2024 saw four new restaurants join starred line up of Dubai restaurants, including Dani Garcia’s Smoked Room, helmed by Young Chef Award winner, Jesus Lobato Suarez.
The Spanish chef has been managing the Dubai outpost since its opening in early 2024 and has since left our famously anonymous inspectors impressed by the restaurant’s creative and technically skilled dishes. The “Fire Omakase” dining experience seats 14 guests, allowing chefs to engage with their guests on a more intimate level – an attribute chef Jesus strives for.
From stealing his mother’s freshly made croquetas doughs from the fridge to running a MICHELIN-starred restaurant, the driven young chef is fueled by his passion to express himself and create connections through the art of food.
Growing up in Seville in a family that has worked within hotels and restaurants, chef Jesus’ whole life has been defined by hospitality. His father, who worked as a maître d’hôtel for most of his life, introduced him to the industry early on. “Since I was a child, I would pick up my father when he finished his shift and would always walk inside amazing restaurants and hotels,” chef Jesus recalls, “it is something that has been feeding me since I was a kid.” He grew up loving food, to the point where he would sneak into his mother’s kitchen and steal freshly made croquetas doughs from the fridge.
“They rarely made it to the table… she is still angry for that, but the flavour and texture of this dough, there is nothing like it”
At the age of 16, Lobato Suarez opted out of school and decided to pursue a career in gastronomy, where he started as a dishwasher. There, he learned the ins and outs of a restaurant kitchen, from cooking techniques to understanding different proteins. “It was a great school for me,” he says, “I used to work all day, had one rest day a week and learned the old school cuisine, cultivating within me a great passion for cooking.”
Having been promoted to chef de partie a few months after his stint as a dishwasher prompted the Andalucian native to travel along the Mediterranean coast two years later. He set out to hone his skill in seafood restaurants, and study to earn a master’s degree in management design and gastronomic innovation. In that time, a spark in him lit up and his passion to connect with diners through food grew. Understanding what it means to be a chef, from a technical and emotional point of view, fueled his drive to succeed in creating the best experience for his guests. “Cooking is not just a skill for me, also it’s a passion that allows me to express my creativity and share joy with others,” he explains.
“I believe that food has the power to bring people together, to create memories, and to foster connections.”
And thus, followed what he considers one of the most influential moments in his career: joining Grupo Dani Garcia in 2021. “Crossing this bridge allowed me to live the best moments of my culinary career,” he says, “I got to travel, cook, create dishes and ideas, be part of eight openings in three years, train many chefs and get to know myself in the midst of great difficulties.”
One opening in particular brings him to Dubai in 2023, where he now leads the kitchen of Smoked Room, sister to Madrid’s two MICHELIN star outpost of the same name. It is here where chef Jesus’ was able to attain his goal in creating the connections he’s been striving for his whole career. Thanks to the restaurant’s intimate setting, the chef is able to interact and engage with his diners, which inspires him. “Smoked Room gives us the opportunity to see our customers' reactions, talk with them and share ideas and thoughts,” he explains.
Yet, there is no sun without rain. While the chef and his team work hard to stay energised and consistently evolve, the job does not come without stress. “They also often tell me that I’m always stressed,” he goes on to say, “but I just want us to be a group of chefs who seek excellence and perfection so that our diners leave the restaurant with one of the best memories of their lives.”
RELEVANT: The Smoked Room dessert that wowed our MICHELIN Guide Inspectors
His struggles, however, were not in vain. In July 2024, Smoked Room earns one MICHELN star and chef Jesus receives the Young Chef Award. “There are not words to describe this moment,” he recalls, “do you know when people say that you see your life before death? I began to remember all my team, many memories during my career, my family and how hard it has been. I cannot be prouder of this day!”
And since receiving the star, chef Jesus and his team are even more motivated to create memorable dining experiences. “Now the environment is more special, people know that they are dining in a MICHELIN star restaurant,” he explains, “we must maintain the level every second of the day. The team is motivated and ready for more.”
SIMILAR: An inspector's experience in Dubai's newest MICHELIN star, Orfali Bros
What is a philosophy you live by?
My life philosophy revolves around the idea of becoming an even better person. Cooking is not just a skill for me, also it’s a passion that allows me to express my creativity and share joy with others. I believe that food has the power to bring people together, to create memories, and to foster connections. I also focus on the importance of kindness, empathy, and respect in my interactions with others. In my journey, I embrace challenges and learn from my mistakes, knowing that every experience contributes to my growth as both a chef and a person. I aspire to inspire others through our cooking and to make a positive impact in my community. Basically, my philosophy is about blending the art of cooking with the essence of humanity, creating a life filled with flavor, love, and connection.
What is your cooking style?
I am not closed to any cooking style, and during my career I was trying to learn as much different cooking methods as possible, but Mediterranean food focused on seafood and fish with an Asian twist could be my most powerful cuisine.
What’s the most important quality that a chef should have?
Organization, cleanliness and humility. The passion for cooking is vital, but I think that to be a chef you must have a certain structure different from the ordinary, an organized mind, who develops an impeccable work and takes it from the heart and soul, can succeed in any kitchen.
Which piece of advice would you give to young chefs?
Be true to your path, fight for your dreams and always choose the hard choice. Do not forget to be humble and what your roots are, traveling, enjoying and cooking like no one surrounded by a great team
