'World to Table' Chef Valerie Chang SaysThe BearIs a ‘Great Watch’ but It’s ‘Not True for Me’: ‘You Can Have a Life'

Mar. 15, 2025

Valerie Chang with her James Beard Award.Photo:D A Varela/TNS via ZUMA Press Wire/Shutterstock

D A Varela/TNS via ZUMA Press Wire/Shutterstock

As a fan ofThe Bear, real-lifechef Valerie Changhas thoughts on the world’s favorite fake chef.

“The Bearis a great watch,” she tells PEOPLE of the hit FX show. “Jeremy Allen White, I’m like he has to be a chef.Rosalíawas dating a chef. The guy in theCalvin Klein ad? He’s a chef.”

That said, Chang — an award-winning Peruvian-American chef and owner ofMaty’sin Miami — hopes the intensity portrayed in the show isn’t relatable to all cooks and kitchens. “It’s not true for me,” she says. “With this industry I believe we should allow for more room for mistakes to happen, and that you can have a life.”

“I think sometimes it becomes such of an identity to some chefs that they are in this pursuit of perfection and are willing to sacrifice everything and do whatever it takes,” she adds. “It’s beautiful that I can cook [well], but that should also go hand in hand with my personal life and happiness.”

The Bear costars Jeremy Allen White, Ebon Moss-Bachrach and Ayo Edebri.Emma McIntyre/GA/The Hollywood Reporter via Getty

Emma McIntyre/GA/The Hollywood Reporter via Getty

Chang got to blend the best of her personal and professional worlds at a “World to Table” dinner ahead of theAustin City Limits music festival. The night before the kick off of weekend two, whichDua Lipa,Chappell Roan,Chris Stapletonand more headlined,Changcooked up a one-of-kind, multi-course dinner that transported attendees from Texas to her home country of Peru, if only for the night.

“I’m always happy to represent my country and Miami on everything I do. So it was a go, it was a yes as soon as I heard about it,” she says of signing on to work withAmerican Express and Delta SkyMilesto curate the invite-only experience for Reserve consumer and business cardmembers and their guests.

Chef Valerie Chang at World to Table dinner.American Express

American Express

As the sun set, the spotlight shined on Chang, who along with a handful of fellowResychefs, dished out course after course of Peruvian fare with a Texas twist.

Scallop ceviche at World to Table dinner.American Express

A menu highlight: “The scallop ceviche,” says Chang. “It’s a different way to look at ceviche. It’s covered completely with grapes, so it has a sweetness to it, but it’s also very acidic and has a burnt serrano sauce. That dish speaks to how I view Peruvian food nowadays.”

It’s a staple atMaty’s, the hit Miami restaurant she opened in 2022, named after her grandmother. There you’ll find staff shaving grapes for the go-to appetizer. “It’s going great,” she says of the new eatery that’s hosted its share of celebrity guests. “We’ve been really lucky. We’ve gotten a lot of love and a lot of support from the community, but there have been some growing pains."

Place setting at World to Table dinner.American Express

When she realized school wasn’t her specialty, Chang returned to the food world, first as a server. “Being in a restaurant was the only place that I felt like I had a place and a home, like I could excel at something," she adds.

Alpacas at World to Table Dinner in Austin.American Express

Excel she sure did. In 2019, she openedItamaein the Miami Design District with her father and brother, and started picking up numerous awards and recognitions. After the family branched out with Maty’s, she earned her biggest accolade yet: the2024 James Beard Award for Best Chef: South.

“I’m not sure how it happened, but it was beautiful,” she says of the achievement. “If I knew what I know now, I would go back and really take it in.”

source: people.com