José Ramón Andrés Puerta (Spanish pronunciation: [xoˈse raˈmon anˈdɾes ˈpweɾta]; born 13 July 1969) is a Spanish and American chef and restaurateur. Born in Spain, he moved to the United States in the early 1990s and since then, he has opened restaurants in several American cities. He has won awards for his cooking, including several James Beard Awards, and his humanitarian work. He is a professor as well as the founder of the Global Food Institute at George Washington University.
Andrés is the founder of World Central Kitchen (WCK), a non-profit organization devoted to providing meals in the wake of natural disasters. He is often credited with bringing the small plates dining concept to America. He was awarded a 2015 National Humanities Medal at a 2016 White House ceremony for his work with World Central Kitchen. In addition, he has received honorary doctorates from Georgetown University, George Washington University, Harvard University, and Tufts University. In March 2022, he was named as co-chair of the United States President's Council on Sports, Fitness, and Nutrition, a role he served in until he submitted his resignation one week before Donald Trump took office in January 2025.
Contents
Early life and education
José Ramón Andrés Puerta was born in Mieres, Asturias, Spain, on 13 July 1969. Andrés' family moved to Catalonia when he was 6. He enrolled in culinary school in Barcelona at the age of 15, and when he needed to fulfill his Spanish military service at the age of 18, he was assigned to cook for an admiral. He met Spanish chef Ferran Adrià in Barcelona, and he worked for three years at Adrià's restaurant El Bulli in Roses, Catalonia, from 1988 to 1990. In December 1990, he was fired by Adrià and he decided to move to the United States.
Culinary career
Coming to the United States
At the age of 21, Andrés arrived in New York City to cook in Midtown Manhattan at an outpost of a popular Spanish restaurant, Eldorado Petit. During his time in New York, he also staged servings at The Quilted Giraffe. In 1993, Andrés was hired to lead the kitchen at Jaleo, a new tapas restaurant in Washington, D.C. In subsequent years, he helped the owners of Jaleo to open more restaurants: Café Atlántico, Zaytinya and Oyamel, along with two more Jaleo outposts. In 2003, Andrés started a minibar – a restaurant space within a larger restaurant – at a six-seat counter within Café Atlántico. This Minibar eventually became a stand-alone restaurant with a twelve-seat counter. Seats are released on a monthly basis; according to the Washington Post they typically are reserved within 24 hours.
Chef and restaurateur
As he opened more restaurants in the U.S., Andrés became more well known in his native country Spain, starring in his own cooking show, Vamos a Cocinar, which debuted in 2005. He also published his first book, Tapas: A Taste of Spain in America, in 2005. In 2006, he partnered with Robert Wilder to form ThinkFoodGroup, making Andrés a co-owner in his restaurants. Together, they opened more restaurants in Miami, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, and Puerto Rico.
Beginning in the fall of 2010, Andrés taught a culinary physics course at Harvard University with Ferran Adrià. In May 2012, Andrés was named dean of Spanish Studies at The International Culinary Center, where he and Colman Andrews developed a curriculum in traditional and modern Spanish cuisine, which debuted in February 2013. On 29 October 2012, he announced he was heading back to the classroom, and would teach his first course on how food shapes civilization at George Washington University. He did so until 2023, when he started the Global Food Institute at George Washington University.
Trump Hotel restaurant and lawsuit
Andrés planned to open a restaurant in the Trump International Hotel (also known as Old Post Office) in Washington, D.C., in 2016. After Donald Trump made disparaging comments about illegal Mexican immigrants in June 2015, Andrés withdrew from the contract with the Trump Organization, which then sued him. Andrés counter-sued, and the parties reached a settlement in April 2017.
The Trump International Hotel, Washington, D.C., closed on 11 May 2022. It was sold to CGI Merchant Group, and later reopened as the Waldorf Astoria Washington, D.C., on 1 June 2022. On 13 June 2022, Andrés announced that he would return to the location to open the restaurant that he had planned in the original 2015 deal. The Bazaar by José Andrés opened on 8 February 2023. Andrés remains an outspoken critic of Trump.
World Central Kitchen
World Central Kitchen (WCK) raised almost $30 million in 2019, then $250 million in 2020. In response to the 2010 Haiti earthquake, Andrés provided locally cooked dishes specific to the region essential to comforting people touched by disasters. Since it was founded, the NGO has organized meals in the Dominican Republic, Nicaragua, Zambia, Peru, Cuba, Uganda, Palestine, Cambodia, and in Poland on the border of Ukraine. It has provided aid and meals in the United States and Puerto Rico and has helped during the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States. Andrés runs WCK's operations with the help of about 200 colleagues including CEO Erin Gore and Director of Emergency response Sam Bloch.
In 2021, Jeff Bezos, the owner of The Washington Post and founder of Amazon, provided Andrés $100 million through his Courage and Civility Award. During the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, Andrés announced that he was going to donate a part of the $100 million to the organization to address the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine.
In 2022, WCK took in $519 million in grants and donations.
On 1 April 2024, seven WCK employees in Gaza were killed by multiple Israeli drone strikes in the city of Deir al-Balah. Andrés rejected Israeli and U.S. assertions that the strike was not deliberate, stating the seven employees were "targeted deliberately" and killed "systematically, car by car". The Gaza war, he said, is "not a war against terrorism anymore" but a "war against humanity itself." He writes "We know Israelis. Israelis, in their heart of hearts, know that food is not a weapon of war. Israel is better than the way this war is being waged. It is better than blocking food and medicine to civilians. It is better than killing aid workers who had coordinated their movements with the Israel Defense Forces."
Restaurants
Along with partner Rob Wilder, Andrés owns several restaurants:
minibar by José Andrés – Washington, D.C. – several chefs serve a prix fixe menu of about 25 small courses to twelve diners at a time. Received two stars from the D.C. edition of the Michelin Guide in 2016.
barmini by José Andrés – Washington, D.C. – Cocktail bar adjacent to minibar.
é by José Andrés – Las Vegas – several chefs serve a prix fixe menu of about 25 small courses to nine diners at a time. Modeled after minibar and located inside Jaleo.
The Bazaar by José Andrés – Miami Beach, Washington, D.C., and New York City – A combination of traditional Spanish tapas and foods inspired by molecular gastronomy. Previously, in 2008, José Andrés opened The Bazaar within the SLS Beverly Hills hotel, with interiors designed by Phillippe Starck. Shortly after, he opened Saam at the Bazaar, a small tasting menu bar behind the main dining room, which was later relaunched in 2018 as Somni, with which the Spanish chef Aitor Zabala was awarded two Michelin stars. Both The Bazaar and Somni were forced to close in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Bazaar Meat by José Andrés – Las Vegas, Chicago, Los Angeles, and Washington, D.C. (opening in 2025) – Modern, high-end steakhouse featuring imported cuts of rare meat.
Bar Mar by José Andrés – Chicago, Glendale (inside of VAI Resort), and Nashville (inside of W Hotel) – Seafood-focused happy hour venue with a raw bar and fancy cocktails.
Bazaar Mar – Las Vegas (inside The Shops at Crystals) – Seafood-driven interactive restaurant highlighting Spanish flavors.
Bar Centro – Las Vegas (adjacent to Bazaar Mar inside The Shops at Crystals) and Miami Beach (at the Andaz Miami Beach, a Hyatt property) – Spanish bakery and craft cocktail bar.
Awards and honors
Awards and prizes
2003 – Best Chef of the Mid-Atlantic Region, James Beard Foundation
2010 – Order of Arts and Letters of Spain, Spanish government
2010 – Vilcek Prize in Culinary Arts
2011 – Outstanding Chef, James Beard Foundation
2015 – National Humanities Medal, National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), United States government
2015 – Medal for Tourist Merit, in the "Internationalization" category, Spanish government
2017 – Lifetime Achievement Award, International Association of Culinary Professionals
2017 – Gold Medal of Merit in the Fine Arts, Spanish government
2018 – James Beard Foundation Award for Humanitarian of the Year
2019 – Julia Child Award from the Julia Child Foundation for Gastronomy and the Culinary Arts
2019 – TIME for Kids' Person of the Year
2020 – John Steinbeck Award from the Martha Heasley Cox Center for Steinbeck Studies at San Jose State University.
2021 – Princess of Asturias Award in the category "Concord".
2021 – Recipient of second Courage and Civility Award from Jeff Bezos at a press conference following Blue Origin's first human flight (includes US$100 million to distribute to non-profit organizations of Andrés' choice)
Media recognition
2004 – Saveur 100 List, Saveur
2004 – Chef of the Year, Bon Appetit
2009 – Chef of the Year, GQ
2012 – One of the world's 100 most influential people, Time
2016 – Michelin Guide Washington, D.C., 2 Michelin stars for minibar by José Andrés
2018 – One of the world's 100 most influential people, Time
Honorary degrees
In May 2014, Andrés received an honorary doctorate degree in public service from George Washington University and served as the university's commencement speaker at the National Mall the same year.
In May 2018, Andrés received an honorary Doctor of Public Service degree from Tufts University and served as the commencement speaker for the Gerald J. and Dorothy R. Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University.
In 2019, Andrés received an honorary degree from Georgetown University.
In May 2022, Andrés received an honorary degree from Harvard University.
Appointments
In 2015, Andrés was appointed by President Barack Obama as an ambassador for citizenship and naturalization.
In 2022, Andrés was appointed by President Joe Biden as co-chair of the President's Council on Sports, Fitness, & Nutrition.
In 2024, Andrés was appointed as a member of The Earthshot Prize Council.
Personal life
Andrés married Patricia "Tichi" Fernández de la Cruz in September 1995. The couple has three daughters; they live in Bethesda, Maryland, United States. He met his wife while they were both living in Washington, D.C.; she is originally from Cádiz, Andalusia, in the southwest of Spain. He became a naturalized U.S. citizen in December 2013.
Andrés is an avid golfer and loves cigars. He is a fan of the Washington Nationals and has thrown out the ceremonial first pitch at Nationals games, including during the 2019 World Series.
He has a collection of 1500 rare cookbooks, including an 1825 first edition of Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin's The Physiology of Taste, a rents and receipts notepad from 1795 that belonged to Thomas Jefferson’s chef Honoré Julien, and an 1851 edition of The Virginia House-Wife by Mary Randolph. He has expressed a predilection for his early edition of Auguste Escoffier’s Ma Cuisine, his first edition of Irma S. Rombauer's Joy of Cooking, and Ángel Muro's El Practicón.
Politics
On 5 November 2024, Andrés said he planned to challenge Rep. Andy Harris in the 2026 election. He called Harris, a Republican and chair of the House Freedom Caucus, a "disgrace making so many lies and hateful rhetoric."