For Chef Adrian Torres, a passion for cooking began at home and took root in an Aldine ISD classroom. Today, that passion has taken him to the top of the culinary world.
Torres, who grew up in Aldine, was named the 2026 James Beard Award winner for Emerging Chef for his work as executive chef at Maximo in West University Place. The James Beard Foundation describes the Emerging Chef award as recognizing a chef who demonstrates exceptional talent, character, and leadership and is likely to make a significant impact in the years ahead.
But long before Torres stood on a national stage accepting one of the culinary industry’s highest honors, he was a young Houstonian fascinated by food…