Ricardo Zarate

Expert Interview: Ricardo Zarate

Chef, Mo-Chica and Picca Restaurant

What were your favorite foods growing up?
I have always loved ceviche.

When did you decide you wanted to be a chef?
I think when I was 14 years old. I have cooked all my life, but at 14 when was I started taking classes.

Where and when did your career in food begin? Professionally, in London in 1994. As an amateur, in Lima in 1990.

If you didn't become a chef, what would you be? Professor of History. I love history!

Who/what has shaped your cooking the most over the years?
A chef from who I worked in London, Mark Gregory. I made Japanese food. I like the cleanness with what they work.

How would you describe your cuisine?
Simple, I like simplicity in the food. I do not like to play with a lot of flavors.

What influences your cooking style and particularly the menu at your restaurant?
Traditional Peruvian food with Japanese influence/techniques.

What is your favorite secret ingredient?
Honey as it adds a unique taste to dishes and accentuates flavors. Also, the aji Amarillo.

What is the one rule or value you try to instill in all of your staff?
1. Cleanliness 2. Order 3. Discipline.

What is your beverage of choice?
Pisco.

What are some recent dining and culinary trends you have been observing?
Molecular food and market-driving food. I like molecular food.

When you are not eating at your own restaurant, where are you eating?
Anywhere, but my favorite food is Japanese.

Which foreign country inspires your style most? Peru and Japan.

What was the most spectacular meal you have ever had?
I have had many spectacular meals, but it is very hard to answer because when I eat, I do not judge. I always focus on the best part.

What is your best cooking tip for a home enthusiast? Cook with love, with your heart and of course, use honey!

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Expert Profile

With equal amounts of passion and creativity, Chef Ricardo crafts his inspired cuisine using market-fresh ingredients and a vast knowledge of food. From the defining kitchen of Zarate's childhood home in Lima, Peru, this chef has been creating sublime, memorable meals for serious food lovers for more than 15 years.

Zarate's success can be traced to his modest roots. As one of 13 siblings, all of the children were expected to help in preparing the family meals. Lima, having been a center for trade for centuries, was a melting pot for all types of cuisines and food products and young Zarate began experimenting at a young age. At the age of 17, he realized his love of history could be combined with his passion for cooking. Zarate applied and was accepted to the city's top private culinary school, the Institute of the Americas, where he received his three-year certificate.

Zarate worked in London for 12 years where he held various positions with top restaurants and hotels including position at Zuma, the top Japanese restaurant in London, and as Chef du Partie at One Aldwych.

Zarate moved to Los Angeles and with a very creative vision, opened Mo-Chica in the summer of 2009. Named for the language of a pre-Incan civilization, the restaurant, located in a small food court near USC, has been a hit since the day it opened. Mo-Chica was voted the Best New Restaurant in Los Angeles in 2009 and has recently been voted the 4th Best Restaurant in Los Angeles in 2010. Confident with his food and his concept, Chef Ricardo Zarate is now ready to challenge himself and to open his first real size restaurant in Los Angeles.

In August 2010, Zarate opened his own pop-up concept called Test Kitchen. He invited celebrity chefs to cook with him and make this restaurant the hottest place in the city to discover new food. Renowned chefs that delighted some of the most exquisite palates at Test Kitchen included Walter Manske, Michael Voltaggio and John Rivera Sedlar.

In March 2011, Zarate will open Picca Restaurant in the heart of Los Angeles and less than 2 months later he will open Mochica on 7th street in Downtown Los Angeles.