Congratulations to Carlos Delgado of One MICHELIN Star Causa, the 2024 MICHELIN Guide Washington, D.C. Young Chef Award Winner!

Delgado has been a trailblazer in bringing Peruvian flavors to fine dining in the United States. Previously cooking at Michelin Bib Gourmand China Chilcano by José Andrés, the Lima native has become most celebrated for his own restaurant Causa, which transports diners to Peru.

The six-course tasting experience honors both the coast of Peru and the Andes. From the freshest seafood to the most delectable macambo dessert, each dish is carefully crafted to tell an unforgettably unique story.

What inspired you to become a chef?

My grandmother taught me how to cook when I was a little kid. When I lived in Peru, she would bring me to the market. She would force me to be next to her while she was cooking for everybody. This was an everyday, three times a day routine. So it really sticks to you.

What motivates you in the kitchen?

Motivation comes from different aspects. My kids, and then also to keep thriving, to keep giving the next generation another chance to do this. I have a lot of young cooks that look up to me, and I’m not that old, so I feel like they’re looking up to somebody that isn’t twice, three times their age. I just want them to be able to feel like they also have an opportunity to do what they want to do one day, just by pushing and working hard.

How do you motivate your team?

It’s upbringing and ensuring that they have the chance to do things that they weren’t able to do before. We always allow each one to gain another position and to do more things and feel more empowered. And we all work close together, so it feels like a family, and we just want to make sure that everybody keeps thriving.

What is your favorite dish on the menu?

They’re all favorites. The menu changes, and we try to not stay attached to one dish. The one dish that has changed but stayed the same in the ethos is the Chazuta dessert, which is a macambo, a nutty white chocolate dessert.

Do you have any sustainable initiatives?

We use 100% of everything that we have. We make a lot of ceviche, a lot of pisco sours and all the limes, they do not get thrown away. We use 100% of all of them, they get repurposed.

With the dessert I mentioned, we work with a woman co-op out of the Amazon of Peru in Chazuta, and that’s an extremely sustainable way of keeping up with the motherland.

What do you eat for breakfast?

Eggs on top of toast.

How do you wind down at the end of a shift?

Just go home and sleep. I mellow out, talk to friends, and then get on a computer and pass out.

Do you have a favorite food-related show, book, program, etc.?

I have tons of books, maybe 400 books that I look up to. I just go back and forth from cookbooks to actual story books. The one that probably hit the most was Anthony Bourdain’s first books. Those were very real. I was still very young and they made you look at the kitchen from a different approach. And as you get older, a lot of it was very real. Those books were very mind-touching, heart-feeling.

What advice would you give to a young person who wants to become a chef?

To just keep their head down, keep working to reach for their dreams. Even if they look unachievable, nothing is really out of sight if you just keep working hard at it. So as long as you keep focus, put your head down, stay humble, and let your work showcase that you can get there and do that, it’ll be much faster than preaching and trying to get something that’s not real.

Hero image: Rey Lopez / Causa
Thumb image: Alyssa Bonk / Chef Carlos Delgado