i. Biography
Corn is the working material at Nixta Taqueria in Austin, Texas: heirloom kernels from Mexico and Oaxaca, masa ground in-house, and nixtamalization handled as part of the restaurant’s daily structure. Edgar Rico keeps the grain in the foreground not as decoration, but as the base technique that determines aroma, texture, and the shape of the meal. The taco and tostada format at the restaurant opened with Sara Mardanbigi gives that corn work a direct service language. Mexican heritage and American place meet through masa, smoke, crunch, brightness, and heat, with the grain carrying the longer memory rather than sitting behind the filling.
The Route
Formal training gave the craft its early structure: The Culinary Institute of America and U.S. State Department Culinary Corps set Edgar Rico inside discipline, repetition, and professional kitchen habits before Nixta Taqueria defined his public work. Trainee roles at Pujol in Mexico and Craft in Los Angeles placed that foundation alongside kitchens known for rigor, restraint, and modern restaurant practice. The taco and tostada are familiar forms, but the cooking does not depend on familiarity alone. Rico’s work turns on process: corn soaked and changed through nixtamalization, masa handled for texture, acidity and richness balanced, and a finished plate made to read plainly without being careless. The elemental direction became the restaurant’s operating center when Rico became chef and co-owner of Nixta Taqueria (since 2019). Training and heritage are present, but neither is treated as a fixed script; corn remains the anchor for a contemporary Mexican-American kitchen.
Now
Since 2019, Rico has been executive chef and co-owner of Nixta Taqueria in Austin, Texas, where the cooking is Mexican-American and centered on tacos, tostadas, heirloom corn, and nixtamalization. The restaurant’s working language is masa, salsas, vegetables, chiles, fresh garnishes, and corn made fragrant and pliant through time. Its clarity comes from narrowing the focus and staying with it. The clearest statement of the kitchen’s frame comes from Rico himself: “My food crosses cultures and generations, but the main focal point being corn.” The line names the method as much as the subject. Place, family, and generation move through the food, but the grain sets the terms. Sikil P’aak shows how that focus extends beyond the tortilla: pumpkin seed dip with Roma tomatoes, chiles, puffed amaranth, and crudités. Seeds, vegetables, and chile carry the dish, while the broader taco and tostada vocabulary keeps masa as a starting point rather than a background element. Personal food, in this kitchen, depends on historical attention. Nixta is a place to cook tacos and corn while engaging Mexican heritage and the importance of understanding history when making personal food; the immediate pleasure of the plate is tied to that responsibility.
Accolades
Edgar Rico has received Food & Wine Best New Chef (2023). Edgar's honors include MICHELIN Guide Texas Young Chef Award (2024), James Beard Foundation Award, Emerging Chef (2022), and Best New Chef (2023). The recognition has followed a kitchen built from one of the oldest ingredients in the Americas and from familiar forms treated as serious craft: tacos, tostadas, masa, and nixtamalization used to make personal food with historical depth.
Profile updated July 2026
FAQ
Asked of Edgar
What is Edgar Rico's current role?
Edgar Rico is chef at Nixta Taqueria — Mexican.
Where did Edgar Rico train or study?
Edgar Rico trained at The Culinary Institute of America and U.S. State Department Culinary Corps.
What recognition has Edgar Rico received?
MICHELIN Guide Texas Young Chef Award (2024).
