Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
All right, I think I got him, chef, can you
hear me?
Speaker 2 (00:04):
Yes?
Speaker 1 (00:04):
Hi, yay, all right, very good. This, my friends, is
chef Brian Gomez, who is one of the hottest chefs
in in the US. I don't mean that he looks
I don't mean that he looks really good, although some
people would say he's hot that way too. Uh and
uh and uh and and I read it. I read
(00:24):
a piece about Byron in the in the Denver Post,
and I just I just loved it and it just
seemed fascinating. And chef, I'm not I'm almost the foodie,
you know. I really like I really like good food,
good restaurants. And I just had a guy on the
show who you probably know, named Alex Sidell, and I
(00:45):
really like talking to really like legend. Legend, yeah, legend.
So I'm really happy to have you here because uh,
well because then I can say I knew him when
since since if you're not a legend already, I'm sure
you I'm sure you will be. So let's I wanted
to talk about your your life story a little bit
before we get into all the stuff, because part of
(01:08):
the Denver Post article was a bit about your your
life story, So like, where were you born, how'd you
get here? Tell a little about you? And are you
wearing a Yankees hat? It's a little hard to tell
on the angle.
Speaker 2 (01:19):
Yeah, I am.
Speaker 3 (01:20):
Wearing a Yankees had them, A big Yankee fan, so,
you know, Rockies.
Speaker 2 (01:24):
Here we go.
Speaker 3 (01:25):
I tickets, so ready for Labor Day weekend when the
Yankees ron town.
Speaker 1 (01:31):
All right, all right, we won't hold that against you,
all right. So where where'd you come from? Tell me
about you?
Speaker 2 (01:37):
Yeah?
Speaker 3 (01:37):
So yeah, I was born in Costa Rica, Born and
raised in Costa Rica to about the age of eight.
My parents then moved to the United States Long Island,
New York to be more exact, and there I grew
up you know, elementary school, junior high, high school and
getting integrated into the culture, which at first it was a.
Speaker 2 (01:56):
Little bit of a culture shock.
Speaker 3 (01:57):
I mean I remember the first school lunches, things like
peanut butter and jelly.
Speaker 2 (02:01):
I was like, what is this? You know, American cheese.
Speaker 3 (02:05):
That wasn't something that I was used to with my
Costa Rican you know, diet and and and the way
I was brought up.
Speaker 2 (02:11):
So that was kind of like a little bit of
a culture shock.
Speaker 3 (02:13):
And then you know, emerging myself into what you know,
being an American is, and and growing up he in
the United States and learning the language and all of that.
Speaker 2 (02:22):
That was just kind of like part of my upbringing.
Speaker 1 (02:24):
So okay, most important question. Did you become a Yankee
Span when you were in Costa Rica or when you
moved Were you already a Yankee span or was it
when you moved to New York.
Speaker 2 (02:37):
No, and I moved to New York. That's when I
was a Yankees fan.
Speaker 1 (02:40):
Okay, all right? All right? And San Jose, Liberia.
Speaker 3 (02:45):
Where so at Adia which is north of San Jose.
It's like kind of like the mountain region. My mom
is from a Adias, she's from that part, and then
my dad is from like Da Libertia side.
Speaker 2 (02:56):
Do you want to Costa side?
Speaker 1 (02:58):
Okay, so is your mom's play? Is that anywhere near
r and All? Yes?
Speaker 3 (03:03):
Yeah, we're very close to are now, we're very close
to the National Forest. I think we're like about half
an hour about uh so, yeah, Yeah, I love it.
Speaker 2 (03:10):
Oh you know Costa Rica? Have you been there?
Speaker 1 (03:12):
Yeah? I've been there a couple of times.
Speaker 3 (03:14):
Amazing.
Speaker 1 (03:14):
I love it. It's a it's a wonderful country. It's
the oldest democracy in the southern in South America. It's
a yeah, it's a great it's a great place. So
I saw also in the Denver Post piece that you
are quote unquote dreamer, So you came illegally or whatever.
I know, it's all very politable, but whatever, I don't mean.
Speaker 2 (03:36):
It that way pretty much. No, I came to this
country legally.
Speaker 3 (03:39):
I came with a visa, and I had a ten
year visa that I could go back and forth. But
you know, my parents they decided that they were going
to stay here and and and start making a live,
you know, seeking that.
Speaker 2 (03:51):
American dream and seeking opportunities.
Speaker 3 (03:53):
And through that, then my ten year visa expired. Yeah,
I came in nineteen ninety seven. Obviously by sweat two
thousand and seven, that like that got expired. So therefore
K entered the country legally. But then because of the system,
I wasn't granted you know.
Speaker 2 (04:11):
Access to to being legal so easily.
Speaker 3 (04:14):
And then through that's kind of like you know, growing
up as an immigrant kid in an immigrant community, I
was granted the access of being a DACA recipient, which
is a deferred child childhood deferred action for childhood arrivals,
meaning that there was a whole bunch of children that
came here, and how can we defer this action from
(04:35):
when they got here in the sense of like they're going.
Speaker 2 (04:37):
To be the future in this country.
Speaker 3 (04:39):
So, you know, when I was in my early teens, sorry,
when I was in my late teens.
Speaker 2 (04:45):
DACA it was a program that has allowed.
Speaker 3 (04:47):
Us to have a working permit, therefore has a Social
Security number, therefore open a bank account, therefore have a license.
So how kind of like that exposure to the American life.
But we're not able to travel outside of the country.
We're still here. Really, you know, we pay, we pay
our taxes, we you know, we we I employ Americans.
(05:09):
You know, we could go to school here, but we
can never leave the country. So it's still like a
cage animal in a way. Like I still feel like
a cage bird in a way. I've done all this crazy,
amazing historical things. Uh, you know, we'll I'm not trying
to get ahead of myself, but you know, doing stuff
that has been historically for my country, and I can't
go and celebrate with them at this point. And and
(05:33):
through that, you know, the American government has enabeled us
as dreamers. So it's I think. I think it's like
the perfect term in a way. I I don't get
offended by it. I love it because it's like I'm
striving for something. A dream is something that you you
you strive for every day, you try to work towards it,
every day, you try to reach it every day, and
then once you get it, you like, I reached my dream.
Speaker 2 (05:53):
But then you'll have another dream and you keep and
that's life, you know.
Speaker 3 (05:57):
So I think for for me has been my to
stabilize my immigration status in the United States because I
have to renew this permit every two years. My life
is planned in two year increments and in depending on
who's in office, which right now is very debatable. And
all I could tell people is like, just educate yourselves.
Speaker 2 (06:17):
I am not the enemy.
Speaker 3 (06:19):
I am contributing to this country more than maybe the
typical American or a lot of Americans have done, because
I want to be part of this country. But yet
I can and I don't know what else I need
to do to prove that I want to be part
of this society.
Speaker 1 (06:33):
Last question for you on this, and then I want
to talk about food as things stand now, is there
any path to citizenship for you.
Speaker 3 (06:43):
As things stands now, I could literally get a knock
on my door as we speak it and I could
be deported right now.
Speaker 1 (06:50):
And there's no path to citizenship beyond separate from.
Speaker 3 (06:52):
That, beyond maybe marriage or something along those lines, there
is no path to citizenship that'll make it easier for us.
Speaker 1 (06:59):
Wow, we're talking with chef Byron Gomez. You've seen him
on Top Chef last by Hotel Uh. He's the executive
chef at Bruto. And do I pronounce the o like that?
Is it a long o? Or is that right? Bruto?
Speaker 2 (07:12):
You got it?
Speaker 1 (07:13):
And Bruto as a Michelin Star and a Michelin Green
Star as well. In fact, I think most people know
what the Michelin Star is. What's the Green Star?
Speaker 3 (07:22):
Yes, michel started granted a Green star about restaurants that
are forward driving on sustainability, a better future, sourcing, locality,
just more intentional things that go on a plate, and
it's part of our culture.
Speaker 1 (07:36):
I've talked about this from time to time on the
show because I love good restaurants. But I'll just remind folks,
if you haven't heard, you know, you might hear a
Michelin Star and think, oh, one, it's just one star.
Almost no restaurants ever get even close to getting one
Michelin Star. It goes up to it goes up to
three stars. But if you get one star, it's it's
(07:59):
not just like make the NBA. It's like making the
NBA All Star Team. Right, It's a really really big deal.
Speaker 2 (08:07):
It really is.
Speaker 1 (08:08):
Yeah, So tell tell me a little about your your
journey in food. I read that you started at Burger King.
Speaker 3 (08:18):
Yes, I never went to culinary school due to my
hindrance of my legal status here, not because I didn't
want to. It's just I just couldn't have financial aid.
I couldn't have anything. So I started as a summer
job at Burger King, and I really fell in love
with it.
Speaker 2 (08:33):
My second job was TGI Fridays, if those are still around.
Speaker 3 (08:37):
My third job, pretty much right out of high school,
was the Sheraton Hotel. So, as you noticed, I'm like
climbing up the ladder to Eventually, by the time I'm
twenty four, I decided to do Michelin restaurants. I've already
been cooking for about ten years of my life, and
at this point I did a one star Michelin. Then
I went on to do a two star Michelin. Then
(08:58):
I finished the rounds by with a three star Michelin.
And that's the top you could get. Little did I
know that that year twenty twenty seventeen, the restaurant eleven
Madison Parking, which I was working in New York City,
has a three star Michelin. We got named number one
restaurant in the world. You can't pop that off like
that's it, Like that's that's the pinnacle.
Speaker 2 (09:18):
You know.
Speaker 3 (09:20):
Netflix did a documentary and else called Seven Days Out
that eleven Madison park episode, and and that's where it
kind of was like, Wow, there has to be something
more than this.
Speaker 2 (09:29):
I just don't want to stay in New York.
Speaker 3 (09:30):
I reached the ceiling, you know, I want this ceiling
to be the floor for my next step.
Speaker 2 (09:36):
What is my next step?
Speaker 3 (09:37):
And I decided to leave everything, to leave the best
restaurant in the world, to leave the best team in
the world, to leave Michelan to come.
Speaker 2 (09:45):
To Aspen, Colorado.
Speaker 3 (09:46):
And that's how my journey here in Colorado has been
about seven years at this point where now I'm a
partner here at restaurant Bruto in downtown Denver, and I
want to say I'm one of the most I guess
equipped chefs with the mission own experience in the state. Yeah,
that's done everything to now, you know, having a platform
on television, getting a green star, and to historically become
(10:10):
the first chef in Costa Rica to ever have a
mission star.
Speaker 1 (10:13):
Amazing, amazing. We're talking with chef Byron Gomez of bruto
In in Denver and and really just a true rising
star or maybe already risen and still rising more star
uh in in the world of chefs. Gosh, I have
so many questions and we have about six minutes left.
What's your what do you You're young, so you've seen even
(10:39):
probably while you might still have been sort of a kid,
the rise of chefs as television celebrities, right because you
were you were I don't know how old you were,
like when Top Chef first started or all this stuff.
What what do you? What do you make of chefs
as TV celebrities? And is there any down on side
(11:00):
to it? Or is that all upside for you and
your industry?
Speaker 3 (11:04):
I mean, you know, recently I made the list of
Food Network's Hot Hot List, which is the top ten
chefs who are revolutionizing the world in twenty twenty five.
I also made the list of Forbes Central America of
the ten top people to look out for for twenty
twenty five.
Speaker 2 (11:23):
So it's kind of crazy that I could call.
Speaker 3 (11:25):
I have people on on my phone list, people like
Andrew Zimmermann that I grew up watching on you know,
Bizarre Foods.
Speaker 2 (11:35):
You know.
Speaker 3 (11:35):
I have people like Daniel Bulu who are like mentors
of mine.
Speaker 2 (11:39):
I have people that are, you know, Bobby Flay, let's
say that, and I'm like, whoa, whoa, whoa, Like I'm
Heremidy like this. This is like my friends. These are
like my group of people.
Speaker 3 (11:49):
That I go and do events and I'm going to
run into them and we ask about each other's families
and things like that. So it's a little bit mind
blowing that that wasn't the end goal my I was
just trying to make it each week when I started
Murti King and trying to figure out how to put,
you know, a patty between two buns and whatever topics
it was.
Speaker 2 (12:08):
I never knew that I was going to lead me
to this.
Speaker 3 (12:11):
But the open mindedness and the curiosity, I think has
really helped me to get where I'm at because I
never want to be a I'll never want to be
a teacher of this.
Speaker 2 (12:20):
I want to be a student.
Speaker 3 (12:22):
Therefore, now stepping into a black form in my career
where food comes like second nature, flavors, combinations, patterns, how.
Speaker 2 (12:32):
To cook something. I'm already really good at that.
Speaker 3 (12:34):
Now it's the whole celebrity chef thing or the exposure
thing and the business part of it.
Speaker 2 (12:39):
So like I tell people, I have two or three jobs.
You know, I have Bruto, I have to be here.
Speaker 3 (12:44):
But then it's working on my brand, working with my
pr agent, working with my agent, working on deals, working
on events, traveling. So it looks glamorous, but sometimes I'm like,
I just want to eat a slice of pizza, hang
around in my underwear in my apartment, and just so
I don't do that very often.
Speaker 1 (13:02):
Yeah, I mean you you are at this point, you're
you're your own brand, and that's yeah, that's that's an
immense amount of work. We got about. We have about
three more minutes. If you on a typical day, if
I said you need to go into Bruto and order
one thing off the menu for you yourself to eat,
what would it be.
Speaker 2 (13:24):
For me myself to eat.
Speaker 3 (13:25):
Yeah yeah, uh, well, our menu here is eleven courses,
like you don't get to choose we I curate there
the entire experience for you.
Speaker 2 (13:35):
So anything that has uh right now.
Speaker 3 (13:38):
Our caviar course is uh, caviar with celariac ice cream
and hay insider go go apple puree. I will say,
I'm a sucker for ice cream. And it's in the
middle of the meal. You didn't even get it to
the end. I don't want to wait till the end.
So having that siltiness of the caviar and that silkness
and creaminess of the ice cream is like a perfect pairing.
Speaker 1 (14:00):
So my producer and a chef are on my I
don't know if he's a chef actually a listener or
on my case that I need to ask you something.
This listener says, ross, don't tell the chef you're a
foodie if you don't like blue cheese, so you don't
like bell peppers. I hate blue cheese, and I also
(14:22):
don't like bell peppers. Can I still be considered somebody
to have a decent taste in food if I don't
like those things?
Speaker 2 (14:30):
Okay?
Speaker 3 (14:31):
Well, I hate lamb and I hate goat cheese, So
there you go.
Speaker 1 (14:35):
Okay, all right, Wait, do you like blue cheese but
not goat cheese?
Speaker 2 (14:40):
I don't like goat cheese and I like blue cheese.
Speaker 1 (14:43):
Interesting, I always put those things together, all right. So obviously,
when you're doing an eleven course tasting menu, it's just
creativity all the time. So this may be kind of
like asking someone which one of their children they love most.
But is there a a dish or maybe two? And
we have about a minute and a half left of
(15:03):
your creation that you are especially proud of for the
creativity that went into it.
Speaker 3 (15:11):
Yes, I want to say anything that has Costa Rican
influence in it, which I'm starting to do here at
Bruto telling my story. Some of the first bites are
Costa Rican driven things that I cooked out of memory,
but also things that I long and aspired to possibly
go to Costa Rica and taste those flavors because it's
been almost thirty years since the last time I've had
(15:31):
those dishes and that my mom has replicated. But I'm
cooking out of memory, I'm cooking out of a passion,
out of an inside thing turmoil, which is like, am
I enough? Am I paying good homage to this. Am
I paying respects to this and one day I wish
I could share that with the people, but for now
I'm sharing it with the beautiful people here in downtown
(15:53):
Denver and in Colorado.
Speaker 1 (15:54):
Last question for you, have your parents been to Bruto?
Speaker 2 (15:58):
They have not, so they're coming this summer.
Speaker 1 (16:00):
Really. Oh yes, that is so great man. I'm I'm
I'm so glad you agreed to talk to me. I'm
sure lots of people want to talk to you, and
you're a busy dude, so I'm really grateful. I thoroughly
enjoyed the conversation. And uh and and when I get
some time to get to Bruto, I'll let you know
before my wife and I came and hopefully we can
meet in person.
Speaker 2 (16:21):
Oh my god, we'd love to have you guys.
Speaker 3 (16:22):
Thank you for the opportunity of ross and thank you
for giving me this platform and talk about my story,
and congrats on everything you guys are doing.
Speaker 2 (16:29):
Seriously.
Speaker 1 (16:29):
Thanks, that's uh, that's Chef Byron. You often just use
the first name Chef Byron Gomez if you need to
know the whole name from Bruto B r U t
O in Denver, Michelin Starr, Micheline, Green Star, unbelievably creative food.
Go try it out. Byron. Thanks again, really appreciate your time.
Speaker 2 (16:48):
Thank you,
All right, I think I got him, chef, can you
hear me?
Speaker 2 (00:04):
Yes?
Speaker 1 (00:04):
Hi, yay, all right, very good. This, my friends, is
chef Brian Gomez, who is one of the hottest chefs
in in the US. I don't mean that he looks
I don't mean that he looks really good, although some
people would say he's hot that way too. Uh and
uh and uh and and I read it. I read
(00:24):
a piece about Byron in the in the Denver Post,
and I just I just loved it and it just
seemed fascinating. And chef, I'm not I'm almost the foodie,
you know. I really like I really like good food,
good restaurants. And I just had a guy on the
show who you probably know, named Alex Sidell, and I
(00:45):
really like talking to really like legend. Legend, yeah, legend.
So I'm really happy to have you here because uh,
well because then I can say I knew him when
since since if you're not a legend already, I'm sure
you I'm sure you will be. So let's I wanted
to talk about your your life story a little bit
before we get into all the stuff, because part of
(01:08):
the Denver Post article was a bit about your your
life story, So like, where were you born, how'd you
get here? Tell a little about you? And are you
wearing a Yankees hat? It's a little hard to tell
on the angle.
Speaker 2 (01:19):
Yeah, I am.
Speaker 3 (01:20):
Wearing a Yankees had them, A big Yankee fan, so,
you know, Rockies.
Speaker 2 (01:24):
Here we go.
Speaker 3 (01:25):
I tickets, so ready for Labor Day weekend when the
Yankees ron town.
Speaker 1 (01:31):
All right, all right, we won't hold that against you,
all right. So where where'd you come from? Tell me
about you?
Speaker 2 (01:37):
Yeah?
Speaker 3 (01:37):
So yeah, I was born in Costa Rica, Born and
raised in Costa Rica to about the age of eight.
My parents then moved to the United States Long Island,
New York to be more exact, and there I grew
up you know, elementary school, junior high, high school and
getting integrated into the culture, which at first it was a.
Speaker 2 (01:56):
Little bit of a culture shock.
Speaker 3 (01:57):
I mean I remember the first school lunches, things like
peanut butter and jelly.
Speaker 2 (02:01):
I was like, what is this? You know, American cheese.
Speaker 3 (02:05):
That wasn't something that I was used to with my
Costa Rican you know, diet and and and the way
I was brought up.
Speaker 2 (02:11):
So that was kind of like a little bit of
a culture shock.
Speaker 3 (02:13):
And then you know, emerging myself into what you know,
being an American is, and and growing up he in
the United States and learning the language and all of that.
Speaker 2 (02:22):
That was just kind of like part of my upbringing.
Speaker 1 (02:24):
So okay, most important question. Did you become a Yankee
Span when you were in Costa Rica or when you
moved Were you already a Yankee span or was it
when you moved to New York.
Speaker 2 (02:37):
No, and I moved to New York. That's when I
was a Yankees fan.
Speaker 1 (02:40):
Okay, all right? All right? And San Jose, Liberia.
Speaker 3 (02:45):
Where so at Adia which is north of San Jose.
It's like kind of like the mountain region. My mom
is from a Adias, she's from that part, and then
my dad is from like Da Libertia side.
Speaker 2 (02:56):
Do you want to Costa side?
Speaker 1 (02:58):
Okay, so is your mom's play? Is that anywhere near
r and All? Yes?
Speaker 3 (03:03):
Yeah, we're very close to are now, we're very close
to the National Forest. I think we're like about half
an hour about uh so, yeah, Yeah, I love it.
Speaker 2 (03:10):
Oh you know Costa Rica? Have you been there?
Speaker 1 (03:12):
Yeah? I've been there a couple of times.
Speaker 3 (03:14):
Amazing.
Speaker 1 (03:14):
I love it. It's a it's a wonderful country. It's
the oldest democracy in the southern in South America. It's
a yeah, it's a great it's a great place. So
I saw also in the Denver Post piece that you
are quote unquote dreamer, So you came illegally or whatever.
I know, it's all very politable, but whatever, I don't mean.
Speaker 2 (03:36):
It that way pretty much. No, I came to this
country legally.
Speaker 3 (03:39):
I came with a visa, and I had a ten
year visa that I could go back and forth. But
you know, my parents they decided that they were going
to stay here and and and start making a live,
you know, seeking that.
Speaker 2 (03:51):
American dream and seeking opportunities.
Speaker 3 (03:53):
And through that, then my ten year visa expired. Yeah,
I came in nineteen ninety seven. Obviously by sweat two
thousand and seven, that like that got expired. So therefore
K entered the country legally. But then because of the system,
I wasn't granted you know.
Speaker 2 (04:11):
Access to to being legal so easily.
Speaker 3 (04:14):
And then through that's kind of like you know, growing
up as an immigrant kid in an immigrant community, I
was granted the access of being a DACA recipient, which
is a deferred child childhood deferred action for childhood arrivals,
meaning that there was a whole bunch of children that
came here, and how can we defer this action from
(04:35):
when they got here in the sense of like they're going.
Speaker 2 (04:37):
To be the future in this country.
Speaker 3 (04:39):
So, you know, when I was in my early teens, sorry,
when I was in my late teens.
Speaker 2 (04:45):
DACA it was a program that has allowed.
Speaker 3 (04:47):
Us to have a working permit, therefore has a Social
Security number, therefore open a bank account, therefore have a license.
So how kind of like that exposure to the American life.
But we're not able to travel outside of the country.
We're still here. Really, you know, we pay, we pay
our taxes, we you know, we we I employ Americans.
(05:09):
You know, we could go to school here, but we
can never leave the country. So it's still like a
cage animal in a way. Like I still feel like
a cage bird in a way. I've done all this crazy,
amazing historical things. Uh, you know, we'll I'm not trying
to get ahead of myself, but you know, doing stuff
that has been historically for my country, and I can't
go and celebrate with them at this point. And and
(05:33):
through that, you know, the American government has enabeled us
as dreamers. So it's I think. I think it's like
the perfect term in a way. I I don't get
offended by it. I love it because it's like I'm
striving for something. A dream is something that you you
you strive for every day, you try to work towards it,
every day, you try to reach it every day, and
then once you get it, you like, I reached my dream.
Speaker 2 (05:53):
But then you'll have another dream and you keep and
that's life, you know.
Speaker 3 (05:57):
So I think for for me has been my to
stabilize my immigration status in the United States because I
have to renew this permit every two years. My life
is planned in two year increments and in depending on
who's in office, which right now is very debatable. And
all I could tell people is like, just educate yourselves.
Speaker 2 (06:17):
I am not the enemy.
Speaker 3 (06:19):
I am contributing to this country more than maybe the
typical American or a lot of Americans have done, because
I want to be part of this country. But yet
I can and I don't know what else I need
to do to prove that I want to be part
of this society.
Speaker 1 (06:33):
Last question for you on this, and then I want
to talk about food as things stand now, is there
any path to citizenship for you.
Speaker 3 (06:43):
As things stands now, I could literally get a knock
on my door as we speak it and I could
be deported right now.
Speaker 1 (06:50):
And there's no path to citizenship beyond separate from.
Speaker 3 (06:52):
That, beyond maybe marriage or something along those lines, there
is no path to citizenship that'll make it easier for us.
Speaker 1 (06:59):
Wow, we're talking with chef Byron Gomez. You've seen him
on Top Chef last by Hotel Uh. He's the executive
chef at Bruto. And do I pronounce the o like that?
Is it a long o? Or is that right? Bruto?
Speaker 2 (07:12):
You got it?
Speaker 1 (07:13):
And Bruto as a Michelin Star and a Michelin Green
Star as well. In fact, I think most people know
what the Michelin Star is. What's the Green Star?
Speaker 3 (07:22):
Yes, michel started granted a Green star about restaurants that
are forward driving on sustainability, a better future, sourcing, locality,
just more intentional things that go on a plate, and
it's part of our culture.
Speaker 1 (07:36):
I've talked about this from time to time on the
show because I love good restaurants. But I'll just remind folks,
if you haven't heard, you know, you might hear a
Michelin Star and think, oh, one, it's just one star.
Almost no restaurants ever get even close to getting one
Michelin Star. It goes up to it goes up to
three stars. But if you get one star, it's it's
(07:59):
not just like make the NBA. It's like making the
NBA All Star Team. Right, It's a really really big deal.
Speaker 2 (08:07):
It really is.
Speaker 1 (08:08):
Yeah, So tell tell me a little about your your
journey in food. I read that you started at Burger King.
Speaker 3 (08:18):
Yes, I never went to culinary school due to my
hindrance of my legal status here, not because I didn't
want to. It's just I just couldn't have financial aid.
I couldn't have anything. So I started as a summer
job at Burger King, and I really fell in love
with it.
Speaker 2 (08:33):
My second job was TGI Fridays, if those are still around.
Speaker 3 (08:37):
My third job, pretty much right out of high school,
was the Sheraton Hotel. So, as you noticed, I'm like
climbing up the ladder to Eventually, by the time I'm
twenty four, I decided to do Michelin restaurants. I've already
been cooking for about ten years of my life, and
at this point I did a one star Michelin. Then
I went on to do a two star Michelin. Then
(08:58):
I finished the rounds by with a three star Michelin.
And that's the top you could get. Little did I
know that that year twenty twenty seventeen, the restaurant eleven
Madison Parking, which I was working in New York City,
has a three star Michelin. We got named number one
restaurant in the world. You can't pop that off like
that's it, Like that's that's the pinnacle.
Speaker 2 (09:18):
You know.
Speaker 3 (09:20):
Netflix did a documentary and else called Seven Days Out
that eleven Madison park episode, and and that's where it
kind of was like, Wow, there has to be something
more than this.
Speaker 2 (09:29):
I just don't want to stay in New York.
Speaker 3 (09:30):
I reached the ceiling, you know, I want this ceiling
to be the floor for my next step.
Speaker 2 (09:36):
What is my next step?
Speaker 3 (09:37):
And I decided to leave everything, to leave the best
restaurant in the world, to leave the best team in
the world, to leave Michelan to come.
Speaker 2 (09:45):
To Aspen, Colorado.
Speaker 3 (09:46):
And that's how my journey here in Colorado has been
about seven years at this point where now I'm a
partner here at restaurant Bruto in downtown Denver, and I
want to say I'm one of the most I guess
equipped chefs with the mission own experience in the state. Yeah,
that's done everything to now, you know, having a platform
on television, getting a green star, and to historically become
(10:10):
the first chef in Costa Rica to ever have a
mission star.
Speaker 1 (10:13):
Amazing, amazing. We're talking with chef Byron Gomez of bruto
In in Denver and and really just a true rising
star or maybe already risen and still rising more star
uh in in the world of chefs. Gosh, I have
so many questions and we have about six minutes left.
What's your what do you You're young, so you've seen even
(10:39):
probably while you might still have been sort of a kid,
the rise of chefs as television celebrities, right because you
were you were I don't know how old you were,
like when Top Chef first started or all this stuff.
What what do you? What do you make of chefs
as TV celebrities? And is there any down on side
(11:00):
to it? Or is that all upside for you and
your industry?
Speaker 3 (11:04):
I mean, you know, recently I made the list of
Food Network's Hot Hot List, which is the top ten
chefs who are revolutionizing the world in twenty twenty five.
I also made the list of Forbes Central America of
the ten top people to look out for for twenty
twenty five.
Speaker 2 (11:23):
So it's kind of crazy that I could call.
Speaker 3 (11:25):
I have people on on my phone list, people like
Andrew Zimmermann that I grew up watching on you know,
Bizarre Foods.
Speaker 2 (11:35):
You know.
Speaker 3 (11:35):
I have people like Daniel Bulu who are like mentors
of mine.
Speaker 2 (11:39):
I have people that are, you know, Bobby Flay, let's
say that, and I'm like, whoa, whoa, whoa, Like I'm
Heremidy like this. This is like my friends. These are
like my group of people.
Speaker 3 (11:49):
That I go and do events and I'm going to
run into them and we ask about each other's families
and things like that. So it's a little bit mind
blowing that that wasn't the end goal my I was
just trying to make it each week when I started
Murti King and trying to figure out how to put,
you know, a patty between two buns and whatever topics
it was.
Speaker 2 (12:08):
I never knew that I was going to lead me
to this.
Speaker 3 (12:11):
But the open mindedness and the curiosity, I think has
really helped me to get where I'm at because I
never want to be a I'll never want to be
a teacher of this.
Speaker 2 (12:20):
I want to be a student.
Speaker 3 (12:22):
Therefore, now stepping into a black form in my career
where food comes like second nature, flavors, combinations, patterns, how.
Speaker 2 (12:32):
To cook something. I'm already really good at that.
Speaker 3 (12:34):
Now it's the whole celebrity chef thing or the exposure
thing and the business part of it.
Speaker 2 (12:39):
So like I tell people, I have two or three jobs.
You know, I have Bruto, I have to be here.
Speaker 3 (12:44):
But then it's working on my brand, working with my
pr agent, working with my agent, working on deals, working
on events, traveling. So it looks glamorous, but sometimes I'm like,
I just want to eat a slice of pizza, hang
around in my underwear in my apartment, and just so
I don't do that very often.
Speaker 1 (13:02):
Yeah, I mean you you are at this point, you're
you're your own brand, and that's yeah, that's that's an
immense amount of work. We got about. We have about
three more minutes. If you on a typical day, if
I said you need to go into Bruto and order
one thing off the menu for you yourself to eat,
what would it be.
Speaker 2 (13:24):
For me myself to eat.
Speaker 3 (13:25):
Yeah yeah, uh, well, our menu here is eleven courses,
like you don't get to choose we I curate there
the entire experience for you.
Speaker 2 (13:35):
So anything that has uh right now.
Speaker 3 (13:38):
Our caviar course is uh, caviar with celariac ice cream
and hay insider go go apple puree. I will say,
I'm a sucker for ice cream. And it's in the
middle of the meal. You didn't even get it to
the end. I don't want to wait till the end.
So having that siltiness of the caviar and that silkness
and creaminess of the ice cream is like a perfect pairing.
Speaker 1 (14:00):
So my producer and a chef are on my I
don't know if he's a chef actually a listener or
on my case that I need to ask you something.
This listener says, ross, don't tell the chef you're a
foodie if you don't like blue cheese, so you don't
like bell peppers. I hate blue cheese, and I also
(14:22):
don't like bell peppers. Can I still be considered somebody
to have a decent taste in food if I don't
like those things?
Speaker 2 (14:30):
Okay?
Speaker 3 (14:31):
Well, I hate lamb and I hate goat cheese, So
there you go.
Speaker 1 (14:35):
Okay, all right, Wait, do you like blue cheese but
not goat cheese?
Speaker 2 (14:40):
I don't like goat cheese and I like blue cheese.
Speaker 1 (14:43):
Interesting, I always put those things together, all right. So obviously,
when you're doing an eleven course tasting menu, it's just
creativity all the time. So this may be kind of
like asking someone which one of their children they love most.
But is there a a dish or maybe two? And
we have about a minute and a half left of
(15:03):
your creation that you are especially proud of for the
creativity that went into it.
Speaker 3 (15:11):
Yes, I want to say anything that has Costa Rican
influence in it, which I'm starting to do here at
Bruto telling my story. Some of the first bites are
Costa Rican driven things that I cooked out of memory,
but also things that I long and aspired to possibly
go to Costa Rica and taste those flavors because it's
been almost thirty years since the last time I've had
(15:31):
those dishes and that my mom has replicated. But I'm
cooking out of memory, I'm cooking out of a passion,
out of an inside thing turmoil, which is like, am
I enough? Am I paying good homage to this. Am
I paying respects to this and one day I wish
I could share that with the people, but for now
I'm sharing it with the beautiful people here in downtown
(15:53):
Denver and in Colorado.
Speaker 1 (15:54):
Last question for you, have your parents been to Bruto?
Speaker 2 (15:58):
They have not, so they're coming this summer.
Speaker 1 (16:00):
Really. Oh yes, that is so great man. I'm I'm
I'm so glad you agreed to talk to me. I'm
sure lots of people want to talk to you, and
you're a busy dude, so I'm really grateful. I thoroughly
enjoyed the conversation. And uh and and when I get
some time to get to Bruto, I'll let you know
before my wife and I came and hopefully we can
meet in person.
Speaker 2 (16:21):
Oh my god, we'd love to have you guys.
Speaker 3 (16:22):
Thank you for the opportunity of ross and thank you
for giving me this platform and talk about my story,
and congrats on everything you guys are doing.
Speaker 2 (16:29):
Seriously.
Speaker 1 (16:29):
Thanks, that's uh, that's Chef Byron. You often just use
the first name Chef Byron Gomez if you need to
know the whole name from Bruto B r U t
O in Denver, Michelin Starr, Micheline, Green Star, unbelievably creative food.
Go try it out. Byron. Thanks again, really appreciate your time.
Speaker 2 (16:48):
Thank you,
The Ross Kaminsky Show News
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