Until one year his aunt insisted it was time to make a traditional American Thanksgiving meal – one that involved roasting a turkey and preparing the many side dishes that go with it. Sensing his mother’s frustration, Mario volunteered to assist. When they looked up again, it was 6 AM – they had literally stayed up all night, together making a beautiful Thanksgiving meal for the family. Mario was immediately struck by the power of food to connect people, cultures, and families.
Meet Chef Mario, a principal chef for Areas for nearly a decade. He is a man whose passion and vision have revolutionized the fine dining experience for countless travelers. Along with a handful of other industry pioneers, he took in-airport dining from tired-looking pre-packaged salads and sandwiches to a true epicurean experience.
But he never expected to go down the path he eventually followed. Fate often has a way of making decisions for us, he points out. On the first day of culinary school, he was appointed “Chef of the Day,” putting him in charge of the kitchen. Everything Mario had learned from cooking with his mother, from spending time with each of his aunts to learning their individual cooking styles – it all came together. Mario met his destiny, and he’s never looked back.
“This isn’t a career that I chose – it’s a career that chose me,” says Chef Mario. In fact, it practically chased him down. He had a foundation for all things culinary since that moment he understood the power of food, but it was a good friend who persuaded him to join the world of airport concessions in 2013, and ever since elevating the dining experience in airports has become his calling.
Today Chef Mario oversees the AREAS food & beverage operations at Los Angeles International Airport, including Ford’s Filling Station, a popular street-side LA restaurant that he helped conceptualize.
Owner Ben Ford (whose father happens to be actor Harrison Ford) persuaded Mario to leave the prestigious Hilton Hotel in Napa Valley to oversee the restaurant location in LAX’s Terminal 5. Once again, Chef Mario and destiny met – and he’s never looked back.
Always thinking of how to improve the quality of the food he serves, Mario plans to use a vacant section of the airport to plant fresh herbs. “I see unused space where I envision a garden; repurposing it to grow herbs to be used in our menus,” he says.
Perhaps destiny is calling again, and Chef Mario will have future chapters to share with his Areas family.