Best Culinary Schools Guide

Norman Van Aken is the owner of the award winning restaurant Norman’s in Miami. This renowned chef has followed his culinary passion through some of the world’s most varied cuisines–ending up with a sensational flavor that’s all his own. Van Aken is credited as the father of “New World Cuisine,” melding the rich culinary heritage of Latin America, the Caribbean, the Southern United States into a new culinary paradigm. Van Aken’s dynamic culinary vision embodies the essence of America’s rich ethnic mix. 

This Culinary Titan was raised in a rural town in Illinois, surrounded by the flavor traditional Midwestern favorites. After hitchhiking across the country, Van Aken’s culinary senses awakened with the alluring spices and multicultural traditions of Key West. The self-taught chef was the first to coin the widespread culinary term “fusion,” which he used to describe his combination of local Latin and Caribbean recipes with traditional European techniques. 

Van Aken’s Innovative Vision Captivates Culinary Aficionados
In 1995, Chef Van Aken captured the taste-buds of the nation when he opened his own New World Cuisine restaurant in Miami, Norman’s. Norman’s patrons enjoy such flavorful creations as pan-roasted chorizo-crusted dolphin on a plantain paella Valenciana with olives, peas, garbanzos and Romesco aioli.

Norman’s has earned the title of “Best restaurant in South Florida” in the New York Times, “Best Restaurant in Miami” in Food & Wine Magazine, and was honored as one of “America’s Top Tables” four years in a row by Gourmet Magazine, among many other honors. Van Aken himself has also received a wealth of awards, including the James Beard Foundation’s “Best Chef in the Southeast,” the Robert Mondavi Culinary Award of Excellence. 

Sources:
Normans.com, “Chef Norman Van Aken”
New York Times, “A Columbus of Chefs Among the Papayas”