Today we’d like to introduce you to Luis Avila.
Luis, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
My name is Luis Avila and I am a formerly undocumented immigrant who came to the United States at the age of 4. The purpose of my family’s move to the United States was the same as everyone else’s, to find opportunity. We were running away from a place where opportunity seemed to be a inaccessible commodity vs. something that should just be given. Little did we know, coming to the United States as an immigrant seemed almost parallel in terms of accessing opportunity. While born in Morelia, Michoacan, Mexico, I was raised on the cultural and rich streets of Oak Cliff, Dallas. While I was trying to find an identity, little did I know it was preparing for my future as a chef.
I graduated from the University of North Texas in May of 2019. While there, I studied many things and ended up with an integrative studies B.S. in Psychology, Media Arts and Communications. No certain direction. Now, having worked in everything from cosmetics and sports marketing, I realized the desk life was not for me. Finding real Mexican culture inside district lines of Denton or North Dallas is extremely difficult. I missed my Mom’s cooking and I miss being able to access my own culture. I began studying what Mexican gastronomy was and what it could look like. To me, I realized that Mexican gastronomy meant taking every learning, every word of mouth advice and every memory and painting the plate with food. For generations, food has been an act of love and historical culture. Tacos are still tacos. Salsa is still salsa and almost every Mexican food that has existed for generations still exists. I wanted to continue to work with my ancestors and family and even improve on what Mexican gastronomy and culinary arts looks like and what it could look like.
Now, here we are, present day. My name is Luis Avila and I have begun my own private chef business under my name. Customers can directly contact me through Instagram and request dishes or tacos or whatever they see that satisfies their cravings. I am still new to the world of culinary arts, but I am set out to introduce the world to the creativity and DNA of Mexican food. While looking for culinary schools abroad and finding a place to work during such a terrible and unfortunate pandemic. I will continue working on my food portfolio and menu and doing what I can to help the ones affected.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It has not been a smooth road whatsoever. My road has been plagued with accessibility issues. Being a former undocumented immigrant, my road was paved with uncertainty. “Was I going to have a future in something academic or one outside of it” “Even if my goals fall outside of college, does my status still negate me from being in spaces where I would be able to find my way to what I want to do?” As a person who also deals with ADD, I have never been able to be 100% attentive and perfect at everything I do. Even to this day, I don’t have the economic means to fix this issue. Cooking is the only thing that has put that behavior in check.
Please tell us about your business.
My business name is currently my IG handle which is @chefluisavi. I specialize in being a personal and private chef. People can contact me and describe an event or party that they are hosting and I will create a menu for the said event that they can make changes or request things through. I specialize in Mexican food but learning from amazing French and Italian chef’s I can make a plethora of different dishes. In my group of friends, I am known for my attachment to Mexican culture and my love for what I do.
What I am most proud of as a company is that I am a small business owner. I am proud of the fact that all that I make or prepare is made from home. Every dish and every aspect of my brand is built from the bottom up. The recipes that I have created come from my culture and the people I meet.
What sets me apart is that not only do I focus my recipes on natural ingredients but that I can make any recipe accessible to anyone. Whether it be an allergy or personal matter, everything that I make is available to any person.
Food shouldn’t be something you need to be anxious about. Food should be something that should not only connect people but something that should make you find a connection with yourself and the plate.
Is there a characteristic or quality that you feel is essential to success?
My culture is most important to my success. Nothing I do would be possible without the things I learned the women of color that had come before the ancestors that built the road to what we eat today and me. Be humble. Learning my place and not pretending to be something I am not is what has kept my feet on the ground and ready to do the best job that I can. My support system. No one has ever done anything great without a support system. This support system can be yourself as well. In my case, it is my family and honest friends that have helped me stay realistic and hopeful at the same time. Talking about humble, also just being very good. If you don’t think you are going to be something great. There is no point in doing it.
Contact Info:
- Address: 5060 Addison Cir. #3846 Addison, TX 75001
- Phone: 214-900-2504
- Email: luisgavila97@gmail.com
- Instagram: chefluisavi
- Twitter: LuisAvilaTX
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