Carmen González is a professional

chef A chef is a trained professional cook and tradesman who is proficient in all aspects of food preparation, often focusing on a particular cuisine. The word "chef" is derived from the term ''chef de cuisine'' (), the director or head of a kitche ...

restaurateur A restaurateur is a person who opens and runs restaurants professionally. Although over time the term has come to describe any person who owns a restaurant, traditionally it refers to a highly skilled professional who is proficient in all aspec ...

, and media personality. González grew up in the Puerto Rican coastal town of Aguadilla before moving on to the New York Restaurant School to pursue a culinary career. She then trained under Chef Barry Wine at ''

The Quilted Giraffe The Quilted Giraffe was a nouvelle cuisine fine dining establishment in Midtown Manhattan in New York City. The restaurant, founded by Barry Wine and his now ex-wife Susan, was first opened in New Paltz, New York, in 1975 and moved to 50th Street ...

'' in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

before opening her own restaurant, ''Carmen the Restaurant'' in

Coral Gables, Florida Coral Gables, officially City of Coral Gables, is a city in Miami-Dade County, Florida. The city is located southwest of Downtown Miami. As of the 2020 U.S. census, it had a population of 49,248. Coral Gables is known globally as home to the ...

Top Chef Masters

In the second season of Top Chef Masters (March 2010), González competed against 21 other renowned and established chefs for the coveted title of "Top Chef Master" and a prize to the charity of their choice. In the season premiere, Chef Carmen found herself in a situation that almost forced her to forfeit the competition. However, Chef Carmen managed to improvise on the bad luck and ended up earning the top score, qualifying for the Finals Round. Chef Carmen's charity of choice is the ASPCA

Restaurants

* Carmen the Restaurant,

. * Carmen at the Danforth,

Portland Portland most commonly refers to: * Portland, Oregon, the largest city in the state of Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States * Portland, Maine, the largest city in the state of Maine, in the New England region of the northeas ...

Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and north ...

Accolades

*April 30 The Miami Dade Count Office of the Mayor: Chef Carmen's Day *2008 Boys Town Club: NY Tenacious Women Award *2004 Rising Star: Star Chefs *2003 Ocean Drive: 8 Best Chefs *1999 The House of Representatives: Washington DC: Unsung Heroines of Florida *1996 **Florida Governor Lawton Chiles: Florida Finest Award **National Coalition of Hispanic American Women: Woman of the Year 1996 *1995 South Florida Magazine: Up and Comers of South Florida Award

Carmen the Restaurant Reviews

*"America's Top Restaurants" book, 2004, 2005, 2006 Zagat *"Four Diamond Award, 2004, 2005, 2006" AAA *"One of the 50 Best Hispanic Restaurants 2004, 2005, 2006" Hispanic Magazine *"Award of Excellence 2004, 2005, 2006" Wine Spectator *"Best Puerto Rican Food 2005" Miami New Times *"Best Hamburger 2005" Miami New Times *"Best New Restaurant 2004" Miami New Times *"One of the Best New Restaurants in America 2003" Esquire Magazine *"State's "Best New Restaurants" Florida Trend

References

External links

Official Homepage
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gonzalez, Carmen Living people Top Chef contestants Puerto Rican chefs People from Aguadilla, Puerto Rico American women chefs Year of birth missing (living people)