Jonatán Gómez Luna, executive chef at One MICHELIN Star Le Chique in Mexico’s Riviera Maya, has a message that he drills into all of the chefs that pass through his storied kitchen: “cooking is dreaming.”
“Discipline, flavor, silence, technique, reflection, respect, product, these are words that every chef should have in their vocabulary and in their mind,” Gómez Luna, this year’s MICHELIN Guide Mexico Mentor Chef Award, said in an interview.
Since Le Chique, a pioneer of Mexican fine dining that crosses the country’s regions with whimsy, opened in 2008, its alumni have spread that dogma across the world, from a canalside boutique in Amsterdam to the gastronomic Mount Olympus of Basque Country.
In our full Q+A, Gómez Luna shares more on his kitchen philosophies and the mentors that helped him reach the height of Mexican cuisine.
What inspired you to become a chef?
I believe the beginning of becoming a great chef starts with loving food and being a true food lover. My journey began at my grandparents' home. Eating wasn’t just a routine act; it was a daily celebration. My grandmothers were amazing cooks, and my maternal grandfather was a man who loved eating everything and appreciated the smallest details in food, from a grand feast to a simple quesadilla made with humble ingredients. He loved Mexican cuisine, its roots, and its traditions. Having a great cook at home to spoil us made all the difference.
I miss those aromas and flavors, but they taught me a lot of what I know today. So yes, everything has a beginning. Mine started just like that.
How do you hold yourself in a restaurant kitchen? Loud and energetic? Quiet and focused? Why?
Like everything in life, there’s evolution. I started in a disciplined, almost military-style kitchen, always seeking something almost impossible: “perfection.” That’s where a phrase I often repeat comes from: “Perfection doesn’t exist, but we must always strive for it.”
I found my version of perfection in silence, in focus, in learning from everything around us in the kitchen: the product, my colleagues, and the students beside me.
I can’t deny that years ago, my behavior in the kitchen was very different from what it is today. And if you ask me, today’s version is a thousand times better than the old one. The restaurant’s evolution reflects that. It is "perfect" in my own way.
Don’t confuse discipline with fear.
Who were some of your biggest mentors in the kitchen? Can you share a story of an experience with one of them that was formative for you?
My culinary life has been marked by many great chefs: Ferran Adrià, Joan Roca, Jordi Roca, Joan Bosch, Quique Dacosta, René Redzepi, and a few more. The best part is that they all helped me become a better chef. We chefs are “options,” and each must build their own house to become a choice.
Without a doubt, René’s reflections, Ferran’s creativity, Joan Bosch’s passion for the sea, and Quique’s playful, creative, and flavorful style all influenced me. But Joan and Jordi truly shaped my path. They made me realize that cooking is not just a trade, it’s a way of life, one that you must learn to carry and enjoy. It’s complex, challenging, but beautiful.
I’ve always said there were so many restaurants in the world to see and learn from, so why go back to the same one? And yet, I returned twice to El Celler de Can Roca (Three MICHELIN Stars, Green Star). I even proposed to my wife there. That place left a mark and gave me a philosophy that I now apply in my kitchen: tradition, flavor, technique, and family.
When you're bringing new chefs into your kitchen, are there any words or any philosophies that you try to drill into them?
Always: cooking is dreaming. Discipline, flavor, silence, technique, reflection, respect, product, these are words that every chef should have in their vocabulary and in their mind.
How does Le Chique reflect the kind of chef you have grown to become?
Le Chique was and still is my school. It taught me everything. It took a lot from me, and it gave me even more. I believe it forged a better human being than a chef, and that’s a harsh but valuable lesson to learn.
What Alejandro Villagrana, head chef, my right and left hand, my best friend, and the greatest culinary partner I could ask for, and I have built together is the result of 17 years of unwavering dedication and hard work. What we put on our tables is the result of our deep love for this craft and our unrelenting commitment to keep doing it better.
Thank you, Le Chique.
Do any of the chefs who came through your kitchen have restaurants now that you love to go to?
Many! Le Chique has always been, and continues to be, a place that welcomes incredible talent and great chefs who are now doing extraordinary things. It’s a source of pride to say they passed through our house.
There are so many that I wouldn’t want to leave anyone out. Seventeen years of welcoming talented and wonderful human beings—family. And if someone’s not mentioned, know it’s only because we can’t make this too long!
Filip Hanlo at Ate Amsterdam is perhaps the most interesting restaurant to visit in the city right now. Odin Rocha has a new project at Rosewood San Miguel de Allende. Guillermo Chávez, who, after a great run with Quique Dacosta, launched a new dream in the Basque Country. I can’t wait to visit. Luis Quiroz’s concepts at the new Waldorf Astoria (One MICHELIN Key) in Riviera Maya are a testament to his talent. He is a fantastic chef.
And all the surprises many of our chefs bring to our own projects, like Daniel Zum, who, after 15 years, took off to become head chef for our beloved Luis Andoni at his venture in Hotel Xcaret. I know they will all succeed because they understand that cooking is dreaming. What a pride!
Hero image: AZS / Jonatán Gómez Luna
