With the help of Manny’s Mother and grandma, Manny wouldn’t be where he is today. Born in Tuscon, Arizona, he took interest in cooking at an early age. When he was only 15 he started working in professional kitchens, learning the basics of culinary arts.  Moving back and forth from the United States and Mexico, he grew a strong passion for cooking a variety of cuisines. His mom and grandma were a huge inspiration to him and gave him the drive to pursue his career in becoming a Chef. 

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In 2001, he moved to Orlando, Florida and started working for Walt Disney. Working in casual restaurants and elegant banquet halls he has learned a wide variety of different cuisines. In 2002 he decided to go back to school in Chicago to perfect his culinary skills close to home at the College of Du Page. There he studied culinary arts,restaurant management, and hotel management.

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Growing his career as a Chef, he started working at different restaurants in the Chicagoland area including; Venuti’s, Prairie Grass, North Pond and lastly, working as a sous chef at Glen Prairie. He has had many different opportunities come his way where he got to work with the best Chef’s around, including Chef Danny Ovannin, Former Chefs from the Ritz Carlton in Chicago, Sarah Stegner and George Bumbaris, award winner, Chef Bruce Sherman and many other talented chefs.



He is currently a lead Chef Instructor at the Cooking Skills Academy and consults with Food Trucks & Restaurants in the Chicago area.