Velas Resorts Welcomes Guest Chefs for Puerto Vallarta's Festival Gourmet Internacional 2026

Grand Velas Riviera Nayarit, Velas Vallarta and Casa Velas Host Special Dining Experiences During The Festival's 31st Edition

Puerto Vallarta, Mexico (November 11, 2026) - Velas Resorts' three Puerto Vallarta-Riviera Nayarit properties, Grand Velas Riviera Nayarit, Velas Vallarta, and Casa Velas, will take part in Festival Gourmet Internacional (FGI) 2026. Velas Resorts participates annually by inviting a guest chef to each hotel to create a special menu for guests during the festival evenings. The menu is included in the all-inclusive rate for guests staying at the hotel. Now in its 31st edition, the festival brings together more than 25 host restaurants and more than 50 chefs, including those recognized by the MICHELIN Guide, the 50 Best list and Culinaria Mexicana. The 2026 program includes 15 gourmet events across three destinations: Puerto Vallarta, Riviera Nayarit and Tepic.

At Grand Velas Riviera Nayarit, guest chef Andrés Fernándes León will offer a six-course tasting menu at Piaf restaurant from November 13 to 15. Fernándes León is the founder of Cascajal restaurant in Bogotá, Colombia, where his concept combines French technique with local Colombian ingredients. For the festival, he pays tribute to French gastronomy, the foundation of his culinary training, while reinterpreting it through his own philosophy and the experiences of his career. A Franco-Colombian chef born in Paris, he trained at Ferrandi Paris and worked at MICHELIN-starred kitchens including Château Les Crayères in Reims, Lasserre in Paris under Alain Ducasse, and Esquisse in Tokyo, before working in Melbourne at Vue de Monde, among other restaurants. He has been part of Bocuse d'Or Colombia since 2022, was named Revelation of the Year in Colombia in 2025 and became a Maître Cuisinier de France in March 2026. Grand Velas Riviera Nayarit chef Cristian Cupul will also take part in the program. For outside guests, the tasting menu is $150 USD per person with wine pairing and $115 USD per person without wine pairing.

At Velas Vallarta, guest chef Victor Howard will present a menu from November 13 to 22. Appetizers include Pork Belly Ravioli, fresh pasta filled with smoked pork belly and Edam cheese in a roasted baby bell pepper sauce, and Beet Tartare, made with roasted beetroot tossed with Dijon mustard and mezcal and served with goat cheese, Brie, toasted almonds and crispy fried capers. Main courses include a brisket smoked slowly for 12 hours and served with grilled roasted cauliflower purée and a garden vegetable salad, and Texas-Style Barbecue, a smoked beef tongue stuffed with oxtail and beef cheek barbacoa, finished with demi-glace and served over black garlic mashed potatoes with truffle oil. Desserts are Jericaya, a smoked custard infused with cinnamon, baked and served in a coconut shell with vanilla sauce and edible flowers, and Mezcalero's Bone Marrow, filled with smoked mezcal cream, brûléed with rosemary sugar and served over coffee nibs. Velas Vallarta will also host a cooking class during the festival, in which hotel guests are welcome to learn and prepare pork belly lollipops. Howard will also take part in the festival's closing event, Evento de Clausura Puerto Vallarta: BBQ & Wine, held on the beach at sunset in front of the hotel. The event features live grilling by Howard and his team of pitmakers, four-time BBQ world champions in the United States, along with more than 30 wines from Viparmex and an open bar with cocktails. For outside guests, the dinner menu is approximately $100 USD per person, and the closing event is $150 USD per person.

At Casa Velas, guest chef Nahúm Velasco will present a six-course menu at the hotel's Tau Beach Club, from November 13 to 22. The menu features dishes that have been part of the Cocina de Autor at sister property Grand Velas Riviera Maya menu over the years, alongside creations developed exclusively for the occasion. It opens with refreshing tuna, served with pistachio, passion fruit purée and Clamato, followed by tortilla soup with pickled mussels. The catch of the day is served with green pipián and hoja santa, and the beef course features beef tenderloin with piquillo pepper purée, garlic cheese, almonds and dates. For dessert, Cereal for Dinner combines freeze-dried fruit, pistachios, pineapple and coconut soup. A vegetarian course, The Milpa in Pipián, with roasted zucchini, green pipián and hoja santa, is also part of the menu. Velasco is the Executive Chef at Grand Velas Riviera Maya, a position he has held since 2024, where he leads the restaurant Cocina de Autor. The restaurant was awarded one Michelin star following the arrival of the Michelin Guide in Mexico in 2024. Velasco is originally from Mexico City and decided at 17 to become a cook. He formalized his training at the Ambrosia Culinary Center, which opened the door to Spain. He later arrived in Playa del Carmen to work at Cocina de Autor under Xavier Pérez Stone, then moved to Copenhagen to work with chef Rasmus Kofoed at Geranium. After returning to Playa del Carmen, he joined Martin Berasategui's restaurant Passion, until Pérez Stone, Mikel Alonso and Bruno Oteiza invited him to help lead Cocina de Autor at Grand Velas Riviera Maya. At Cocina de Autor, his approach centers on respect for the product, refined technique and continued creativity.

For more information please visit https://www.velasresorts.com/.

About Velas Resorts

Velas Resorts in Riviera Maya, Puerto Vallarta, Riviera Nayarit, and Los Cabos have earned 70 AAA Diamonds, including the prestigious Five Diamond Award. Other esteemed international awards for services and facilities include one MICHELIN Star for Cocina de Autor restaurant in both Los Cabos and Riviera Maya, Virtuoso's Best Family Program, Forbes Travel Guide Five Star Award for SE Spa, and TripAdvisor's Top Hotels in the World, among others. Offering unparalleled all-inclusive experiences, properties include Grand Velas Los Cabos, with dramatic ocean views and unique spaces infusing every area of the resort; Grand Velas Riviera Nayarit, which enjoys a long stretch of pristine beach and a dramatic backdrop of the Sierra Madre mountains; and Grand Velas Riviera Maya, offering a sophisticated resort experience in the Caribbean with jungle and beach settings. Velas Vallarta is a family-friendly resort in Puerto Vallarta, offering spacious suites, gourmet dining, and spa treatments with ocean and Sierra Madre views on 10 beachfront acres along Banderas Bay. Casa Velas is a boutique adults-only hotel located on the Marina Vallarta Golf Course where guests have beach access at Táu Beach Club, a casual, relaxed atmosphere overlooking the ocean, with a jacuzzi, pool, delectable cuisine, and an expansive event space. Mar del Cabo, a boutique hotel on Mexico's Baja Peninsula, is the only European Plan property. Opened January 2024, Grand Velas Boutique Los Cabos is a new 79-suite resort and concept in the all-inclusive space. Velas Resorts was built by Eduardo Vela Ruiz, Founding President of Velas Resorts. Juan Vela Ruiz is Chief Executive Officer of the company. Explore tips, recipes, lifestyle and travel trends, and the latest news about Velas Resorts on the digital mag: www.velasmagazine.com.