Fine Dining Table Team: Okay, perfect. I’m going to start the recording, okay? Good morning, we’re here with Javier Áviles, chef at Pulpería Santa Elvira, in Santiago de Chile. You’re among the 50 Best in Latin America, is that correct Javier?
Javier Áviles: Hello, good morning. Yes, I prefer to be called a cook rather than a chef. We’ve been on the 50 Best list since last year. We’ve done very well, thanks to the list and other notes. I think this year we’re going to climb a few more steps, or that’s the idea. So, that’s where we’re working.
Fine Dining Table Team: Well Javier, the first question, tell us about yourself, your story, how you started, how Pulpería Santa Elvira came about. We’re hearing from your voice.
Javier Áviles: Come on, well, I’m from Santiago, but I lived in Antofagasta all my life with my family, a middle-upper class family. I studied architecture for a couple of years, but I realized that it wasn’t what interested me. My family was made up of builders, architects, engineers; that was the family mandate. I decided to travel around South America for a few months, and when I came back, I was already starting to feel interested in cooking. I was 22 years old at the time. I went to San Pedro de Atacama, where I spent three years with different projects linked to gastronomy. Then, by chance, I ended up in Buenos Aires, where I lived for more than 18 years and developed my career as a cook.
Fine Dining Table Team: Perfect. You said that the first time you became interested in cooking was when you were 22 and you are now 50 years old.
Javier Áviles: Exactly, I have almost 27 years of career. And always being a cook, never a chef. I think it is important for the new generations to understand that work starts from the bottom and not the other way around.
Fine Dining Table Team: Besides Pulpería Santa Elvira, do you have other projects in mind for the future?
Javier Áviles: Yes, we are planning to open another restaurant right here in Barrio Mata, but with a different, more massive structure.
Fine Dining Table Team: Tell us, how did the pandemic and the social outbreak affect the neighborhood and your restaurant?
Javier Áviles: It hit us very hard. We were not very well known and just when we were starting to rise, the social outbreak, came and then COVID. Fortunately, it did not affect me as much because I did not have many employees or a high payroll. Also, during COVID I was able to travel to Argentina and rethink the Santa Elvira project, which helped us a lot.
Fine Dining Table Team: Perfect. Tell us in your own words, what is the cuisine of Pulpería Santa Elvira?
Javier Áviles: We work with four starters, four main courses and three desserts. We talk about Chilean traditions and grandmother’s dishes, reinterpreted with current products. We focus on showing Chile in its entirety.
Fine Dining Table Team: Any chef or cook who has marked your career?
Javier Áviles: Those who have marked my career are from my generation, like Gonzalo Aramburu, Rodolfo Guzmán, Virgilio Martínez, Enrique Olvera and Leo Espinosa. I pay a lot of attention to South American chefs.
Fine Dining Table Team: Is Chile ready for the Fine Dining Table guide to arrive?
Javier Áviles: I think Chile is ready, but our public is not yet. In Chile there is a shortage of people who go out to eat at restaurants, although this is changing. The Fine Dining Table guide could help restaurants here a lot.
Fine Dining Table Team: Why do you think Chile has not taken the step towards promoting gastronomic culture like Argentina or Peru?
Javier Áviles: In Chile, it has always been each person’s business. There has not been a strong association between chefs or support from the State to see gastronomy as a tourist axis. This is something we are starting to change now.
Fine Dining Table Team: Tell us, why should people visiting Santiago de Chile make a mandatory stop at Pulpería Santa Elvira?
Javier Áviles: Pulpería Santa Elvira is a mandatory stop because we are the only contemporary cuisine restaurant in downtown Santiago that is in the 50 Best. We are in a heritage neighborhood and offer an authentic experience that shows the best of Chilean tradition in a unique setting.
Fine Dining Table Team: Perfect. Thank you very much, Javier, for your time and for sharing your story with us.
Javier Áviles: Thank you.
Interview with Javier Áviles: The Soul of Pulpería Santa Elvira and the Gastronomic Revolution in Santiago
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