Chetumal Chef Kevin Chávez to Represent Mexico at S.Pellegrino Young Chef Regional Final

Chetumal, Quintana Roo — Chef Kevin Chávez, a Chetumal native and head chef at the Chablé Yucatán hotel, will represent Mexico at the regional final of the S.Pellegrino Young Chef Academy 2026/2027, a competition set to take place in Panama from Sept. 26 to 30.

Chávez, a graduate of the Universidad Tecnológica de Chetumal (UT Chetumal), will travel to the contest with his mentor, Alejandro Chávez Moreno, with whom he began a process of learning and exchange ahead of the competition.

For the final, the chef will present a signature dish called “Between the Sea and the Backyard,” inspired by the richness of Yucatán and the link between the sea and the backyard plots and ka’anches — traditional household gardens — of local communities. The preparation aims to showcase the ingredients, traditions and work of those who continue to cultivate and preserve that bond with the land, the chef said before his trip.

Another UT Chetumal graduate who has earned international recognition is chef David Jesús Zavala Mora, who was selected among the ten best young chefs in central Europe. His career included a pause in his studies toward a university technical degree so he could work in Argentina. After returning to Chetumal, he opened a pop-up restaurant that operated in the city for three months. He later completed his degree and left the country again, this time to live and work mainly in Germany.

With the date of the regional final confirmed, attention in Chetumal will turn to Chávez’s performance against representatives from other Latin American countries. Officials have not said whether the competition will be broadcast publicly or whether the chef will hold any events in the city before leaving for Panama.