Jose Garces

Chef and Restaurateur, Garces Group

About This Expert

Restaurateur, author, and Chef Jose Garces is a 2009 winner of the James Beard Foundation’s prestigious “Best Chef, Mid-Atlantic” award and one of only a few chefs in America to hold the coveted title of Food Network’s Iron Chef. Chef Garces is the author of two cookbooks, The Latin Road Home (Lake Isle Press, October 2012), a culinary and cultural tour of Ecuador, Spain, Mexico, Cuba and Peru; and his stunning first cookbook, Latin Evolution (Lake Isle Press, Fall 2008).

An American born to Ecuadorian parents and raised in Chicago, Garces’ culinary training started early in life in the kitchen of his paternal grandmother, Mamita Amada, where he learned to prepare family recipes and came to love food and cooking. After graduating from Kendall College’s School of Culinary Arts, Garces worked in top-rated professional kitchens from Spain to New York City before moving to Philadelphia in 2001 where he calls home today.

Chef Garces’ eponymous Garces Group operates in multiple cities: Philadelphia, PA; Chicago, IL; Scottsdale, AZ; Palm Springs, CA; Washington, D.C.; and Moorestown, NJ. His award-winning concepts range from authentic Andalusian tapas and modern Mexican street food to European bistro fare and artisanal American food and drink, including Amada, Buena Onda, Distrito, El Jefe, Garces Trading Company, JG Domestic, Rosa Blanca, Rural Society, The Olde Bar, Tinto, Village Whiskey, Volvér, and in partnership with Sage Hospitality, Mercat a la Planxa, as well as Distrito Taco Truck and a full service event division, Garces Events. In addition, Chef Garces is the owner of Luna Farm in Bucks County, PA, where he and his team grow produce used throughout his East Coast restaurants.