As far as weeks go, it has been a great one for Spanish chef and restaurateur José Andrés. He first garnered major positive press when he announced that he would no longer open a restaurant within the forthcoming Trump Hotel in Washington, DC. Many called for the chef to sever ties with controversial presidential candidate Donald Trump after he made offensive comments about Mexican immigrants.
Eater DC writes that Andrés cited Trump's words as the reason for his decision, adding that Trump's stance makes it "impossible" for him to continue with the restaurant. Nearly half of Andrés team is Hispanic, and he himself is a proud immigrant who gained citizenship in 2013.
Though plans for one restaurant have be halted, the chef has another major opening in the works. According to Eater NY, Andrés will open an outpost of his modern Spanish restaurant The Bazaar in New York City within the upcoming SLS hotel. The hotel will also have a bar called SB bar and a rooftop lounge which the chef will likely oversee.
In addition to expanding his business, Andrés has been called a "food hero." The honor was bestowed upon him by Danielle Nierenberg, the president and founder of nonprofit Food Tank, for his work towards building a better food system.
48 food heroes: We can change the food system http://t.co/hBWdOT0KuO @chefjoseandres @TossTheStone @USDA_ERS @ddimick pic.twitter.com/ozPclGlm80
— Danielle Nierenberg (@DaniNierenberg) July 5, 2015
And if accolades weren't enough, Andrés managed to eat quite well this week. Boston-based chef Ming Tsai (Blue Ginger) spent some quality time with Andrés and even whipped up a meal for him on the Fourth of July.
like dreaming having @SimplyMingTV @chefmingtsai in your kitchen...oh yeah! pic.twitter.com/2NtqbagBi0
— José Andrés (@chefjoseandres) July 4, 2015