Jorge Vallejo
It is not as if Mexican chef Jorge Vallejo, the creative mind behind Mexico City's lauded restaurant Quintonil, has his hand in a lot of pies. Chablé Maroma represents his only other venture—but chemistry and history proved key. "Some time ago, the Gutierrez family came to me to talk about their project at Chablé Maroma," he recalls. "I had never been involved in a business other than my restaurant, Quintonil, and we always thought if we were going to expand, it had to be with someone we could trust." The resort's ethos of modern sophistication and respect for tradition—along with a healthy dose of flexibility and experimentation—proved a perfect fit. "The relationship between us has always been fluid," Vallejo says describing his partnership with the Gutierrez family. "We think the same way about hospitality, so our relationship has always been very natural. And when we saw the project, we loved it."