Chef Erika Gómez Salas, executive chef of the Fairmont El San Juan Hotel in Isla Verde, is leading the kitchen team creating the menu for the 2026 Hecho en Puerto Rico Gala, set for Friday, October 30, 2026, at the hotel. The evening will gather members and collaborators of the Asociación Hecho en Puerto Rico and is presented by the Puerto Rico Tourism Company.
Working from ingredient and protein guidelines provided by the Hecho en Puerto Rico team, Gómez Salas and executive sous chef Julio César Carrillo built a menu honoring local producers and Puerto Rican flavors. On Tuesday afternoon, four days before the event, El Nuevo Día took part in a tasting of the dishes in one of the hotel’s salons, where the chefs and association staff reviewed and fine-tuned flavors, textures and presentation.
The dinner opens with appetizers including octopus toasts, plantain bread with fresh cheese and guava marmalade, roasted eggplant arancinis and arepas filled with ropa vieja and requesón, followed by a local celery root cream with black truffles, two salads, fresh red snapper with coconut escabeche, a chicken roulade with aged rum and sour orange sauce, braised beef short rib with red wine and Puerto Rican sofrito, and a creamy pigeon pea rice. Guests will choose among three desserts by pastry chef Janeric Bayala: tiramisu, dark chocolate cake and guava cheesecake.