Janette Gomez
Janette Gomez is the Chef /Owner of The Fig & The Knife and has been artfully creating in the kitchen; one way or another, since she was a little girl alongside her grandmother. Recently relocated to Phoenix from South Florida, she infuses her creations with an artistic approach and a hope that everyone will open their minds and palates to the pure flavors of real food from across the globe.
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Creativity is an inherent part of my life. I need it. I feed off of it (pun intended), and I have so much love for the beauty and complexity of food, I must share it.
My background is not only deeply rooted in the culinary arts, but also in the visual arts; art history and photography. I’m an award-winning fine art photographer and recipe writer. I have travelled extensively, and am honored to have experienced many cultures first hand. There are so many wonderful far off regions that don’t seem so far once you’ve set foot and broken bread with the locals.
While on my travels, I’ve met cooks and chefs from remote villages such as, Thailand, Cambodia & Malaysia. Shopping alongside them at their local markets, and cooking with them in their kitchens. They shared their intricate techniques and exquisite dishes. I was treated to similar experiences in the Australian bush, Maori kitchens in New Zealand, Europe and right here in the US. But, the most emotional was where it all began, cooking with my grandmother. I would spend afternoons prepping the family meals with her, and she would explain each step along the way. And as much as I loved to cook with her, equally memorable was when we finished. We’d turn on the kitchen TV and enjoyed all of Julia Child’s antics and laughed, long before The Food Network existed.
One of the biggest lessons I learned throughout my culinary journey is that we deserve to eat real food, healthy food, free of chemicals and things we can’t pronounce. We should know where our food comes from and cook with passion and we’ll satisfy more than just our stomach’s hunger. This is why my focus is to create dishes using local ingredients, no artificial junk and loads of flavor. I carry this idea into my products and the food I cook for my clients. I teach because I want to demystify that good food is super complicated and only to be enjoyed by those who can afford luxury. Food is beautiful in its purest forms and we deserve it.
Chef Janette Gomez
