Book José Andrés

José Andrés is a chef, restaurateur and humanitarian with Spanish and American roots whose influence reaches from fine dining to disaster relief. He arrived in New York at 21 to cook in Midtown, and in 1993 he took over the kitchen at Jaleo, a then-new Washington, D.C. tapas spot, a move that helped popularize small plates dining across America. He went on to help open Café Atlántico, Zaytinya and Oyamel, and his own concepts include Minibar, China Poblano and China Chilcano. His cooking has earned several James Beard Awards. Andrés founded World Central Kitchen, the nonprofit that feeds people in the wake of natural disasters, and that work brought him the 2015 National Humanities Medal, presented at the White House in 2016. He also teaches at George Washington University, where he started its Global Food Institute. His many honors include the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2025, the Princess of Asturias Award for Concord in 2021, the Basque Culinary World Prize in 2020, Spain's Gold Medal of Merit in the Fine Arts in 2017 and a place on the Time 100 in 2018. Andrés speaks with passion about food, leadership and serving people in crisis.