has been in cooking, which is “Iron Chef America,” and she was there competing as one of the “Iron Chef” and I was a judge, and it was amazing to see her in action. I'm a big fan.
Kerry Diamond:
That'll be fun to have all of you on the strip. So let's talk more about CHICA. So you open CHICA in Las Vegas, it's a hit, you decide to open it in other cities.
Lorena Garcia:
Yeah, so Miami, I think that one of the most important things for a restaurant is the location first. I think the location calls you and then you open a restaurant. I don't believe in, I want to open in Miami and force it, right? I think that the location is what calls you, and if you find an amazing, beautiful, you cannot say no to a location like Las Vegas. And then in Miami we were able to find a location that it was amazing and open up. That's when we pursue and work into opening a restaurant, the perfect location and the one that has the best possibilities of success. Because I think that in the rules of restaurant location, location and location are the most important thing. And then everything else.
Kerry Diamond:
So the last time I saw you was the day before CHICA officially opened. We did a fun event and panel with lots of amazing women on the Miami food scene. So I haven't been back since you opened that spot. How's it going?
Lorena Garcia:
It's going great. We just did a change to the menu that ran a couple of weeks ago and it's doing amazing. I'm super excited. I came up with a couple of ceviches that are delicious. We have beautiful steaks and a new fish. Again, a live entity that we continue to evolve and improve and make a difference so the customers that come and there are regulars, they have something exciting to taste every time they come. I think that is important.
Kerry Diamond:
And then when did you open Aspen?
Lorena Garcia:
Aspen was open about three years ago. This will be our third season. It's a seasonal restaurant right in the base of the Ajax Mountain in The Little Nell Residence. Beautiful, smaller, smaller restaurant. But we focus on apres ski, of course, which is the fun part of being in Aspen. So the people that come down the mountain, we're right in the front of the gondola. So they come in, they take the skis off and they just walk right into the patio. So it is a party scene, but amazing. I love it.
Kerry Diamond:
It's so interesting to me because these are three completely different cities, and you really have to adjust each CHICA for what's going on there.
Lorena Garcia:
Yes. 100%. It's a smaller kitchen. Then we have to adapt, and the menu is very curated to that time of the year. Not only the part of the world, but the location that it has. But the time of the year is intense winter, so we want to be able to serve foods that are conducive to that for sure.
Kerry Diamond:
You have done so much throughout your career. I mean, we've all just heard just sort of the top level of what you've done, and you've kind of done everything. I'm curious in terms of advice for women in this industry or really anyone in this industry who wants to take things to the next level. There's not a secret. It's a lot of things involved to get you there. But what's some advice? What are some things you've learned over the years? Clearly a good businessperson, Lorena.
Lorena Garcia:
Thank you. Thank you for that. I appreciate it. I think that the best example that I can tell you is through the no's, right? Because many people have told me, "No, you cannot do that. No, that is not possible. No." And those no's have been for me. Okay, let me get ready then. Understanding that one thing is to be stubborn and some things actually cannot be done, and you don't want to be set up for failure, but for success. But at the same time, not taking no for an answer with things that are in your control. For example, if I wanted to do television and I wanted to be a host of a TV show, right, and I wanted to have my own cooking show, I needed to prepare for it. So I took coaching classes. And my English also I took a coach for my accent, my English, and to project and being able to fill a space and practicing it.
It's that preparation. Besides going to school or studying new techniques and different traveling and learning different flavors, it's about preparation. I think that that's the constant in my life. I'm always preparing for things that eliminate, right, the possibilities of not making it through those people that tell you, "Well, no." "But why not? Why I cannot be represented, or why cannot think that I can do this project?" And then when I listen to what are the reasons. Okay, so let me go back, work on those and then go back again and try it again and try it again until actually happens.
Kerry Diamond:
Lorena, philanthropy is important to you. Can you tell us some of the work that you do?
Lorena Garcia:
Yes. Well, my mother has always been a social worker, and I guess that's ingrained in me. My mother always said, "In order for you to receive, you have to give first." You have to give back. And children's nutrition is my very first passion and also women in the industry. Those are my two major nonprofit efforts that I do throughout my career. And kids landed on me with Big Chef, Little Chef. I used to represent Nestle Foods all over the United States. And going to the major food festivals I realized that all the kids that I will see under 10 years old were obese. And seeing how they treated each other, I said, "I have to do something about this." And I created this program, Big Chef, Little Chef, which is exactly that. Teaching children the importance of healthy cuisine and opening classes in different low income schools, and creating recipes for the school boards, and really as much as I could potentially do myself, and also seeing with other organizations.
Then No Kid Hungry came four years ago and have been a big supporter. I love the work that No Kid Hungry does. This is my fourth year being an ambassador for them. We're going to start actually our summer program this year, which I'm very excited about. And it's exactly that. It's teaching kids how to eat healthy, and then helping and working and fighting hunger in kids. I think that every kid in America deserves a free meal and not worry about what they're going to eat today. But studying and being productive and that is something that I'm very passionate about, that's where it's at for me.
Kerry Diamond:
That's incredible. Well, thank you for everything you've done, not just on behalf of children, but on women in this industry as well. Thank you.
Lorena Garcia:
Thank you.
Kerry Diamond:
All right, you said you're a doer. What's next?
Lorena Garcia:
I have a lot of projects in the works, a lot of television. It's interesting because in my life everything comes in waves, right, and right now television, it's taking a little bit of my time. I just finished all the voiceovers for my new documentary. It's a beautiful documentary that is coming up. I spent a few months in Mexico and Peru and I dove in. I dove in into the culture, into the basics of cooking and how women are the guardians of the traditional recipes that keep the culture going, and that represents, in this case, Peru and Mexico. I also finished another project that I'm in the middle of it right now, and shooting is a cooking show that hasn't been released yet, but it will.
So I'll tell you the name and everything where it's going to come out very soon. And that is something that I'm doing naturally. And of course that's taking... I'm always in the restaurants and again, very active in the kitchen. So yeah, my time is a little bit tied up. And then when I think I'm going to go home and rest, then I have an eight-year-old waiting for me.
Kerry Diamond:
Oh, do they cook?
Lorena Garcia:
He loves to eat. Cook, not so much. When he was five, he used to love to cook with me. Actually, we did a beautiful cooking series for Nickelodeon, but then after that, I don't know what happened. Now he wants to do sports and now mama is not as fun.
Kerry Diamond:
Well, he's a little spoiled having you as a mother. I mean, I probably wouldn't cook either if you were my mother.
Lorena Garcia:
That's good.
Kerry Diamond:
Well, I can't wait to see you on TV. I know you love doing television. I have to ask you about time management. You're in multiple countries, multiple cities, you've got a child. What's your secret to time management?
Lorena Garcia:
I hug each time in my life independently. I never do everything at the same time. For example, if I'm with my son, my phone is off, period. If I'm in my restaurant, I mean people can call me. I will never answer. I'm very bad answering my phone and my emails. So that's why I have my assistants and my amazing managers and teams that can do that for me, because in each project that I am, I give it 100%. Of course, my son always has a direct line with me. Even when I'm, for example traveling, I always put my son to bed and read him stories and everything that we do and stay present in his life. I learned not to say yes to everything. I used to say everything, yes. Now I am a little bit more selective after having Leonardo.
I hate to say no, but there's some things that I just have to, right? If not, I really wouldn't be able to manage my time. But besides that, when it comes to work and my profession, one project at a time. And I think that that has allowed me to be able to do it effectively, maybe in a shorter time and maybe I don't have the time to spend as much time as I want to, but I try to keep it as tight as I can and very focused so I can do the most in the time that I allocated for each project.
That's why I don't like to over commit to different things, right? Sometimes I get invited to be in different boards and all that, but I hate to say no. But how can I, right, when my time is so? I'd rather say no than say yes, and then not being able to be there. That would be terrible. For me, the power of my word is more powerful and stronger than any contract that I can sign. And my word is everything to me. So that's what is so important and I take care of it.
Kerry Diamond:
I'm going to ask you one last question. Usually we ask if you were going to be trapped on a desert island with one food celebrity, who would it be? But in this case, I want to ask, okay, you've got it. One night on the strip, you're going to do everything. You're going eat, you're going to drink whatever it is that you love. You're going to go to a concert. Who would you bring with you if you had to pick a food celebrity?
Lorena Garcia:
Wow. Wow. Who would I bring? A fun night? You know who I would bring to a fun? God, but I have so many friends that I don't know how to...
Kerry Diamond:
Don't get mad at Lorena if she doesn't mention you.
Lorena Garcia:
Don't get mad at me, but I'm just going to go for it because I know that he really know how to party, Guy Fieri. My buddy Guy Fieri. He knows how to party. I love him. I love you, Guy.
Kerry Diamond:
I bet that would be a fun night. Lorena, you are the bomb. You're such an inspiration. Thank you for your time.
Lorena Garcia:
My absolute pleasure. Anytime. I’ll see you in Vegas.
Kerry Diamond:
That's it for today's show. Thank you again to Las Vegas. Learn more about Las Vegas and plan your trip at visitlasvegas.com/culinary. You could find the link in our show notes. And don't forget, our Las Vegas event is taking place this Monday, June 24th from 6:00 to 8:00 P.M. at La Fontaine at Fontainebleau Las Vegas. Get your ticket at cherrybombe.com, or the link in our show notes. Our theme song is by the band Tralala. Our Producers are Catherine Baker and Elizabeth Vogt. Our Associate Producer is Jenna Sadhu, and our Content Operations Manager is Londyn Crenshaw. Thanks for listening, everybody. You are the Bombe.