Colombian chef, Rafael Suarez, arrived to Miami from Bogota, Colombia to present some of his favorite dishes during his one week official and exclusive visit as guest chef at the InterContinental’s Armillary Grill Restaurant, where he will prepare delectable specialties from various regions of Colombia.
 The event will take place during the week of July 15th and finalize with a decadent Sunday brunch on July 21st in honor of Colombia’s Independence Day celebration.
 Chef Suarez has over 13 years of experience in the hospitality industry and is currently the Executive Chef at JW Marriott in Bogota, Colombia.Â
 Soul of Miami scooped up an interview with the gastronomical expert to learn more about his scrumptious creations.
 The interview is in its original language below.
2013 – (Doral, Florida) – Interview:
Chef Rafael Suarez, it’s a pleasure meeting you. Tell us a little bit about the menu and some of the dishes we can expect to find during the event, which will be offered as a buffet during the week, a dinner on Saturday and a brunch on Sunday.
The menu is typical, encompassing the vast majority of dishes throughout Colombia. It will be served as a buffet every night, Saturday will be a set menu served with the same concept of touring much of the cuisine throughout Colombia, and for brunch, a typical breakfast serving bread soup, beans, broth and Colombian-style stew.
What inspired you to create this menu specifically?
The wide range of products from Colombia, and the fact that many Colombians live in Miami, which is the reason why the cuisine is known but not varied.
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What Colombian traditions are incorporated in the menu?
Pork from Tolima, Stew from Huila, Stew from the coast, fish from Tumaco and other homemade-style dishes.
What impression do you wish to leave on those who will be trying your creations? And what do you expect your guests to learn about your customs and Colombian regional cuisine?
I want them to be gastronomically satisfied, leaving the restaurant happy and filled with memories and new flavors. They can learn to combine the products that are available in the local Miami markets in their everyday cooking, as everything that I am using is from here, I have not brought anything from Colombia.
I know you use a healthy approach and typical fresh ingredients from various regions of Colombia, and I know, too, that you specialize in kosher food. Is there any reason why kosher food has caught your attention?
The freshness of fruits and vegetables led me to investigate the subject of kosher cooking mainly for the great deal of demand there is for kosher meals. Additionally, the market is growing in Colombia and very few options are offered to patrons, even though oftentimes they look for typical dishes from their regions, at JW Marriott in Bogota we have been able to achieve a great deal of satisfaction from our guests with our Colombian cuisine where we combine flavors that have allowed us to be leaders in the market already for two years.
Have you been able to incorporate, in some way, the concept kosher food into some of the dishes of your recent culinary creation?
Yes, the secret is in the care and love that is placed into preparing the dishes, one speaks of kosher and some may see it as something terrible, Rabbi Kitchen Cleaning Supervisor!! But knowing and applying all this in real life is simple. It has a lot to do with care, food hygiene and health.
Having worked for large international hotel chains, do you think that this may have influenced you to create new and exciting culinary combinations with flavors and ingredients from other countries?
One always worries about having a special international menu, but when I travel I do not want to eat what I eat every day. I want to try new flavors so I ventured to create dishes where the flavor is branded COLOMBIA, but where the presentation and components are of the highest standard, with rich flavor, color and, above all, healthy. In Colombia we really like fatty meals but that we are changing that.
Would you say that this has made you deviate, in a good way, from your Colombian traditions to create a more extensive menu?
It’s not so much that I deviate, is more about changing service concepts without changing the history of a dish, i.e. I cannot make an egg arepa with corn flour and cooked quail egg, I do it with corn flour, whole egg but I incorporate shrimp, fish, turkey, chicken to make it lighter but just as rich.
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Thank you very much again for your time. It’s a pleasure to meet you.
Spanish Version
Chef Rafael Suarez, es un placer, para mÃ, poder hacerle esta entrevista: Cuéntenos un poquito acerca del menú y sobre algunos de los platos que podemos esperar encontrar durante el evento, que se ofrecerá en el buffet de la semana, la cena del sábado y el brunch del domingo.
El menú será tÃpico recorriendo la gran mayorÃa de cocinas de Colombia, bufete todas las noches, el sábado será un menú servido con la misma temática de recorrer gran parte de la gastronomÃa Colombiana, y en el brunch, desayuno tÃpico con calentado, sopa de pan, frijoles, caldo y asado estilo colombiano.
¿Qué lo inspiró a crear este menú especÃficamente?
La gran oferta de productos de Colombia, y el hecho de que en Miami viven varios colombianos por lo que la gastronomÃa es conocida pero no variada.
¿Qué tradiciones colombianas ha incorporado en el menú?
Lechona del Tolima, Asado Huilense del Huila, Sancocho Trifásico de la costa, Tapado de pescado del Tumaco y otras muy caseras.
¿Qué impresión espera que se lleve la gente de sus creaciones? Y, ¿Qué espera que aprendan sus comensales acerca de las costumbres y de la cocina regional colombiana?
Que salgan satisfechos gastronómicamente del restaurante y con una felicidad llena de recuerdos y nuevos sabores, y que ellos aprendan a conjugar los productos que se consiguen en los mercados de Miami en su cocina diaria ya que todo es de allá, yo no llevo nada de Colombia.
Sé que utiliza un enfoque saludable con ingredientes frescos y tÃpicos de varias regiones de Colombia, y sé, también, que se especializa en comida kosher. ¿Hay alguna razón por la cual la comida kosher le ha llamado la atención?
Si la frescura de las frutas y vegetales me llevó a indagar el tema kosher por la gran carta que ellos solicitan. Adicionalmente el mercado está creciendo en Colombia y las opciones son muy pocas para ellos, aunque son regionalistas y solo buscan cocina de sus regiones, hemos logrado en JW Marriott Bogotá que con la cocina Colombiana se encuentren muy contentos, y combinamos sabores que han permitido ser lÃderes en el mercado ya por dos años.
¿Ha podido, de alguna manera, incorporar el concepto kosher para preparar algunos de los platos que forma parte de su creación gastronómica?
Si. El tema está en el cuidado y en el amor que se coloca a las preparaciones. Uno habla de kosher y ve eso como algo terrible, Rabino Supervisor Limpieza de cocinas!!!! Pero ya conociendo y aplicando todo en la vida real, es sencillo y solo es de mucho cuidado, mucha higiene y mucho tema de salud.
Habiendo trabajado para grandes cadenas internacionales de hoteles, ¿cree usted que esto le haya influenciado a crear nuevas e interesantes combinaciones gastronómicas con sabores e ingredientes de otros paÃses?
Me colaboro demasiado al ver que siempre uno se preocupa por tener una carta o un menú especial para ellos INTERNACIONAL. Pero yo cuando viajo no quiero comer lo que como todos los dÃas, quiero probar nuevos sabores; por eso me arriesgué a crear platos donde el sabor es marcado COLOMBIA pero su presentación y componentes son de cocina de alto nivel con sabor, color y sobretodo saludable. En Colombia nos gusta mucho la comida rica en grasa pero esto lo estamos cambiando.
 ¿Le ha hecho esto desviarse, de buena forma, de sus raÃces tradicionales colombianas para crear un menú más extenso y universal?
 No es tanto desviarme, es cambiar conceptos de servicio sin ir a cambiar la historia de un plato. Es decir no puedo hacer una arepa de huevo con harina de choclo y huevo de codorniz cocido, la hago con harina de maÃz y huevo entero, pero le incorporamos camarones, pescado, pavo y pollo para que sea más liviana pero igual de rica.
 Muchas gracias, nuevamente, por su tiempo. Es un placer conocerlo.
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