Sunday Funday: Corporate Chef

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) -- He's the chef in multiple kitchens, acting as the invisible hand behind menus.

Meet Oscar Lopez, a Corporate Chef, who is leaving his mark one plate at a time.

"Good people, good ideas, better food. So that's what I do," said Oscar during an interview with KVIA ABC-7.

You may have tasted his food. 

At restaurants like Cafe Central here in El Paso, Chapa Prime in Juarez or even maybe Noma in L.A. 

His taste and experience is what brings menus to life.  

"Learning, working and traveling and just like a sponge, just getting everything as much as they can from everywhere. It's something that I, I implemented for myself, which has become better.

Oscar is a "corporate chef".

His love for cooking started back in high school, when he found out his dad - who he never met - was also a cook. 

"Ever since then, I continue my high school, I, I get into the culinary program as well. I move high schools to, to be part of the, uh, program. So once I graduated, I applied for for universities, college and culinary schools. So once I got, good, scholarship, I, I took off."

ABC-7's Olivia Vara sat down with Oscar after his recent return to hometown El Paso from Los Angeles. 

Oscar says he plans to continue concocting the menus for his restaurants as a Corporate Chef. 

Local ingredients and borderland techniques are what fuel Oscar's passion and could even bring his next restaurant here.

"The passion for the cooking, it got even bigger because you learn to just not just food is everything else. The service, the the people, you know, the construction and everything that goes behind the food," said Oscar.

For anyone wanting to join the restaurant industry, Oscar's advice is to stay focused and avoid distractions as you work towards your goal.

"We want to eat the whole world, you know, in one bite. And it's more than that. It's more than that," said Oscar.