Tacos Sincero

Chef Sincere makes Asian-Latino cuisine inspired by his upbringing in Los Angeles as well as his travels abroad. Tacos Sincero has been featured in numerous publications such as the SF Chronicle and BerkeleySide. Tacos Sincero was named alongside many great taquerias in 2022 as the “Top Tacos in the East Bay” as well as “Eight Best Places to get a Tostada” in the SF Chronicle.

Nisei

Chef David Yoshimura began his professional career as a cook in New York City, working at wd~50 for several years. After NYC, Chef David joined the team at Californios in the restaurant’s first year open and helped attain their first Michelin star within six months.

Upon leaving, the now two Michelin star restaurant Californios, Chef David focused on opening Nisei, aiming to bring the Bay Area a new approach to Japanese-American food. In 2022, Chef David was nominated for a James Beard Award for Emerging Chef. He was also awarded One Michelin star and the coveted Young Chef Award by Michelin the very same year

Reem Assil founded Reem’s with a passion for the flavors of Arab street-corner bakeries and the vibrant communities where they’re located. Growing up in a Palestinian-Syrian household, Reem was surrounded by the aromas and tastes of food from the homeland and the connections they evoked of her heritage, family, and community.

Before dedicating herself to a culinary career, Reem worked for a decade as a community and labor organizer, and brings the warmth of community to all her events. She has worked with the Bay Area’s esteemed cooperative bakery Arizmendi Bakery & Pizzeria, Grace Street Catering, Local Flavors, and several local chefs. She is a graduate of the the competitive food business incubator program, La Cocina. and business accelerator program ICA: Fund Good Jobs. 

Reem was a 2018 James Beard Semi-Finalist for Best Chef West, San Francisco Magazine’s 2018 Chef of the Year and San Francisco Chronicle’s 2017 Rising Star Chef.  

More at reem-assil.com and @reem.assil.

Nelson German, Top Chef Season 18 Contestant and chef/owner of alaMar and Sobre Mesa, shares the story of his culinary journey through his cooking. Born and bred in Manhattan’s Washington Heights, in Uptown Manhattan, German worked countless hours in New York City restaurants, including Joseph’s Citarella and Gramercy Park Hotel with Chef Yugi Wakiya, from whom he learned Asian flavors and techniques. He spent time studying the art of simple Mediterranean cuisine through his travels to Spain, France, and Italy. He learned local, seasonal, sustainable California cuisine at SupperClub SF.

AlaMar, a Michelin-recommended seafood spot in Oakland, marked the first venture born from German’s love and passion for creating art with his food. His talents have garnered rave reviews from San Francisco Chronicle and Oakland magazine and earned him spots at the prestigious Pebble Beach Food & Wine Festival and ChefsFeed Indie Week Portland. He was also commissioned to showcase California Cuisine in Mexico City by Visit California. Most recently he was featured as a contributing chef in East Bay Cooks, a recipe book that highlights the East Bay’s top restaurants, bars, and bakeries.  In 2020, Chef Nelson was awarded the coveted title of “Chefs to Watch” by Plate Magazine and in 2022, he was awarded “Best Chef” by East Bay Express.

German is Dominican by heritage and, as an ode to his Latin American roots, German opened the Afro-Latino Kitchen, Sobre Mesa, in 2020. His successful bar program at alaMar spurred a passion for creating art from cocktails and stoked a desire to bring something unique, vibrant, and beautiful to his chosen home of Oakland. The term Sobre Mesa (literally “on the table”) refers to what you do after your meal when drinks continue and meaningful conversation begins.

Sobre Mesa’s tapas and chef-driven cocktails and unique Afro-Latino vibe mark another high point in his culinary career where he hopes to lead a trend in chef-driven cocktail bars. More importantly, he hopes his food will spark a conversation about his guests’ own history and culture.  To learn more, check out his website.