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On the day Michelin announced it was awarding Chef José Andrés' Washington, D.C., restaurant Minibar two stars for the second year in a row, the renowned chef was grateful - but he had other things on his mind.
In fact, he missed the call from Michelin altogether on Oct. 17 because he was overseeing the transportation of huge, steaming vats of chicken and rice to the people of Puerto Rico, who had been without access to hot food for nearly a month, since Hurricane Maria hit land. The day, it turned out, held significance for another reason: It marked the millionth meal served by Chef Andrés and his team of tireless, dedicated chefs at his World Central Kitchen nonprofit.
For Chef Andrés, heading to Puerto Rico in the aftermath of the storm wasn't a choice. It was a calling. His ties there run deep. As he recounts in his new book, "We Fed an Island: The True Story of Rebuilding Puerto Rico, One Meal at a Time," he first sailed to San Juan as a young man in the Spanish navy, returning years later as a young chef still honing his trade. So, when devastation struck in September 2017, his immediate thought was: "How could I not be here?"
It wasn't the first time Chef Andrés sprang into action after a natural disaster. He founded World Central Kitchen, a network of chefs dedicated to alleviating hunger and poverty in times of crisis, in the aftermath of Haiti's massive 2010 earthquake.
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"I went to the island to help with emergency relief efforts," Chef Andrés recalls of the earthquake. "It was clear that serving meals for a few weeks would not contribute to the long-term sustainability of Haiti, so we established culinary development programs: kitchens with clean cook stoves in schools, a new bakery and fish restaurant attached to an orphanage, a new cooking school."
Since then, World Central Kitchen has also been of vital service in the wakes of Texas' Hurricane Harvey, New York's Hurricane Sandy and the floods in Peru.
So, it's no surprise that, when Hurricane Maria struck, Chef Andrés was on one of the first flights available.
"I felt a sense of urgency to contribute in whatever way I could," he explains. "I wanted to make a small difference - to help out in some way. I am a cook, and we cooks are people of action. We don't just wait to do what we're told. We act."
At first, Chef Andrés and his team worked out of a small mobile kitchen, ladling out pots of stew for people in the street. From there, they acquired more trucks, driving trays of food to hospitals and local organizations in need. They used the power of the press and social media to raise awareness, garner support and expand operations. Before long, they had commandeered the kitchen at El Choli, the biggest indoor arena in Puerto Rico, which came equipped with a sizeable kitchen. Access to power, food supplies and even gasoline was a daily battle, but, by their third day in the event space, they were serving more than 100,000 meals a day.
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For Chef Andrés, the goal was more than just feeding people. It was restoring a sense of hope.
"A plate of food is much more than food," he writes. "It sends a message that someone far away cares for you; that you are not on your own. It's a message from every man and woman on my team saying that we care, that we haven't forgotten, and that allows those in despair to have a little more patience, for one more day."
And while it has been reported that World Central Kitchen ended up serving more meals than FEMA and the Red Cross, Chef Andrés is quick to insist it was never a competition. Instead of being slowed down by governmental red tape, "we got to work," he says.
"We showed up every day at the same distribution points so people knew they could always get a hot meal from us. And we were able to work with local suppliers and support their businesses through a challenging time. It was these kinds of common sense and pragmatic solutions that helped us go from one kitchen to dozens, making thousands of meals a day throughout the island."
Gradually, as the local food industry rebuilt, Chef Andrés and his team pulled back their efforts.
"We will always provide meals until we are no longer needed," he explains. "In Puerto Rico, we reached a certain point where the restaurants, food trucks and suppliers were mostly back to being fully operational - and it's very important that we don't take business away when there isn't the need."
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Looking toward the future, World Central Kitchen's new focus is making the island more self-sustaining.
"Even before the hurricane, Puerto Rico imported about 85 percent of its food," Chef Andrés notes. "This isn't good for a healthy and resilient economy."
To bolster local food production, his team is establishing a farm cooperative and training center as well as providing grants to local produce growers and fishermen - all in the name of building sustainability on the island.
These days, Chef Andrés, 49, has more time to spend with his wife and family in their home of Bethesda, Maryland. Yet, he still makes regular trips back to Puerto Rico to check on the island's progress; he also visits other areas where World Central Kitchen is providing aid, like Guatemala, where a volcano recently erupted, and, in the wake of recent wildfires, Southern California.
He's also free to visit his 31 award-winning restaurants, including The Bazaar by José Andrés in Miami Beach and Bazaar Mar by José Andrés in Miami.
"South Florida is so culturally diverse and has such a rich Latin culinary tradition," he says. "The flavors of the area are so vibrant and fresh. I love the sunshine, the sea, the good weather. And, of course, the seafood is amazing. I could eat fish and shellfish all the time and never get bored."
His affinity for the Sunshine State goes back to his Spanish heritage, he explains: "There is deep history between Florida and my native Spain. The first Europeans to arrive were Spanish, and they set up governorship in the 16th century. The first governor was actually from my home region of Asturias!"
Growing up in Spain, some of Chef Andrés' earliest childhood memories were of his parents cooking for him and his brothers. With money tight, nothing went to waste. At the end of every month, meals were resourcefully put together from whatever was left in the pantry.
"These meals inspired me to cook, being both pragmatic and creative in the kitchen, figuring out how to feed many mouths with what you have on hand," he notes.
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He first arrived in the United States with the Spanish navy, and he was up in the mast as his ship passed under New York's Verrazano Bridge.
"I saw the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, American flags everywhere," he recalls. "I started to understand what America stood for - liberty, freedom, hope - and it made a huge impact on me."
Starting with his first job at El Dorado Petit in Manhattan, he built his reputation as a leading chef with innovative Spanish cuisine. Today, he holds international acclaim as a chef; author; educator; television personality; advocate; and owner of the restaurant company ThinkFoodGroup. He has been named one of Time's 100 Most Influential People twice and was dubbed the 2018 Humanitarian of the Year by the James Beard Foundation.
He has been celebrated with honors and awards from universities, culinary organizations and President Barack Obama, but one of his proudest moments occurred in 2013, when Chef Andrés and his wife, Patricia, achieved their U.S. citizenships.
Becoming an American citizen, he says, was one of the happiest days of his life: "My three American-born daughters were able to watch as my wife and I said our oaths. The officiant told us how important it was to bring the best of ourselves, our paths, our history, to weave our Spanish heritage into America's DNA. We were expected to become active citizens, responsible for improving America ... and keeping America a great place for all to live."
It's a duty he takes seriously, which is why he wrote the new book, he says: "What we learned in Puerto Rico was simple: That a warm plate of food, prepared by the community, can do so much more than provide calories. It can fill you with hope."
He surmises: "Deep down, I am a storyteller. I wanted to tell the story of what happened in Puerto Rico and to share the most important message of all: Food has the power to change the world." O
