Mercedes Grubb, 39, a San Juan native whose childhood
memories include sitting on the balcony, shelling gan-
dules (pigeon peas), from which her mother would coax
profound flavors. A love of Puerto Rican cuisine stayed
with Grubb though a decade in New York City cooking in
some of the city’s most celebrated kitchens (including The
Modern and Maialino). And it is on full display at Gallo
Negro, which marries global flavors and precise technique
with island flavors and a sense of fun. One night, the menu
might include “pork and beans,” a brined and seared pork
chop paired with gandules, alubias, and pinto beans;
another night, rich spaghetti bolognese (“boloyes”), bol-
stered with Puerto Rican longaniza sausage. (This spring,
the James Beard Foundation included Grubb among the
semifinalists for Best Chef: South).
Hurricane Maria left Grubb without power for months,
an overwhelming cleanup, and barely any staff (many had
fled to the mainland). But she knew others had been hit
harder. “We knew there was going to be an immediate
ripple effect of people losing jobs,” she says. That knowledge
was the impetus for Serve PR, a nonprofit she cofounded.
“The point was to raise money for that dishwasher who
couldn’t work for months,” Grubb says, “or the restaurant
that was about to close because they couldn’t pay rent.”
Grubb has also made an impact by dint of being one
of the first women to lead a professional kitchen on theNatalia Rivera
Vázquez
“It showed me that one day you can have
everything, and the next day you can
have nothing,” says Vázquez of Hurricane
Maria. The Condado Vanderbilt Hotel and
El Jangiri chef is spearheading a
movement to support local farms, which
were devastated by the storm.