Afro-Brazilian Executive Chef Creates Passion with Fresh Flavors

Our September article for Being Latino focuses on Amali’s Executive Chef Nilton Borges, Jr., an Afro-Brazilian from Rio de Janeiro.

Executive Chef Nilton Borges, Jr.

In life, we know expectations count. They shape how we live, the choices we make and the dreams we allow ourselves to pursue.

“When people come here and see me and Junior (Chef Borges) coming from the kitchen they are like “Wow.” I think they expect to see Gordon Ramsey (a British chef).” Martell Fonville, Amali Restaurant Sous Chef, was referring to some diners being surprised seeing an Afro-Brazilian and African-American at the restaurant’s helm.

Amali Restaurant’s Executive Chef Nilton Borges, Jr, an Afro-Brazilian from Rio de Janeiro, has high expectations for himself, his cuisine and his mission to serve locally sourced, flavorful food.

Amali, opened in November 2011, offering Mediterranean cuisine, incorporates the freshest ingredients through direct partnerships with vendors such as sourcing seafood from a Long Island fisherman where fish is line caught. According to Chef Borges, this process is the freshest, environmentally safest way of catching fish.  Other methods such as trawling and netting can involve pulling fish for miles behind boats, producing stressed fish.

Chef Borges says, “We don’t want to be just another restaurant, that’s not what we want. We want to bring something else, from the freshest food, the finest service, and a combination of other things. When you come here, you might not guess you could get food like we prepare and serve here. We want to show that we are bringing something unique.”

Read the full article on Being Latino.