SAN ANTONIO — José Andrés—chef, author, humanitarian and founder of the World Central Kitchen nonprofit—delivered a keynote session at Hospitality Show 2024 in San Antonio, entitled “Changing the World Through the Power of Food.” Freelance food writer April Fulton, who is also the host of NPR’s food blog, the Salt, conducted the interview.
Andrés, who was the 2018 recipient of the James Beard Award for Humanitarian of the Year, discussed his new luxury hotel, the Bazaar House, set to open in Washington, D.C. in 2027, along with his nonprofit work and philosophies on life and charitable work and anecdotes.
Background and Forthcoming Hotel Project
Andrés compared his profession as a chef to the hospitality business, observing, “You are only as good as the last meal you cooked. You’re only as good as the last experience you were able to give a person. The guest experience is the reason we’re in business.”
When Andrés came to Washington, D.C. in 1993, he opened his first restaurant, a tapas restaurant called Jaleo. Since that time, via his restaurant group, Andrés has opened numerous restaurants in a number of hotels, including a forthcoming hotel and restaurant in the Georgetown neighborhood of D.C. called the Bazaar. “For me to think that I will have a place with 67 rooms, that I can welcome people, not only to my restaurant, but I can welcome people and I can give them a place to refuel themselves—it is just very magical,” he said.
To him, food is a love language. Though he did not invent the phrase, “Tell me what you eat and I’ll tell you who you are,” he does believe that this is a message that means, “I’m going to take care of you and I’m going to show you who I am through my food.”
Humanitarian Work
Andrés talked also about his founding of World Central Kitchen almost 15 years ago following a devastating earthquake in Haiti. “I went there to learn. I would not even say, to do my MBA,” he said. “I went there to learn, like kindergarten, like Montessori learning. This is where I realized that big problems have very simple solutions." He also shared his experiences in the midst of Hurricane Katrina, feeding scores of people who had been evacuated to the Superdome in New Orleans.
In the hospitality and restaurant business, as in life, and of course in disaster relief, he alluded to the need to be adaptable, as life does not always go the way you plan. “One thing, as a way for you to come up with good ideas and new ideas, and for you to shine, and for you to come with a solution to the problems you're facing all of a sudden, embracing that complexity is putting you ahead of everybody else, because you put the plans away and you embrace the complexity, and you began adapting. And you adapt by the hour, by the minute, by the second,” he said.
He noted that his disaster relief efforts are always a collaborative effort, from those on the ground who pitch in to help to the local hotels who provide housing and other support in the middle of a chaotic situation.
Challenges in the Industry
As a seasoned restauranteur, Andrés said that there are challenges in the restaurant industry, from high food prices to the cost of rent and labor. “We can be talking about concept companies, the cost of food, but at the end, what makes things happen are people. Nothing happens without people. And for me, the most important thing and consequential thing we need to do is to make sure that the people who feed America and feed the world are able to feed themselves,” he said.
Future Plans
Andrés concluded his remarks by talking about the things in life that matter most to him, besides cooking, food and humanitarian efforts: his family, his love of travel, exploring new restaurants and hotels and meeting the local owners. He said that he feels "blessed" that he came to America, which opened many doors and opportunities for him. He’s acknowledged he’s had success but framed it by saying, “Success is going from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm. It’s good times and not so good times. In a way, the best of life starts at the end of your comfort zone.”
As a humanitarian who has been in the midst of some of the worst moments of people’s lives, Andrés believes that no matter someone’s race, religion or politics, people are good, and that they come together in times of crisis. “We are all here to make each other better,” he said.