Argentinean born and raised in an ocean town 10 miles away from his family ranch, Manuel's family introduced him to cooking at a young age; always helping in the kitchen, whipping cream, cutting fruit, butchering whole lambs and working during harvest seasons alongside his grandfather.
As a young adult, Manuel spent a year working and traveling through Europe. During that time, he learned how to cook and harvest live mussels, purchase chickens and lambs from the neighbor's farm, and worked with chef and cookbook author, Carole Handslip.
Upon returning to Buenos Aires, Manuel attended cooking school, impressing family and friends with his recipes, with the goal of returning to Spain. After 5 years of opening and working in a restaurant at the National Horsetrack Casino in Buenos Aires, he was accepted to a J1 program in Fort Lauderdale at the Marriott Harbor Beach Resort's 3030 Ocean Restaurant and Bar. Upon completion, Executive Chef Dean Max invited him to Grand Cayman to assist in opening a new "boat to table" concept restaurant. From there, he joined the team at the Forbes 5-star Blue Restaurant at The Ritz-Carlton, Grand Cayman. Manuel continued his career at Ritz-Carlton properties including Santiago de Chile and Key Biscayne, before working alongside a former protégée for Charlie Trotter at the Ritz-Carlton in San Francisco, Michael Rotondo.
In 2018, Manuel began his career as the Chef de Cuisine for WYLD at The Ritz-Carlton, Bachelor Gulch under Executive Chef Jasper Schneider. Here, Manuel has perfected his cooking philosophy of using the most out of the animal, fish, vegetable, or fruit. He will forever be a cook (always learning), and is inspired by mentoring and showing empathy towards younger cooks. He enjoys working in a kitchen full of positive energy, surrounded by people who want to succeed with the creation of every meal.
