Danny Lledo

The Climb

The line from University of Maryland in College Park to the stove runs through finance, and that background shows in the way Danny Lledo approaches service: measured, disciplined, and exacting. Before cooking full time, he worked as a financial consultant, then brought that same pressure tolerance into kitchens.

Today

Paella sits at the center of Danny Lledo’s work, treated as core craft rather than garnish. In his hands, modern Spanish cuisine keeps contact with memory while moving cleanly into a contemporary room. Remove the quote or replace it with a sourced quotation from Danny Lledó. That kind of inheritance shapes the rest of the menu. The cooking reads as family food refined for service: controlled, balanced, and attentive to detail. At Xiquet, the effect is not nostalgia for its own sake, but translation — a dish language pulled forward without losing its origin.

Signature

Danny's signature dishes include paella Valenciana, RÉMOL, and PRESA IBÈRIC. Each points to a different register in the same kitchen: paella Valenciana for the base line of tradition, RÉMOL for precision, and PRESA IBÈRIC for depth and richness. Taken together, they show how Danny Lledo works modern Spanish cuisine through dishes that stay anchored in origin while still carrying a contemporary edge.

In Their Words Recipe memory is part of the method for Danny Lledo, but it is never left untouched. “I regularly recreate my mom’s recipes for my restaurants, but I adapt them to the format and level of elevation I want my guests to experience.” The practice is clear: preserve the structure, then adjust the presentation and context so the dish can function in a professional dining room. The non-negotiable part is equally clear. “I’m careful never to compromise the flavor or the fundamentals of the dish, though. Those are sacred.” For Danny, the craft is not about stripping a dish from its source; it is about carrying the fundamentals forward intact.

Recognition

Danny's honors include MICHELIN Guide Sommelier of the Year (United States) (2022), MICHELIN Star (2021), RAMMY for Best Formal Fine Dining Restaurant of the Year (2023), and AAA Five Diamond designation (2022). For Bacora Hospitality and Xiquet (since 2020), those recognitions mark a kitchen held to exacting standards, with modern Spanish cuisine kept in firm contact with the flavors that shaped it.