Pictured Left to Right: Bonnie Grant, President, Philadelphia Public Relations Association; Michael Nutter, Mayor of Philadelphia; Chef Jose Garces, Gold Medal Winner; Jack Ferguson, President, Philadelphia Convention & Visitors Bureau. (Photo Credit: Christina Cassidy)

On September 25 in the Kimmel Center’s Hamilton Garden, PPRA honored nationally renowned Chef Jose Garces with the prestigious Gold Medal Award. Chef Garces was given this award for his lasting impact on our community and for bringing national recognition to Philadelphia since opening his first restaurant, Amada, in 2005.

An American born to Ecuadorian parents and raised in Chicago, Garces’ culinary training started early in life, in the kitchen of his paternal grandmother, Mamita Amada, where he learned to prepare family recipes and came to love food and cooking. After graduating from Kendall College’s School of Culinary Arts, Garces worked in top-rated professional kitchens from Spain to New York City before moving to Philadelphia in 2001 to make it his home where he lives today.

In 2012, Chef Garces and his wife Dr. Beatriz Garces founded the Garces Foundation, an IRS registered 501(c)3 nonprofit organization that is committed to ensuring that Philadelphia’s underserved immigrant community has access to medical, educational and nutritional services.

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