Hospitality Design - November 2022 - 54

perspectives interview
Lexis Gonzalez
Lady Lexis Kitchen
New York
what they are calling ghost kitchens. It has less startup costs and allows
for the chef to get their product out faster. I would also love to see more
places that let chefs come in and have a residency.
How did you get your start?
At the beginning of my career, I was a pastry chef. I started selling
cookies and treats on a card table when I was 22. I was pregnant with my
second son, Lucas, and my toddler at the time, Liam, would be outside
with me. During the week, I would get up at around 4 or 5 a.m. and
bake for the day. I would sell rum raisin oatmeal cookies, peanut butt er
oatmeal cookies, sweet potato loaf, peanut britt le, and bread pudding.
Soon aſt er, I opened my fi rst bakery in East Harlem.
What are your earliest food memories?
I can always remember the smell of my Nana's cooking from the elevator
when we would go visit her in the Bronx. When we would get inside,
my Nana would be in the kitchen cooking some type of rice (we always
had rice). There would also be chicharròn de cerdo or pollo frying in a
tall silver pot. My grandfather, Papi, would be in the kitchen speaking
Spanish and the rest of the family-cousins, titis, and uncles-would be
in the living room either eating or trying to get a plate.
What do you love about cooking?
Food is the only art you consume. We gossip over food. We use food to
comfort us when we're down. We have food when we are celebrating
something. We cook food when we want to show someone we care for
them. For me, cooking is therapeutic. It always liſt s my spirits when I put
a bunch of simple ingredients together to make something delicious.
What does the future of food look like?
In New York, there will be more places where chefs cook and deliver-
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November 2022 hospitalitydesign.com
How did the food you ate growing up infl uence you?
I coin my cuisine as Boricua Geechee, which is what I ate growing
up. I had my Puerto Rican food-arroz con gandules, chicharròn, and
pernil-at my Nana's. In my own home in Harlem-my grandma was
from Charleston/Edisto Island, South Carolina-we would have collards
and smoked neck bones, crab boils, and lots of okra. It made me want to
cook that food for everyone because everyone should eat like this.
What is your relationship with food?
If it's possible, it's the love of my life. I look forward to each season
when the fruits and vegetables switch. I love that it brings so much joy
to people. I dream about food and the diff erent fl avors I want to put
together.
What dish or ingredient best represents you?
An onion. An onion is golden on the outside like my personality and
my energy; it just shines. When you cut an onion, it has so many
layers like me. I love to cook but I also bake, sew, draw, and craſt .
Onions are also versatile. You can fry it, sauté it, and you can even eat
them raw. I'm an onion. I pack a lot of fl avor, I'm versatile, and I have
a golden personality.
What's next for you?
You can catch me on YouTube cooking; I would love to have my own TV
show. People who live in New York can order my themed dinner bags.
Date Night, for example, includes a dinner for two, elegant disposable
plates, a candle for the dinner table, a mini custom menu, and a QR code
to scan to listen to some love songs. hd
Photo courtesy of LEXIS GONZALEZ
http://www.hospitalitydesign.com
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