F&B FLORIDA 2019

Guillermo Pernot
Chef-Partner
Cuba Libre Restaurant & Rum Bar


National renowned chef and restaurateur Guillermo Pernot joined Cuba Libre Restaurant & Rum Bar as the top toque in the Fall of 2006. In 2010 Pernot embarked on a mission to discover what Cuba cuisine was today. During multiple visits to Cuba, Pernot forged relationships with the premier local chefs in Havana. In January 2012, Chef Pernot and Cuba Libre launched a culinary exchange series named Pop-Up Paladar, in which the top chefs of Havana are invited to cook in Cuba Libre’s kitchens for special guest chef dinners. In return, Chef Pernot invited Cuba Libre’s guests to join him on a series of custom cultural and culinary tours of the island nation’s capital. While owner of ¡Pasion! Pernot earned an impressive list of accolades including awards from Gourmet, Philadelphia Magazine and Fodor’s. Pernot was named Esquire’s “Chef of the Year.” Additionally, he received the James Beard Award for “Best Chef of the Mid-Atlantic Region” and “Best Single Subject Cookbook” for Ceviche: Seafood, Salads and Cocktails with a Latino Twist. Pernot’s background also includes the launch of Vega Grill, during which Food & Wine named him one of “America’s Ten Best New Chefs,” and Restaurant Hospitality named him one of the “Ten Rising Stars.” In September 2018 Pernot released his second cookbook, CUBA COOKS: RECIPES AND SECRETS FROM CUBAN PALADARES AND THEIR CHEFS. A vibrant celebration of the island’s bold flavors, creative techniques, and unique inspirations of Cuba’s finest paladares, Cuba Cooks spotlights a rich variety of dishes which have been adapted from some of the best private restaurants from Old Havana to Santiago de Cuba. Pernot’s culinary success can be attributed to his passionate and flavorful cuisine – a culinary dedication to his roots. Born in Argentina, Pernot and his wife, who is Cuban and related to the third President of Cuba, live in suburban Philadelphia with their two children.

Sessions :