Camila Olarte, Executive Chef, Laurel Miami Beach
Camila Olarte is the executive chef of Laurel Miami Beach, bringing more than 15 years of culinary and hospitality experience shaped by some of the world’s most acclaimed kitchens, including Francis Mallmann’s Los Fuegos and Thomas Keller’s The Surf Club and The French Laundry.
Raised in a large family where the dining table was central to daily life, Olarte discovered her passion for cooking early and pursued formal training at Gato Dumas in Colombia, graduating at the top of her class, before earning a master’s degree in French culinary technique from Le Cordon Bleu in Lima, Peru. After relocating to Miami to study under top chefs, she trained in open-fire cooking and butchery at Los Fuegos and later joined the opening team at The Surf Club Restaurant, contributing to its first Michelin star.
In 2020, she was selected for a nearly yearlong placement at the three-Michelin-starred French Laundry, returning to The Surf Club as sous chef before expanding her leadership through consulting work with Chef Brad Kilgore for Rosewood Hotels and SHVO. Olarte’s accolades include being named a semifinalist in the 2019-2020 San Pellegrino Young Chef Competition, receiving The Surf Club’s Outstanding Employee of the Year “Bacon Award” in 2019, and being recognized by Miami New Times as one of the “Five Female Chefs to Watch.”