George Mendes

AMAR

About George Mendes

A first-generation American born to Portuguese immigrants, Chef George Mendes graduated from the Culinary Institute of America and worked for his mentor, David Bouley, at the chef’s original namesake restaurant before honing his talent further at Alain Passard’s Arpege in Paris. After more than three years as Chef de Cuisine at Tocqueville, Mendes left to chart his own course by opening Aldea to critical acclaim and a Michelin star, which he maintained for more than a decade. Mendes opened his popular Portuguese spot, Lupulo, in 2015 and Veranda in 2021. Mendes was named a 2011 Food & Wine Best New Chef and published his first cookbook, My Portugal: Recipes & Stories (Abrams) in 2014.

George Mendes at Raffles Boston

George Mendes has dedicated his illustrious career to giving reverence to the cuisine of his heritage, and Amar is the latest chapter of this lifelong effort. Located in the new Raffles Boston in the Back Bay, Amar offers modern Portuguese cuisine with influences from Boston’s seafaring culture and history. There, Chef Mendes employs ‘refined rusticity,’ with the seafood and vegetable-forward menu, which brings together Portuguese culinary traditions passed down through generations with local flavors sourced from the farmers, fishers and purveyors of Boston and New England, as well as select fish and red carabinero shrimp imported from Portugal. Bringing Portuguese fare of the highest caliber to Boston’s Back Bay is George’s way of returning to his New England roots while leaning into the established landscape of champions of Portuguese cuisine that have been in Boston and its surrounding communities for generations.