Gastón Acurio: 10 things you didn’t know about the most recognized Peruvian chef in the world

Gastón Acurio is synonymous with Peruvian food, his worldwide success has contributed to putting our gastronomy in unthinkable places and the most recent achievement has been obtained with his restaurant Astrid & Gastón, which ranks 30th on the list of the 50 Best Latam .

But this time, in addition to talking about his achievements as a chef, we will focus on ten unknown facts for many people.

1. His father, Gastón Acurio Velarde, was Minister of Development and Public Works during the first government of Fernando Belaúnde and a Senator of the Republic, which is why his dream was for his son to become President of Peru.

2. Before becoming a chef, Acurio traveled to Spain to study Law at the Complutense University of Madrid to fulfill the wishes of his family, putting aside his love for cooking.

3. A rebel with a cause! In his eagerness to follow his dreams, Gastón Acurio left Madrid for Paris and enrolled in the prestigious Cordon Bleu school. His family didn’t know.

4. In Paris, he not only fulfilled his dream of being a chef, but also found love. At the same school he studied the German Astrid Gutsche, whom he would marry and return to Peru in 1993. The following year, they opened his first restaurant: Astrid & Gastón.

5. Are you a singer by profession? Until 1986, the renowned chef was part of the rock group Images, he had to leave it because he went to Europe to continue his career. This space was covered by Diego Bertie, who would start his ascent.

6. In an interview with Somos, Gastón did not hesitate to say that the best Peruvian player of all time for him is César Cueto. In addition, he confessed that on sleepless nights he finds peace watching summaries of his big plays.

7. Continuing with his passion for soccer, he has declared his admiration for Paolo Guerrero, to whom in an interview he dedicated these words: “Paolo is moved and moved and cries for his shirt. He is a Peruvian Warrior ”.

8. Gastón will never forget his first waffle ice cream because he tasted it thanks to Johan Cruyff. “It was the year of 1974 and the album of stickers of the World Cup players only needed to be filled, the figurine of the legendary Dutch player. I remember that my father, seeing my tantrum face, solved the matter by taking me to San José Park, in Jesús María, where collectors who almost always had that little figurine that you were missing would gather.”

9. In an interview for a Spanish medium, when asked about the cooks who marked him, he referred to Grimanesa Vargas, whom he put as an example for many cooks for her humility, and that is that he considers that the temptation of vanity is always there present when certain achievements begin to be achieved and it is something that should not happen.

10. On some occasion, Alan García addressed Gastón Acurio assuring that he would run for the following elections: “He is preparing himself, he is preparing himself!” Said the deceased former president. The chef only replied: “You’ll see.” Acurio has always denied the possibility of entering Peruvian politics, he prefers the kitchen and from there help Peru grow.