Pepe Barajas.jpg — Jose Luis “Pepe” Barajas

**Chef/owner of La Josie and El Solazo**
For José Luis Barajas, who goes by Pepe, food is family. The completely self-taught chef/owner of Chicago’s El Solazo and La Josie restaurants is fueled by his passion and love for Mexican cooking, ignited by 20-plus years of experience in the restaurant business. Owning restaurants gives Barajas the platform to further delve into his talent in the kitchen and continue to learn and improve his cooking abilities, all the while paying homage to his family’s heritage: His mother’s side hails from Guadalajara, Jalisco, and his father’s side from Mazatlán, Sinaloa.

His taqueria roots run deep and began before he was born—when his father met his mother while she was working at her father’s puesto de tacos (taco stand) in Mexico City. As a kid, Barajas helped at that same puesto, opening Mexican soda bottles for his grandfather’s customers. Many of his mom’s family, in fact, operated puestos and eventually moved and established taquerias in Chicago in the early 1970s.

At age 7, Barajas and his mother, Martha, left Mexico to follow their family to Chicago in pursuit of a better life. His mom worked as a waitress at her brother’s taquería, Los Comales in Little Village, while Barajas attended school and learned English. At age 12, he started working at his family’s restaurant, washing dishes. Barajas’ aunt Josefina, whom he affectionately referred to as “Mama Josie,” also served as a big influence in Barajas’ young life; with tough love, Mama Josie taught Barajas the value of hard work and dedication.

Before long, Barajas learned many aspects of the taquería business. To assist his single working mother, he decided to drop out of high school to help with the household finances. He soon after approached his mother with the idea of opening a taqueria, and they created Los Comales #8 when Barajas was just 15. He eventually went back to school to complete his GED while working at the restaurant.

Barajas continued to be driven by the dream of one day branching out on his own. After a great deal of searching for the right location, he found opportunity in an available corner building on the South Side of Chicago near Midway Airport. El Solazo first opened in September 2007 and is to this day a neighborhood favorite, having earned TV appearances on “Check, Please!” and “Chicago’s Best,” among other press and accolades. Currently El Solazo is closed for remodeling and will re-open in May of 2020 with an updated menu and cocktail program.

With the goal of reaching more people with a menu of authentic Mexican food made with fresh, quality ingredients in a comfortable and inviting atmosphere, Barajas opened La Josie in May 2017 in the West Loop. The restaurant and its name serve as homage to his late aunt.

Barajas’ family, including his mother and his daughter, often join him in the kitchen. But when he and his family members do get away from the restaurants, they still find themselves spending time together surrounded by good food, music, and friends. Barajas always has a stack of books he’s working through to continue studying his trade and rounding out his skill set as a restaurateur.

For more information or interview requests, contact Caren Leonard at Caren Joan Public Relations, Inc. 708.903.4625 or caren@carenjoanpr.com

Quetzal Alvarez.jpg — Chef Quetzal Alvarez

As pastry chef, Quetzal Alvarez brings over 14 years of culinary expertise to La Josie, where her traditional desserts with a contemporary twist compliment our restaurant’s urban decor.

With a bachelor’s degree in gastronomy from the Autonomous Mexico State University, Quetzal began working in the kitchens of several popular restaurants in Mexico City in 2006. It only took her a year to begin her international journey in Chicago and land her first job as a line cook prep at Carnivale, a latin fusion restaurant in River North. Her passion for cooking and learning about different cuisines led her to accept new opportunities as a pastry chef at Nabuki, a Japanese restaurant in the suburbs, and then at Barbakoa, a Latin and Spanish-inspired restaurant in 2013. It was throughout this journey while navigating through different restaurants, when Quetzal fined-tuned her time-management skills in busy kitchens creating innovative desserts with a Latin flavor.

Attracted by the warm and family-style leadership, Quetzal joined La Josie in 2017. Since then, she has been dedicated to curating the pastry program and is committed to sourcing vibrant local ingredients, weaving influences from our Mexican roots into a menu that is worthy of Mama Josie’s kitchen.