Q&A With Laura Tillman, Author of “The Migrant Chef: The Life And Times of Lalo García”

Laura Tillman’s The Migrant Chef: The Life And Times of Lalo García chronicles the rise of one of Mexico’s top chefs, Eduardo “Lalo” García Guzmán. To research the book, Tillman — a Study Hall subscriber with bylines in The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times and The Nation — spent hundreds of hours in Lalo’s kitchen. She watched him teach, cut deals, develop new businesses, build out his staff, and, most importantly, cook. 

Tillman started her career as a reporter in 2007. Her work centers around migration, food, and the cultural exchange between the United States and Mexico, where she lives with her family. While I was getting to know Tillman, she told me that she first wanted to write about Mexico City’s restaurateurs in 2016 and initially planned for her book to feature more of an ensemble cast. But after meeting Lalo, she knew which voice to highlight. 

Lalo spent his youth as an undocumented agricultural worker in the United States. He first entered the restaurant business to support his family but, with his remarkable work ethic and his talent for balancing flavors, showed promise in the kitchen. He eventually opened his own restaurant in Mexico City, Máximo Bistrot, which he still oversees with meticulous attention to detail. The Migrant Chef doesn’t shy away from Lalo’s shortcomings, noting his occasional familial struggles and heated disagreements with employees. The book ultimately offers a portrait of a man whose most consistent asset is his resolve: despite setbacks, he presses on again and again. 

I read The Migrant Chef with a highlighter and pen close by, making notes in the margins about the parallels between the lives of chefs and writers. To succeed in a highly competitive field, we both need to know how to get kicked around and how to keep moving. There’s a certain je ne sais quoi to both types of creatives, one that goes beyond memorizing recipes and grammar rules. As Chef Gusteau said (and screenwriters wrote): “anyone can cook.” But not everyone who cooks is a chef.