Birthday with a Chef

My mom and I are both fans of Aarón Sanchez, the resident Mexican chef on The Food Network. And it just so happened that Food Network Magazine was hosting a pre-Cinco de Mayo event in LA the same night as mom's birthday.

The event was held at The Spanish Kitchen in West Hollywood. The place was not overwhelmingly packed, and everyone was very friendly as we shared tables over nouveau Mexican food. But the crowning moment of the evening was getting to meet Aarón and his wife Ife.

The stereotypical chef ego was nowhere to be found here. Aarón and Ife are two of the most down to earth people I've ever met. They were so genuinely nice and gracious throughout the evening, Aarón even went around to all the tables thanking everyone for coming. He then ended up at our table for about 10 minutes chatting about Puerto Rican cooking with my parents and joking with my dad about how in New York, Puerto Rico is considered the sixth borough.

It was a great way to celebrate mom's birthday.