Personalities

Gustavo Romero

Gustavo's Links:

Chef - Credo

As a young boy in Tulancingo, Mexico, Credo Executive Chef Gustavo Romero Veytia absorbed the region’s rich culinary tradition at home, learning from his mother and grandmother before leaving for the United States at the age of 17. Never eating out as a child, Gustavo would watch the women in his family gather in the kitchen for each meal, engulfed in music, laughter and smiles. It was these values – the importance of food and family – that ultimately inspired him to enter a career in the restaurant industry.

Gustavo’s first job in a kitchen was as a dishwasher in Athens, Georgia, but he quickly advanced to secure the positions of sous chef and kitchen manager. He next worked as a sous chef in St. Petersburg, Florida at Bella Brava, whetting his appetite for further studies in Italian cuisine. Gustavo then returned home to open a restaurant in Hidalgo as both manager and head chef. In 2008, he attended Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts in Atlanta, Georgia where he graduated summa cum laude in 2009. While in school, he worked as the chef de partie at the popular Pricci Restaurant, a favorite for visiting celebrities. He expanded his culinary knowledge following graduation with an extended professional sojourn in Italy, where he learned from a series of true Italian masters at the Ristorante Latini in Firenze. During his time overseas, Gustavo developed a love and appreciation for old-world Italian cuisine that would eventually become the cornerstone of his creative style.

In late 2009, Gustavo moved to San Francisco to open Credo, an Italian destination in the heart of the Financial District, as sous chef. Here Gustavo continued to learn the traditional ways to create rustic Italian dishes before taking the reins as Executive Chef at the end of 2010 – a position that allows him to express his creative impulses and provide provocative new twists on Italian mainstays. For example, Gustavo can often be found incorporating flavors drawn from his childhood in Mexico into traditional Italian dishes, such as adding chorizo to Spaghetti Bolognese or mole to Wild Boar with Olive Pappardelle.

A rising star in the culinary world, Gustavo is one of the youngest executive chefs in the city at age 28. “For me, being a chef is about listening to the ideas my team offers, but also drawing on my own background for inspiration. I love being able to take classic Italian cuisine and throw in a dash of my Mexican heritage to shake it up and add excitement,” said Gustavo. “Cooking is hard work but I’m not afraid to get my hands dirty. Sometimes, I like to go back and wash dishes just so that I always remember where I started from, and what I’ve accomplished.” Gustavo lives in Oakland, where he enjoys playing soccer, listening to music, and exploring new restaurants. He freely admits that collecting cookbooks has become a bit of an obsession, with more 40 titles on his shelves; a passion that he says constantly inspires him to experiment in the kitchen. He is a member of the American Culinary Federation.