{"id":27,"date":"2026-09-18T18:48:18","date_gmt":"2026-09-18T18:48:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sanjac.mycareerfocus.org\/fall-2026-volume-7-issue-3\/culinary-grad-named-james-beard-best-emerging-chef\/"},"modified":"2026-10-27T23:07:53","modified_gmt":"2026-10-27T23:07:53","slug":"culinary-grad-named-james-beard-best-emerging-chef","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sanjac.mycareerfocus.org\/fall-2026-volume-7-issue-3\/culinary-grad-named-james-beard-best-emerging-chef\/","title":{"rendered":"Culinary grad named James Beard Best Emerging Chef"},"content":{"rendered":"

Adrian Torres was eating breakfast with friends when his phone rang. On the other end was Chef Chris Shepherd from the Southern Smoke Foundation yelling.<\/span><\/p>\n

Torres had already seen his name on the list of nominees. Now, hearing Shepherd\u2019s voice, it became real.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe all cried and celebrated right there at the table,\u201d he said.<\/span><\/p>\n

That morning marked the beginning of a remarkable run. On March 31, the James Beard Foundation named Torres, a 2019 San Jacinto College graduate, one of five finalists for Best Emerging Chef, one of the most prestigious honors in American cuisine. In June, he won.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Portrait

Adrian Torres<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n

The James Beard Awards recognize exceptional talent and achievement in the culinary arts, hospitality, media, and the broader food system.<\/span><\/p>\n

Torres is the executive chef of Maximo, a West University restaurant that earned a Michelin Bib Gourmand designation less than a year after reopening in January 2025. The recognition caps a journey that began not with a celebrated culinary pedigree but with a closed door.<\/span><\/p>\n

At 17, Torres applied to private culinary schools with ambitions of becoming a pastry chef. But during an admissions meeting, the conversation turned to his immigration status as a recipient of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, and the enthusiasm on the other side of the table cooled.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt just stopped right there,\u201d he said.<\/span><\/p>\n

What followed was a detour Torres now calls one of the best things that ever happened to him. He enrolled in the culinary program at San Jac\u2019s North Campus, becoming the first in his family to pursue education beyond high school. While he had taken some culinary courses in high school and loved baking, he had never cooked professionally.<\/span><\/p>\n

He showed up early, stayed late, and volunteered for extra events.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI came with full energy,\u201d Torres said. \u201cI wasn\u2019t able to get into the school I thought I wanted, so this was my chance to soak up as much knowledge as I could.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Chefs

Adrian Torres with his former instructor Andrea Huerta<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n

His instructors noticed. Chef Andrea Huerta recalled that he was \u201calways here,\u201d seeking feedback and putting in extra time.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cAdrian is such a rock star,\u201d Huerta said. \u201cHe had obvious culinary aptitude from the beginning, but his work ethic is unmatched.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Instructors and chefs Timothy Banks and Trace Clark pulled him aside early in his first semester and told him they saw potential.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhere I come from, you don\u2019t always have people pushing you to do better and be better,\u201d Torres said. \u201cThat lit a fire in me that is lit to this day.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

He earned his associate degree in culinary arts in 2019. By then, he was already working in a professional kitchen at Xochi, hired on the spot during Houston Restaurant Weeks. He had never shucked an oyster before his first shift. Months later, he could open 100 in under <\/span>
\n15 minutes.<\/span><\/p>\n

Torres spent the next few years moving through Houston kitchens before finding his footing under James Beard Award-winning Houston chef Thomas Bille in early 2020, taking an $18-an-hour pay cut to do it.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI knew it was an investment,\u201d he said.<\/span><\/p>\n

A week later, the pandemic shut down much of Houston\u2019s restaurant industry, but Bille\u2019s restaurant didn\u2019t close. Torres watched his mentor pivot quickly, working with a skeleton crew through prep, cooking, service, and cleanup.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI learned the hustle with him,\u201d he said.<\/span><\/p>\n

Torres joined a West University restaurant called El Topo in October 2021, which was relaunched as Maximo in April 2024. He was eventually promoted to executive chef. After a temporary shutdown, he had three weeks to rebrand the restaurant with a new menu, service style, and identity. The Michelin recognition and James Beard nomination followed.<\/span><\/p>\n

Today, Torres leads a team that reflects the culture his own instructors modeled, one built on shared learning and showing up ready to work. Many of his cooks have been with him since the restaurant\u2019s earlier iteration.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m 27. I don\u2019t know everything,\u201d he said. \u201cThere are things I can teach you and things you can teach me. We\u2019re going to learn together.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

He is direct about what San Jac meant to his path.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIf I could go back and I had the choice to go to these prestigious culinary schools or San Jac, I\u2019d take San Jac 10 times over.” — Adrian Torres, culinary arts alumnus<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\u201cThis is a community college, and that shouldn\u2019t carry any stigma,\u201d he said. \u201cYou get out of it what you put into it.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

For Torres, the journey that began with rejection ultimately led to one of the highest honors as a chef and reinforced the value of the community college that helped launch his career.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIf I could go back and I had the choice to go to these prestigious culinary schools or San Jac, I\u2019d take San Jac 10 times over,\u201d he said.<\/span><\/p>\n

Learn more about the culinary arts program<\/a><\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n

By Melissa Trevizo<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Adrian Torres was eating breakfast with friends when his phone rang. On the other end was Chef Chris Shepherd from the Southern Smoke Foundation yelling. Torres had already seen his name on the list of nominees. Now, hearing Shepherd\u2019s voice, it became real. \u201cWe all cried and celebrated right there at the table,\u201d he said…. read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":64,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,1],"tags":[],"article_type":[],"class_list":["post-27","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-culinary-and-hospitality","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nCulinary grad named James Beard Best Emerging Chef - Fall 2026, Volume 7 \u2013 Issue 3<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/sanjac.mycareerfocus.org\/fall-2026-volume-7-issue-3\/culinary-grad-named-james-beard-best-emerging-chef\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Culinary grad named James Beard Best Emerging Chef\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Adrian Torres was eating breakfast with friends when his phone rang. On the other end was Chef Chris Shepherd from the Southern Smoke Foundation yelling. Torres had already seen his name on the list of nominees. 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