PR96021

LONDON, May 17, 2022 /PRNewswire=KYODO JBN/ --

The World's 50 Best Restaurants 2022 today reveals the winner of The World's

Best Female Chef Award, sponsored by Nude Glass, as Leonor Espinosa, chef-owner

of Leo in Bogota. Previously named Latin America's Best Female Chef in 2017,

Espinosa has become one of the most important personalities in Colombia through

her hard and consistent work, not only celebrating local Colombian products and

flavours but highlighting the value of the country's biodiversity and social

aspects of gastronomy.

A key figure in Colombia's food renaissance, Espinosa relocated and reimagined

her flagship restaurant just last year and it was subsequently voted No.46 in

The World's 50 Best Restaurants 2021. At the new venue, Espinosa has crafted a

tasting menu with 100% of the ingredients sourced within Colombia and each dish

forming part of a broader Colombian food narrative. The gastronomic experience

focuses on the country's varied ecosystems, exploring the ways new species can

be utilised in the kitchen.

In 2008, Espinosa founded the non-profit Funleo with her daughter, Laura

Hernandez-Espinosa, Leo's head sommelier. The mother-and-daughter team have

helped to unveil some of the secrets of indigenous ingredients and ancestral

techniques providing inspiration for Leo's unique menus. Today, Funleo

continues to identify, reclaim and promote the culinary traditions of rural and

ethnic communities while promoting their wellbeing and health, with programmes

enhancing the use of autochthonous ingredients across the country and

empowering the groups towards food sovereignty. Each ingredient's origin is

highlighted on Leo's menu, such as pulantana from the desert and cacay and

cnopio from the Andean foothills.

Aside from running Leo and Funleo, Espinosa has helped build support for the

establishment of a Comprehensive Gastronomy Centre in Golfo de Tribuga as an

alternative framework for people affected by or involved in drug trafficking,

and has also campaigned to raise awareness on Colombia's culinary riches, with

her work encouraging communities to turn their cultural heritage into a tool

for socio-economic development.

William Drew, Director of Content for The World's 50 Best Restaurants, says:

"Leonor Espinosa has become one of the most iconic Latin American chefs of her

generation, championing both Colombia's biodiversity and its cultural diversity

like no other. We're thrilled to be able to recognise her incredible work."

The Best Female Chef Award series continues to recognise industry-leading

female chefs blazing a trail for their peers.

https://mediacentre.theworlds50best.com

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Source:  50 Best