Today we’d like to introduce you to Chef Ramiro Arvizu.
Chef Ramiro, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
We opened our first restaurant 18 years ago in the city of Bell Ca with the intention to promote traditional Mexican food which was unknown to many people in Los Angeles Ca.
The opportunity came again two years ago with an invitation to open our second restaurant in Baldwin Hills Ca and Mexicano was born!
A traditional Mexican food restaurant with the same mission of La Casita Mexcian to promote Traditional Mexican food and our Mexican culture.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It’s been fun! We’re doing the same thing that we did 18 years ago.
It’s been a challenge to present Mexican dishes that speak to our new customers in a foreign language that some people understand and some of them don’t.
Our goal is to translate that foreign language of food and to overcome obstacles and challenges.
Mexicano – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
What comes to mind when you think about Mexican food? Is it the variety of salsas created from a unique amalgamation of chilies and spices that both brighten and ground a dish? Perhaps it’s the complex depth of a mole, the stuffing of a chili that blends meat and fruit, or a uniquely executed guacamole that incorporates tequila for an airy iteration of something familiar. This is exactly what would come to mind if you have tasted the authentic Mexican cuisine of Chefs Jaime Martin Del Campo and Ramiro Arvizu.
At Mexicano (pronounced “me-hi-ka-no”), Jaime and Ramiro will expand their repertoire for a new audience and continue to redefine what many people think constitutes Mexican cuisine.
“When we create a dish, it is always rooted in our history,” Jaime says. “Perhaps it’s inspired by the tamales my grandmother used to cook every Sunday or the way Ramiro’s mother would keep tortillas warm in a wicker basket when bringing them down to the river to her husband after he was done fishing.”
After years of cooking bold and traditional Mexican food together at La Casita Mexicana restaurant in Bell, CA, Jaime Martin Del Campo and Ramiro Arvizu are affectionately known jointly as Jaime and Ramiro. Among some of the biggest stars in the Mexican cooking world, the duo will bring the authentic flavors and heirloom family recipes of their signature Los Angeles-area restaurant to Baldwin Hills Crenshaw with the opening of Mexicano in the fall of 2014. Since garnering a nomination for Best Chef: Pacific from the James Beard Foundation in 2008, Jaime and Ramiro continue to earn recognition for serving exemplary traditional Mexican gastronomy from numerous national and international publications. Their charisma and passion for Mexican cuisine have afforded them broadcast opportunities, including a role as judges on the Telemundo show, “Top Chef Estrellas,” as well as recurring work with La Opinión, the largest Spanish newspaper in America. They have also received many certificates of recognition from the Los Angeles Board of Supervisors and from the Los Angeles Board of Education for their civic work and contributions.
What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
The moment we see smiling faces when they eat our food!
Contact Info:
- Address: 3650 W Martin Luther King Jr Blvd # 127
Los Angeles Ca 90008 - Website: www.mexicanola.com
- Phone: 323 296-0798
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: @mexicanola
- Facebook: @mexicanola
