Elmer brings a world of experience to the Teaching Kitchen, having honed his skills at some of the finest restaurants in North and South America, from Peruvian fine dining to top-notch sushi in Texas.
“I had no formal training, so I started at the very bottom,” Elmer said. He began his first job at Astrid y Gastón’s fine dining location in Venezuela. “I always wanted to cook, so I traveled there and got a job doing everything from prepping vegetables to doing dishes and moved up to working on the line.”
Moving on to Austin, Texas, Elmer worked his way into earning a sushi chef role at Uchi and then was a chef at the Michelin-starred Barley Swine.
He worked with Rene Redzepi at Noma’s popup in Tulum, Mexico, and spent a year at the award-winning Central in Lima, Peru. “After that, I traveled throughout Peru, offering to work at any little restaurant where I ate and enjoyed the food. It’s like Mexico, each region has its own style and flavor.”
He continued to master techniques at fine dining restaurants in the US and Mexico, then started working at more mom and pop shops. “I began to feel that fine dining is overrated, even though my whole career was about it. In my heart and soul, I’m here for the community, cooking for people, sharing my food. I like the connection created between making food and all the people enjoying it.”
While helping friends open concepts in Austin, he was hit by a car, and his cooking career came to a stop. “It really took me out for a while,” Elmer said, and he still deals with some of the aftereffects.
While recovering, Elmer got into running and then moved into photographing his runner friends. His work was picked up by Runner magazine, where he became a creative director and expanded his skills into marketing.
When his partner Elizabeth, a water scientist, got a position in Fort Collins, he made the move with her and started cooking and teaching here at Ginger and Baker.
“I would really love to teach Latin classes, it’s where my heart is,” Elmer said. He’s looking forward to helping develop classes on Peruvian cooking and might teach a little sushi too. He also plans to build on his photography and marketing background.
When not working, Elmer is out cycling, trail running, hiking in nature and spending time with his partner and their dogs.
His favorite pie? “Pumpkin! It’s an early childhood memory.”
