Inside the Kitchen: Seven Questions with Sebastián Rosado Rivera

Rice and beans with pernil or roast chicken, for sure. But also, as a kid, I used to say that if I ever got stuck on an island, I would be fine with just an orange tree. I love orange juice.

I went to Seattle once while I was in my early studies and visited a farm that allowed us to pick our own vegetables. It's important to note that, other than native Puerto Rican vegetables, I had never picked any vegetables in the U.S. So I picked up what I thought was a mundane red radish from the soil, wiped the dirt off it, and took a bite. It was so tender and juicy that it dripped, truly amazing. This was the exact moment my entire perception of what the potential of properly grown and sourced product really meant.

To me, it means offering the best ingredients that are not found at every casual restaurant. Precision and technique are at the helm, along with cleanliness and extreme attention to detail. Yet a fine dining experience should still be a continuation of a story or tradition that is easily translatable to the person at the table.

My ambitions are never set in stone, but I like to entertain the idea of overseeing 2-3 restaurants, one being fine dining, one casual, and a food truck, with other small endeavors in between, all with the idea of focusing on teaching and coaching properly so that these would stay with the future generations of great chefs that go through my kitchens.

 

Guy Savoy, French Laundry, Pujol, Addison, Paul Bocuse, to name a few. This is an unfair question, as I could never put down a complete list or put them in any particular order. There are so many.

Honest food. At the end of a meal, your body and mind need to feel happy to have eaten what you ate. No need for bells and whistles if it doesn't make sense. Everything needs to have a meaning and be treated with the respect of something that took months or years to grow for something you will physically enjoy for a few minutes, but hopefully a long time in memory.

 

Ramen. Anywhere I go, I will seek out ramen joints, as it's my go-to comfort food (other than my rice and beans).