A father, daughter and son opened a tiny restaurant here in Miami and were nominated for one of the highest honors in the food world.
The story began when Fernando Chang had to leave Peru during an economic crisis. He left his kids, Val and Nando, behind with family.
They didn’t see each other for years. But they were reunited in Miami.
Years later, they opened a family restaurant. They serve a fusion of Peruvian and Japanese food. The restaurant, named Itamae, combines what their father learned as a trade – making sushi – and the home cooking Val and Nando learned with family in the town of Chiclayo, Peru.
They became known in Miami as The Chang Gang.
Fernando, Nando and Val have been nominated as co-chefs for a James Beard Award. It’s called the Oscars of the food world. The Beard Foundation celebrates the people behind America’s food culture.
It was a big year for South Florida. The foundation named 14 chefs, restaurants, bakers and bars locally as semifinalists.
The Changs are usually hard at work at the restaurant. But on the Jan. 30 episode of Sundial, we speak with them about their family restaurant, cooking together and Nando's rapping career.
On Sundial's previous episode, we spoke with legendary musician, Paquito D’Rivera. We talked about his illustrious career, his escape from Cuba and why he recently donated his archives to the University of Miami.
Listen to Sundial Monday through Thursday on WLRN, 91.3 FM, live at 1 p.m., rebroadcast at 8 p.m. Missed a show? Find every episode of Sundial on your favorite podcast app, such as Apple Podcasts, Stitcher and Spotify.
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