i. Biography
Danile Maldonado is the chef of URKO in Quito, where he has been chef and owner since 2015. In a city that rewards focus and patience, Maldonado has built a practice that runs on both: engineering’s precision carried into kitchen work, then extended into the demands of two restaurants with a defined point of view. The path was not linear, but the combination gives the work its structure. One discipline taught exactness; the other demands speed, judgment, and long hours. Those pressures meet in his current role.
Coming Up
Engineering came first, then the kitchen, and Danile Maldonado moved from one to the other by leaving the desk for the heat of service. The shift was from screen work to a profession built on movement, timing, and constant decisions. Since 2015, he has been chef and owner of URKO (since 2015) and since 2017 chef and owner of ANKER (since 2017). Those roles show a chef who has built a working life across two addresses while keeping both attached to his name.
Where They Are Now
Since 2015, Maldonado has held the chef and owner role at the Quito restaurant. In practice, that means the work is not only on the pass but in the daily setting of pace and direction. The title marks the center of his current work in the capital. That kind of responsibility asks for concentration. The restaurant runs day by day, the city stays in the background, and the chef keeps the operation moving. For Maldonado, the role is the point where earlier training and present ambition meet.
In Their Words “I spent a few years working as an engineer, but I got bored of sitting in front of a computer for so many hours.” The line is direct, and it explains the change cleanly. It names the limits of an orderly office routine and points to the appeal of kitchen work: physical, immediate, and harder to separate from the body. The sentence marks a beginning and a duration. URKO is not only a Quito venue in the record; it is the place where Maldonado’s work after engineering took shape and where his role as chef and owner became fully established.
Profile updated July 2026
FAQ
Asked of Danile
What is Danile Maldonado's current role?
Danile Maldonado is chef of URKO in Quito and has been its chef and owner since 2015.
Where did Danile Maldonado work before?
Before his restaurant work, Maldonado worked as an engineer.
Who is Danile Maldonado?
Chef at URKO.
Where is URKO based?
Quito.
Where else has Danile Maldonado worked?
URKO in Quito.
