Elia Aboumrad (born in

Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley o ...

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

) is a

Mexican Mexican may refer to: Mexico and its culture *Being related to, from, or connected to the country of Mexico, in North America ** People *** Mexicans, inhabitants of the country Mexico and their descendants *** Mexica, ancient indigenous people ...

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 ...

and former ''

Top Chef ''Top Chef'' is an American reality competition television series which premiered on Bravo on March 8, 2006. The show features chefs competing against each other in culinary challenges. The contestants are judged by a panel of professional chef ...

'' contestant.

Biography

Aboumrad studied at Ecole Lenôtre. After earning

Le Cordon Bleu Le Cordon Bleu (French for " The Blue Ribbon") is an international network of hospitality and culinary schools teaching French ''haute cuisine''. Its educational focuses are hospitality management, culinary arts, and gastronomy. The instituti ...

's 'Grand Diplôme', Aboumrad went on to work under

Joël Robuchon Joël Robuchon (, 7 April 1945 – 6 August 2018) was a French chef and restaurateur. He was named "Chef of the Century" by the guide Gault Millau in 1989, and awarded the Meilleur Ouvrier de France (France's best worker) in cuisine in 1976. ...

in Paris. After several years of training and service, she became his first female Sous Chef. She then moved to Las Vegas to open his restaurants at the MGM Grand Hotel. Later, she was recruited as executive chef of The Café at The Hotel at Mandalay Bay. The Hotel garnered its fourth AAA Diamond under her regime. Aboumrad appeared on

reality TV Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring unfamiliar people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 19 ...

show ''

'' on

Bravo Bravo(s) or The Bravo(s) may refer to: Arts and entertainment Music Groups and labels *Bravo (band), a Russian rock band * Bravo (Spanish group), represented Spain at Eurovision 1984 *Bravo Music, an American concert band music publishing company ...

during its second season and was one of the final four contestants when she was eliminated from the competition. In 2009, she was awarded the internationally recognized 'Universal Excellency Award' for her dedication to the culinary arts. Aboumrad also competed as a contestant on '' Top Chef: All Stars'' in 2010, but she was eliminated in the first episode. In September 2012, Aboumrad and Uyen Nguyen opened GORGE, a charcuterie house and wine bar, on the famous Sunset Strip in West Hollywood, California.

Personal life

Aboumrad is Mexican and of Lebanese heritage

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Aboumrad, Elia Living people Women chefs Mexican people of Lebanese descent Top Chef contestants Chefs from Mexico City Year of birth missing (living people) École Lenôtre alumni