Aarón Sánchez Returning for Second Season of Warner Bros. Discovery’s LA Restaurant Series “El Toque de Aarón”

Posted on March 13, 2024 by Tom Castaneda

Aarón Sánchez still has the touch…

The 48-year-old Mexican-American celebrity chef, restaurateur, television personality, cookbook author and philanthropist will return to Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) U.S. Hispanic for more of his Los Angeles restaurant series El Toque de Aarón.

The second season will premiere next month on Discovery Familia and sister network Hogar de HGTV.

In El Toque de Aarón, the celebrity chef – who has been judging Fox’s MasterChef since 2017 takes a Latino-owned LA restaurant each week and attempts to provide the owners with mentorship and a pathway to refresh their businesses.

Sánchez is joined by designer Cris Mercado and project manager Ángel Riveros, as the trio look to get restaurants full of untapped potential back up and running.

El Toque de Aarón is produced in partnership with GroupM and Mecenas-owned outfit Cocina. The show is WBD U.S. Hispanic’s fourth content partnership in the past 24 months with Cocina and its third with Sánchez, who co-founded Cocina as a vehicle to connect with U.S. Hispanic fans. Other titles include El Sabor de Aarón, Qatar Latino and Rumbo Al Mundial.

“Cocina is committed to producing content that resonates deeply with our audience, and El Toque de Aarón stands as a prime example of our vision,” said Emiliano Saccone, CEO of Mecenas. “This series not only entertains but also represents real, positive transformation within the Latino restaurant community.”

Miguel to Receive “Powerhouse Impact Award” from The National Hispanic Media Coalition

Posted on October 22, 2023 by Tom Castaneda

Miguel is a powerhouse… And he’ll soon have the award to prove it.

The 37-year-old half-Mexican American singer and songwriter, who specializes in contemporary and alternative R&B, will be among the honorees at this year’s Impact Awards Gala on Friday, October 27, at the Vibiana in downtown Los Angeles.

Hosted by Francia Raisa and MJ Acosta-Ruiz, the annual celebration honors the contributions of Latino individuals in creating a more inclusive society. The awards are presented by The National Hispanic Media Coalition.

Miguel will receive the Powerhouse Impact Award.

Miguel has had three top 10 albums on the Billboard 200 — Kaleidoscope Dream, Wildheart and War & Leisure.

He’s also had three top 20 hits on the Billboard Hot 100: “Sure Thing,” “Adorn” and J. Cole’s “Power Trip,” on which he was featured.

At the 2013 Grammy Awards, Miguel teamed with Wiz Khalifa to perform “Adorn,” which won best R&B song.

But he’s not the only Latinx honoree this year…

Eva Logoria is set to receive the Icon Impact Award

One of Variety’s 10 Directors to Watch of 2023, Longoria directed Flamin’ Hot, which told the story of the Mexican-American janitor who claims to have invented Flamin’ Hot Cheetos. Longoria was named by People as one of the “Women Changing the World.”

Longoria is also the co-founder of Latino Victory Fund, a movement that seeks to build power in the Latinx community, and Poderistas, a digital lifestyle community that inspires Latinas to leverage their power.

The Impact Awards Gala is just one part of the NHMC’s mission to spotlight the importance of accurate, fair, and positive representation in media.

Here’s the full list of honorees:

Aarón Sánchez – Master Creator Impact Award
Ángel Manuel Soto – Outstanding Film Director Impact Award
Eugenio Derbez – Social Impact Award
Eva Longoria – Icon Impact Award
Gina Torres – Our Voice Impact Award
Jharrel Jerome – Next Generation Impact Award
Jessica Sarowitz – Visionary Impact Award
Julissa Prado – For the People Impact Award
Miguel – Powerhouse Impact Award

Fox Renews Aaron Sanchez’s “MasterChef” for 14th Season

Posted on August 9, 2023 by Tom Castaneda

Aarón Sánchez isn’t leaving the kitchen just yet…

Fox has renewed its long-running competition series MasterChef, featuring the 47-year-old Mexican-American award-winning celebrity chef, restaurateur, television personality, cookbook author and philanthropist, for Season 14.

The announcement comes ahead of the show’s 250th episode.

Gordon Ramsay will return as host alongside co-hosts and judges Sánchez and restaurateur Joe Bastianich on the show, which is based on the BBC format.

The series’ 13th season is known as MasterChef: United Tastes of America and sees the trip judge a cook off from home cooks from four parts of the U.S.

Judges have included Daphne Oz, Graham Elliot, Susan Feniger, Tiffany Derry, Andre Rush and Kelsey Murphy.

MasterChef is produced by Endemol Shine North America and One Potato Two Potato and is based on a format created by Franc Roddam.

Endemol Shine North America Options Aaron Sanchez’s Memoir to Develop TV Scripted Projects

Posted on November 18, 2021 by Tom Castaneda

Art will soon imitate Aarón Sánchez’s life…

The story of the 45-year-old Mexican celebrity chef, restaurateur, television personality, cookbook author and philanthropist is headed for the small screen after Endemol Shine North America optioned his memoir.

The Banijay-backed production company is developing potential scripted projects with Sánchez, one of the judges of Fox’s MasterChef and MasterChef Junior, whose memoir Where I Come From: Life Lessons From a Latino Chef was released in 2019.

Endemol Shine North America Chief Content Officer, Sharon Levy is leading development efforts alongside Flavio Morales and Lisa Fahrenholt.

In his memoir, Sánchez shares his personal journey, as well as the story of his mother, Zarela Martinez, who took him and his twin brother from El Paso, Texas to New York City at a young age, while she chased her dream of owning a restaurant in the Big Apple.

After overcoming many obstacles, Martinez rose to success in the NYC restaurant scene and is now credited with bringing sophisticated Mexican cuisine to America. After losing his father at a young age, he was sent to work with renowned chef Paul Prudhomme in New Orleans at the age of 16. He is now the chef and owner of Johnny Sánchez in New Orleans.

He joined MasterChef, which is produced by Endemol Shine North America, in season 8, and also joined MasterChef Jr. as a judge in season 7.

He is also creative director of Latin lifestyle online platform Cocina and has starred in series such as Chopped and Taco Trip and written two cookbooks and launched the Cooking in Mexican from A to Z podcast with his mother and is also a partner in tattoo shop and museum Daredevil Tattoo in NYC.

“It’s more important than ever to tell genuine stories of what it’s like growing up bicultural in America. We want to share the nuances that are unique to Mexican-American culture and honor those roots, while also hoping audiences from different backgrounds connect to the similarities we share – the struggles, the celebrations, the food, the comedy, the survival instincts… the relentless pursuit of happiness,” said Sánchez. “I came up at a time when food was making its way into pop-culture and cooking in restaurants was our primary form of creative expression, so having this opportunity to develop in the scripted space is something I’m really looking forward to. And I couldn’t be more excited to do it with my Endemol Shine family.”

“America knows and loves Aarón from ‘MasterChef’ and his myriad culinary accomplishments, but most people don’t know the amazing journey and the obstacles that he and his mother overcame to become pioneers of Mexican-American cuisine in this country,” added Levy. “He has truly lived the American dream and we are excited to now be developing his unique story into a dramatic TV series and exploring additional opportunities with Aarón.”

Aaron Sanchez Agrees to One-Year, $4 Million Deal with San Francisco Giants

Posted on February 21, 2021 by Tom Castaneda

Aaron Sanchez has agreed to a giant(s) deal…

The 28-year-old Mexican American professional baseball pitcher has finalized a $4 million, one-year contract with the San Francisco Giants, giving the club another experienced starter to join Johnny Cueto in the rotation.

The Giants said Sanchez could earn up to $2.5 million more in performance bonuses based on starts: $250,000 each for 16 and 18 starts and $500,000 each for 20, 22, 24 and 26 games started. He has been plagued by injuries in recent years.

Sanchez hasn’t pitched since 2019, sitting out last year’s shortened season while recovering from surgery on his pitching shoulder. He went 5-14 with a 5.89 ERA over 27 starts and 131⅓ innings playing for Toronto Blue Jays and Houston Astros.

A 2016 MLB All-Star for the Blue Jays, he made only 20 starts in 2018 and eight starts the year before because of a blister and split fingernail.

The Giants cleared room on the 40-man roster for Sanchez by designating right-hander Trevor Gott for assignment.

Quintana Named to American League All-Star Team

Posted on July 11, 2016 by Tom Castaneda

It’s a special first for Jose Quintana…

The 27-year-old Colombian professional baseball player, a pitcher for the Chicago White Sox, has replaced the Cleveland Indians‘ Danny Salazar on the American League All-Star roster.

A first-time All-Star, Quintana is 7-8 with a 3.21 ERA, sixth in the AL at the start of Sunday. He joins teammate Chris Sale on the AL roster.

Kansas City‘s Wade Davis, Boston‘s Craig Kimbrel and Toronto‘s Marco Estrada also were dropped from the AL pitching staff because of injuries, and Cleveland’s Corey Kluber and Toronto’s Aaron Sanchez were added.

In the National League, Los Angeles‘ Clayton Kershaw and New York‘s Noah Syndergaard got hurt and won’t pitch, along with Stephen Strasburg, who just came off the disabled list, and San Francisco‘s Madison Bumgarner, who starts Sunday. New York’s Bartolo Colon, San Diego‘s Drew Pomeranz and Washington‘s Max Scherzer were added.

In the infield, Aledmys Diaz replaced St. Louis teammate Matt Carpente. In the outfield, Cincinnati’s Jay Bruce and Pittsburgh‘s Starling Marte replaced the Mets’ Yoenis Cespedes and Chicago‘s Dexter Fowler.

Miami‘s Marcell Ozuna and Colorado‘s Carlos Gonzalez entered the starting lineup in place of Cespedes and Fowler.

Sanchez Switching Tongues for His Latest Cooking Program…

Posted on November 7, 2011 by Tom Castaneda

He’s won the hearts of millions on the Food Network… And, now noted chef Aaron Sanchez is hoping to win the corazones of Spanish-speaking viewers.

The 35-year-old Mexican American chef is taking a stab at Spanish-language television with his new show Aaron Loves New York, which premieres this week on the lifestyle cable network Utilisima.

Sanchez, the owner of New York City’s Centrico and Tacombi restaurants, will cook dishes with “people I admire” while taking viewers to iconic spots in the Big Apple, where the El Paso, Texas-born chef grew up.

“It’s a learning process for me as well,” says Sanchez. “I’m the expert, but there are also other experts who inspire me.”

Each of the 13 initial episodes has a specific theme, including an installment dedicated to Cuban music and cuisine with singer David Oquendo and members of his Raices Habaneras band.

“(Viewers) will see my favorite places, where I like to get the ingredients, where I go to eat, the farmers market in Union Square,” says Sanchezd. “In Spanish Harlem I visited a butcher’s shop, a bakery and La Marqueta.”

It’s part of Sanchez’s plan to reach his gente.

“I want the people of Latin America to get to know me, what my path has been,” says Sanchez, who is the son Zarela Martinez, an author of several cookbooks and owner of the acclaimed Café Marimba.

Sanchez currently appears on the Food Network shows Heat Seekers and Chopped. He’s also been featured on the network’s Chefs vs. City.

Aaron Loves New York will debut on Utilisima this Sunday at 8:00 pm ET.

Click here to learn more about Sanchez or to view his recipes.

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