🔥Chef Spotlight: José Alvarez🔥 has spent over two decades cooking at the highest level — from Michelin-starred kitchens in New York City to the farms and fishing docks of Puerto Rico.

As Executive Chef of Andaluz at ALMA San Juan, he brings to Old San Juan a career defined by relentless curiosity, technical precision, and a deep personal connection to the island he calls home. Trained at the French Culinary Institute in New York City and shaped by early studies at the Escuela de Artes Plásticas de San Juan, Chef Alvarez built his foundation in some of the most demanding and celebrated kitchens in the world. He worked alongside Wylie Dufresne at Alder, deepening his command of avant-garde technique, and with Alex Stupak at Empellón Cocina, immersing himself in the craft and complexity of modern Mexican cuisine. At Union Square Café under Chef Carmen Quagliata, he rose from line cook to sous chef grounding his culinary philosophy in farm-driven cooking and the discipline of genuine hospitality. His tenure as Chef de Cuisine at Claro in Brooklyn earned the restaurant a Michelin Star, affirming both his creative vision and his capacity to execute at the highest standard. Back in Puerto Rico, Chef Alvarez served as Executive Sous Chef at the Condado Vanderbilt Hotel before taking the helm at Andaluz. There, he has built something more personal a culinary identity rooted in the dialogue between Spanish tradition and Puerto Rican terroir. Not fusion. Evolution. His menus are constructed around the island's farmers, fishermen, and seasons, with sourcing partnerships spanning local farms, artisan producers, and daily-catch seafood from Puerto Rico's own waters. His cooking is technically precise, culturally honest, and visually intentional every dish a reflection of the training, the travels, and the island that made him. #sanseatlanta #festivals #puertorico