Daniela Soto-Innes
Daniela Soto-Innes – chef-partner at modern Mexican restaurant Cosme in Manhattan – has been voted elitTM Vodka World’s Best Female Chef 2019 ahead of The World’s 50 Best Restaurants awards in Singapore on 25 June. The Best Female Chef series, now in its ninth year, has celebrated 21 women across 15 countries and continues to encourage debate around gender issues in the food world. The award is voted for by The World’s 50 Best Restaurants’ global panel which includes over 500 female chefs, food experts and writers, who comprise 50% of the total voting Academy.
William Drew, Group Editor of The World’s 50 Best Restaurants, says: “It’s a genuine pleasure to announce Daniela Soto-Innes as this year’s elitTM Vodka World’s Best Female Chef. Daniela brings an unparalleled positive energy to her projects and has created a team that celebrates women of all ages. At Cosme she has combined innovative Mexican dishes with warm hospitality, leading a dynamic team to great success and popularity in the fiercely competitive New York dining scene. She is an immense talent who thoroughly deserves this accolade.”
Accepting the accolade, Soto-Innes said: “I’m grateful to receive this award as it gives me the platform to inspire both my generation and younger generations of leaders to come. My main passion doesn’t come from cooking alone, but through making teams and allowing everyone around me to excel and reach their full potential by learning their unique way of expressing themselves.”
Originally from Mexico City, Soto-Innes moved to the US at the age of 12, intending to pursue her love of swimming and sports. But with the influence of her family’s three generations of food-loving matriarchs, she gravitated towards a career in food. Aged just 15, she got her first restaurant job in Houston, Texas. After formal training at Le Cordon Bleu in Austin, Soto-Innes joined the opening team at Brennan’s of Houston. She then moved to progressive American restaurant Triniti and Chris Shepherd’s charcuterie-heavy Underbelly, both in Houston, before returning to Mexico. Back in her native Mexico City, the young chef staged at Pujol before joining Gerardo Vazquez Lugo at traditional Mexican restaurant Nicos. Soto-Innes then returned to Pujol to work full-time alongside its celebrated chef-owner, Enrique Olvera.