Meet Lorena
One of the country’s leading Latina chefs, Lorena Garcia was born and raised in Venezuela, and credits her many gatherings spent entertaining family and friends as her career inspiration. “Bringing loved ones together to enjoy wonderful food is something that has always fulfilled me.” Lorena completed her law studies in Santa Maria University in Caracas and moved to the United States to complete her Associate Degree in Paralegal Studies. Making her dream to become a chef a reality, Lorena traded her law papers for a cutting board and chef’s knife to study culinary arts at Johnson & Wales University.
Inspired by her education and burgeoning creativity, Lorena set out on a world tour of countries known for great cuisine. She worked as an apprentice chef in France, Italy, Japan, Korea, Thailand, and China and worked in famed restaurants alongside world-renowned chefs such as Pascal Audin. Her next step was to establish Food Café, and later Elements Tierra, two successful restaurants in Miami’s Design District that featured menus defined by an eclectic blend of Latin and Asian-inspired dishes that were recently sold in 2008.
Full Biography Biografía En Español
"My vision is to not only define food and cooking as an art, but to go back to the roots of cooking and showcase the process through a more simplistic, ethereal approach as an expression of life and living."
- Lorena Garcia