APRIL 2025 16 with Guillermo Gonzalez, Executive Chef at Pyro 4300 E. Camelback Road • pyrophx.com In the Kitchen T hanks in large part to his family, Guillermo Gonzalez learned to cook ‘with love’ instead of recipes. It was this love that helped Chef Gonzalez grow from a line cook at a scratch kitchen in Omaha to executive chef at Pyro, an upscale Japanese- American bistro in Arcadia. Where are you originally from? I grew up in Nebraska. My family taught me a variety of Midwestern values, like hard work, community, respect, and enjoying the small, simple things in life. Those values helped me excel in this career, which led me to opportunities in Cleveland, Chicago, Birmingham, and Phoenix. What industries do your parents work in? My mom works in the restaurant industry, and my dad works in the horse industry. He is a stable hand/ groomer for the horses and prepares the equestrian center for shows or events. Did you attend culinary school? No. I respect anyone who gives culinary school a shot, but I was fortunate enough to work under some pretty amazing chefs who were good mentors and took me under their wings. I learned from them and from doing. What other restaurants did you work at before Pyro? I’ve been with Flagship [the hospitality group behind Cham Pang Lanes, Ghost Donkey, Palma, and more] for 13 years now – I started as a prep cook for Blue Sushi Sake Grill in Omaha. I moved up through the ranks to sous chef and then transitioned to an executive chef position in Chicago. I did well there, so Flagship sent me to the OG Blue location, and then I came out to Phoenix to work at Pyro as the chef de cuisine. When the previous executive chef left, I jumped into the role. Before that, I worked in a few scratch kitchens. Most of my culinary education came from these places because when you’re in the kitchen doing the work, you learn techniques and gain an understanding of ingredients, which expands your knowledge of flavors, textures, and how they work with each other. It also gives you an appreciation of the craft and an understanding of how much hard work and creativity goes into one dish. Wait…sushi in Omaha? I know [ laughs ], you don’t think sushi when you think of Nebraska. Twenty-two years ago, Flagship’s owners went to San Diego and had sushi and thought, ‘Man, this is what we’re missing in Omaha.’ They had zero restaurant background. Our CEO was a lawyer; our president was a tenured architecture professor at UNL; the CEO’s cousin was in school for hospitality management, so he was brought on to open and manage the sushi restaurant. Blue Sushi Sake is Flagship’s roots. We do sushi well and know how to source our fish, so all of our restaurants have a reflection of that on the menu. What was the first thing you remember cooking? Enchiladas, which are my favorite meal. I got tired of asking my mom to make me a batch, so I learned from her, and we worked side by side. That’s how I learned to cook – with love. No recipes, just love. Did you always know you wanted to be a chef? When I was younger, I wanted to pursue a career in law enforcement, but truthfully, I always enjoyed being in the kitchen. The inspiration to be a chef really settled in me when I noticed how food could bring people together, whether it’s at a family gathering, celebrations, or a comfy dinner at home. This position allows me to create those memories for others and myself. What is the inspiration behind dishes at Pyro? We offer Japanese flavors cooked with a range of techniques. The steak is a really high focus of what we do here. Our culinary director studied programs at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and Kansas State and with scientists and farmers on our dry-aging program to source the beef we use. It comes from Linz Heritage Beef, based out of Chicago. They also have two of the most state-of-the-art dry-aging facilities in the world. Some of the big restaurant inspirations were Burnt Ends, one of the Top 50 restaurants in the world, which is in Singapore, and The Hawksmoor in New York City. What’s the story behind the name? When we first started building this restaurant, we worked with Ivan Orkin, who owns one of the top- rated ramen bars in Tokyo. We were playing around with some names and came up with Pyro because the restaurant focuses on a live-fire concept. Explain ‘live fire concept.’ We cook many of the menu items directly over live fire during service – or at some point, each dish touches the fire in some way. We use a lot of wood and a lot of charcoal. We have two wood-fired ovens. Do you have a process for coming up with new menu items? We dive deep into demographics to create and engineer food for our community and guests. We generally build around the bounty, so we source high- quality products and create around what is available. The hearth section is the most popular, and definitely, the filet is our most popular menu item. It flies out of our kitchen like it is going out of style. PHOTO: RYAN WALEY

17 APRIL 2025 Tell us about the beverages. We have a subtle Japanese influence on everything we do here, whether it’s the food menu – shiso, gremolata, au jus, where we use black vinegar. It’s a kind of Asian fusion. The cocktails are created by Dustin Fox, and Sommelier and Wine Director Shannon Saulsbury handles the wines. Some of our drinks are almost modeled after the food. This didn’t make it onto the menu, but we created what we call the ‘cold noodle,’ a cocktail modeled after a light, fresh noodle salad. It had the aromatics of basil, lime, and lemongrass. We also have quite a selection of Japanese whiskies. What’s your favorite part of the restaurant industry? The culture and the team here at Pyro. I admire every single person that works in this building. Ours is a very difficult industry to work in and navigate – it’s very demanding. If you want to do this as a career, it’s definitely something you have to really want to do, and if you’re doing it to get a paycheck, you’ll probably fall out of love with it very quickly. What is one item in the kitchen that you find yourself using all the time? Tasting spoons. We always want to make sure we are tasting to sell and making sure of the consistency of sauces, spices, flavors, etc. Who are some other chefs that inspire you? Michelin star Chef Carlos Gaytan and Aaron Sanchez. I am so inspired by their upbringing, the obstacles they overcame to get where they are now, and the way they use their platform to coach and develop younger chefs. How do you keep yourself calm when things get crazy in the kitchen? I know I have a talented and well- disciplined team that I trust if things get crazy. I have to lead by example and be the leader I would want leading me. If I’m calm, cool, collected, then it provides less worry and higher morale for the rest of the people in the kitchen. What’s next for Pyro and Flagship? I cannot confirm or deny what’s next [ laughs ]. You’ll have to stay tuned! The inspiration to be a chef really settled in me when I noticed how food could bring people together.