Pictured: Chorizo Frisse & Huitlecoche Pomme Frite, Classic Cassis Margarita with Milagros Tequila.

In some places – and at Crema – you’re celebrating Cinco de Mayo for five days. But they don’t do that in Mexico. Why is the holiday a bigger deal here? Well this year it falls on a Monday and we really wanted to focus on our food and tequila pairings. A huge one day party wouldn’t allow us to do that. So we thought that we should spread it out and make our dishes the best they can be. Milagro was kind enough to supply the tequila, which we are making all these infusions from. One of them I call the tequila au poivre. It’s a black pepper infused tequila that I am going to pair with my version of frisee aux lardoons salad; I am using Mexican chorizo of course.

How does the food from Monterey (where you’re from) differ from Puebla (where Cinco de Mayo originated)? Well in Monterey the food is richer and revolves more around meat, and in Puebla it is more homey and mole driven. I do love the moles in Puebla.

You seem to have a thing for tasting menus, like the New Year’s Eve menu inspired by Frida Kahlo. What’s that about? Well as a chef you always try to explore new things . A lot of people didn’t realize that Kahlo was a great cook. I wanted to celebrate that, and I also like to look to new directions and expand perceptions of what Mexican food is like. And plus it’s all about the journey and finding new ways of being creative.

What’s the story behind your worst kitchen scar? I actually had to get ten stitches at my old restaurant going into the basement to do inventory. The trap door smashed me in the forehead. You can say inventory almost killed me!

What’s the best compliment you’ve received as a chef? When people come visit me several times in one week and say they have never tasted Mexican food like this, I am very humbled by that.