Born in Medellín, Colombia, Juan Manuel Barrientos—known as Juanma—began his culinary career studying at traditional culinary schools before training under famed Japanese chef Iwao Komiyama in Buenos Aires. “I like the mysticism and purity of Japanese cuisine; its perfection; the complexity of its simplicity,” Barrientos says.
Three years later, intrigued by modernist cuisine and avant-garde techniques, he moved to Spain to train under Juan Mari Arzak at his innovative Basque restaurant, Arzak. The head-spinning, eye-opening experience shifted the young chef’s perspective and clarified his vision for the next steps in his culinary journey. When he returned home, his goal was to create a restaurant that blended traditional techniques, modern approaches, and Colombian ingredients.
In 2007, at 23, the chef opened the first elcielo—meaning “sky” or “heaven” in Spanish—in Medellín. It was a challenging environment for a forward-thinking restaurant. “It is a traditional city with conservative people, not in a political way, but in the sense that they were mostly eating beans, rice, and meat—not avant-garde cuisine,” Barrientos says. “There were two or three great restaurants, but they featured classic European cuisines.”
Despite his anxiety, his modern Colombian tasting menu was an out-of-the-box hit. But the stratospheric success had a dark side—“a tsunami of responsibilities,” Barrientos says—that tore through his life. “I was stressed; I gained weight; I couldn’t sleep; I was yelling a lot in the kitchen.”
He regained his footing with support from family, reconnections with friends, and healthier routines. From there, it was onward and skyward. elcielo expanded to Bogotá in 2011, then Miami three years later—earning a Michelin star in 2022 with Florida’s first guide—and to Washington, D.C., in 2020, which received a Michelin star in 2021. Today, the 41-year-old chef is constantly in transit between his restaurants and beyond. “I take a hundred flights a year, but I change my luggage in Colombia,” he says.
