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[title]In Mendoza, wine and haute cuisine have always gone hand in hand. And when it comes to icons who propelled this synergy, it’s impossible not to mention Susana Balbo—the entrepreneur and Argentina’s first female winemaker. To understand how that philosophy translates onto the plate, we sat down with Flavia Amad, executive chef of the business group and the mind behind the culinary experience across the winery’s spaces. Flavia is one of the figures who best represents the present of local gastronomy. Technical, sensitive, demanding, and emotional, she moves between the winery and the hotel with the same precision she uses to build a dish. She speaks with firmness and honesty, especially when reflecting on what it means to be a woman in the kitchen and the legacy she hopes to leave.
Flavia Amad: family roots, technique, and a human vision of gastronomy
Her daily routine is intense: tasting menus, complex operations, large teams. But she is also a mother, a wife, and a Mendoza local who needs to unplug. “I love lomito,” she says with a laugh. In her free time, she looks for simplicity: a sandwich at Rincón Gieco or Guchini, a coffee at Monono, a small plate at Gardenia, or a pizza at Bigalia. That blend of fine dining and everyday life also defines her perspective: a gastronomy that is studied, thought out, and executed—but also lived.
Her cuisine combines Arab and Italian roots, academic training in Argentina and the United States, experience in Manhattan, and a gustatory memory that guides her creativity. But it all begins at home: her Italian grandmother and her mother were her first teachers. She remembers a room filled with preserves and flavors that still accompany her today. On her father’s side, with Arab and Spanish heritage, the dishes were different—but just as present in her memory.
From that crossroads comes her current pursuit. “The memories and flavors of my childhood are my base. I add technique, but I want my cooking to be fun, fresh, and honest—to reflect the place and the moment.” For her, seasonality is a daily practice: preserving, storing flavors, respecting timing. “I draw the dishes a lot before making them. I visualize how they should be and then fine-tune through testing,” she says. And although she masters technique, she laughs as she admits: “I cook everything by eye, then translate it into numbers to standardize it.”
“The memories and flavors of my childhood are my base”
Susana Balbo Unique Stays: gastronomy, hospitality, and female leadership
Today, she coordinates an ecosystem that includes gastronomy, tourism, hospitality, and events within Susana Balbo. She also promotes projects that make women’s work visible and approaches the profession from a human, conscious perspective, committed to the product.
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Before fully dedicating herself to cooking, Flavia studied Business Administration. But she soon found her calling and trained at the Escuela Internacional Islas Malvinas, where she completed both a technical degree and a bachelor’s degree in Gastronomic Management. “I like numbers and planning just as much as cooking,” she says, revealing a key combination in her style.
Her leap forward came with Le Cordon Bleu in Florida, where she graduated with honors. She then moved to New York, completing internships at the restaurants of many renowned chefs, including Daniel Boulud and Anthony Bourdain. “I experienced many cultures there, and they all feed into my recipes,” she recalls.
Looking back at Mendoza’s gastronomy, Flavia sees it as different and evolving: “The wine industry was key to that—it created fertile ground for cooks and professionals interested in doing things with greater depth and technique.”
To keep that momentum and continue feeding her desire to create, the chef is always training. She is currently pursuing a diploma in Food Design at UNCuyo. “It’s about understanding the act of eating: products, territory, innovation.” For her, cooking can no longer be thought of only from an aesthetic standpoint—there’s an entire universe behind it. “No matter how classic your cuisine is, you have to understand what’s going on, because it’s much more than what reaches the plate.”
Osadía de Crear, Críos, and La Vida: Flavia Amad’s cuisine across the winery’s spaces
Today, Flavia is Head Chef and Food & Beverage Manager at Susana Balbo Unique Stays, the Wine & Wellness boutique hotel in Chacras de Coria, a member of Relais & Châteaux and awarded two Michelin Keys. She also leads the kitchens of Osadía de Crear and Críos, the winery’s restaurants in Agrelo, where she additionally serves as Manager of Tourism, Hospitality, and Gastronomy.
At the hotel’s La Vida restaurant, she presents her fine dining proposal with a seven-course dinner menu and a more relaxed daytime offering featuring pastas, rice dishes, meats, and shared plates. At Osadía de Crear, she focuses on a highly technical tasting menu, with dishes such as mushrooms “in all their forms,” where zero waste is a method—earning the Michelin Green Star 2025. At Críos, she embraces open flames and a picnic spirit, with simple, flavorful, portable options.
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Seasonal cooking and zero waste: Flavia Amad’s signature
Flavia manages a diverse ecosystem designed for different audiences, all united by the same perspective on Mendoza’s produce and sustainability. Leading this machinery wouldn’t be possible without her teams: “I have right-hand people I rely on. This job is dynamic, but constant team training is what allows you to keep going.” At the same time, none of this would be viable without her close collaboration with Ana Lovaglio Balbo, Director of Hospitality for both the winery and the hotel.
“I have right-hand people I rely on”
Women in gastronomy: the Al Mando project and the community she champions
Outside that rhythm is her personal life. “I’m a mom, and I’m lucky to have a very present husband,” she says when discussing the ongoing challenge of balancing cooking and motherhood in the industry. “It’s not normalized yet—there’s still a huge road ahead in Mendoza and around the world.”
“I’m a mom, and I’m lucky to have a very present husband”
Although her present is expansive, Flavia already thinks about the future—“my retirement,” she jokes. She imagines creating experiences that connect people, projects that bring cooking into everyday life and make it inclusive.
“There were women who paved the way for us. I’ll feel I’ve achieved something when I can look back and see that I helped someone,” she says emotionally. From that place, she promotes Al Mando, the project she leads with Ana, the second generation of the Balbo family, to highlight the work of women chefs, winemakers, head chefs, and producers. “One woman’s visibility helps another. That’s how you tell the whole story.” Three years in, they even envision international expansion.
“I’ll feel I’ve achieved something when I can look back and see that I helped someone”
Along the same lines is Plan Bee, a social inclusion venture she has become an ally and advocate for. “They’re my suppliers at the winery’s tourism shop. It’s my grain of sand. I don’t solve inclusion, but I do something—and it spreads.” She already imagines an event to give them greater visibility.
“At the end of the day, I try to be honest with myself and with others. And if that helps someone, it was worth it,” she reflects. Her path is made of technique, creativity, and sensitivity—but also of something harder to measure: a deep coherence between what she cooks, what she manages, and what she dreams. That balance makes her one of the most compelling and solid figures in Mendoza’s contemporary gastronomy.
Ping Pong
Before a meal, what would you drink? I don’t drink much alcohol, but I’d choose a rosso vermouth with ice, orange, and thyme.
The plan you enjoy most with your family: Traveling, going for walks, doing outdoor activities in nature.
An activity or sport that helps you clear your mind: Running.
A song you listen to over and over: “Autumn Remains,” by Drics.
A place you’d escape to in Mendoza: Vistaflores, in Tunuyán (Uco Valley).
Your city in the world: Mendoza and Panarea, a small Italian island.
A place to eat in Buenos Aires: Santa Inés, in La Paternal.