Meet Enrique Olvera: Diners Club Lifetime Achievement Awardee for Latin America 2015
By "reinventing traditional Mexican with extraordinary attention to detail," Chef-patron Enrique Olvera became the 2015 Diners Club Lifetime Achievement Awardee.
"My initial feeling was surprise. Being so young, I never imagined to deserve such a merit," Enrique Olvera said in an interview. He also added that the award he received made his commitment and passion for his career ignite even more. "I believe that is the reason I am standing here today."
Olvera, still in his 30s, is no doubt at the peak of his career now. Through his dishes' simplicity and clarity of flavor, he has gained recognitions that other chefs older than he is might never have. According to Phaidon, aside from Diners Club® Lifetime Achievement Award, he was also recognized by the Food & Wine as one of their "10 Next Chef Superstars." Star Chefs' International Congress also included him in their "Top 10 International Figures in World Gastronomy."
To Olvera, food should not be complicated. It's a way for a chef to communicate with the people who will indulge in his creation. That's why he is focused to keep his culinary masterpieces simple but still perfectly curated with the smallest detail.
"Food is a way of communicating. I think a lot of modern chefs think that cooking is more an art form and about ideas. I don't," Olvera said.
In 2000, with the passion in creating delicious delicacies, Olvera opened Pujol in Polanco, Mexico City at an early age of 24. Since then the business has gained a reputation as one of the finest and most innovative restaurant in Mexico City.
For 15 years, Olvera has shared the Mexican culture and culinary traditions and used the best and freshest ingredients which can take any dish to a new level of sophistication.
Meanwhile, his newest restaurant Cosme, which has opened in New York City in 2014, is now creating a buzz in the U.S. as this restaurant brings the perfect and most unique taste of Mexican food. In fact, The New York Times recently gave the restaurant a 3-star rave review.
Another unique and amazing trait Olvera has is his humility. To him "success is never an individual achievement."
He also acknowledges the help of his team in all his achievements as he says, "Team work is the most important thing especially those who are working every day on the basic things like chopping the onions or masking the mole, preparing the tortillas, and I am just a part of that team."
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