Karime López has become Mexico’s first woman chef to be awarded a Michelin star.

Head chef at the restaurant Gucci Osteria in Florence, Italy, owned by famous Italian restaurateur Massimo Bottura, López was the only woman in the Italian entries to be awarded a star this year.

A post on the restaurant’s Instagram account to celebrate the achievement said López’s menu “challenges the traditional perception of Italian cuisine, creating playful takes on classic dishes.”

“I am so happy for the entire team at Gucci Osteria . . . this award is a tribute to them and we are thrilled that our passion and commitment have been recognized in this prestigious guide,” López was quoted in the post. “I will continue to challenge myself and to create new experiences for our guests and I am excited for what the next year will bring.”

With this prestigious recognition, the young chef joins the ranks of other illustrious Mexican chefs who have also been awarded a Michelin star, including Carlos Gaytán, Indra Carrillo, Paco Méndez, Cosme Aguilar and Roberto Ruíz.

A native of Querétaro, López has worked in the kitchens of world-famous chefs such as Enrique Olvera of Pujol in Mexico City; Virgilio Martínez of Central in Lima, Peru; René Redzepi of Noma in Copenhagen, Denmark; and Seiji Yamamoto of RyuGin in Tokyo.

She is married to the Japanese chef Takahiko Kondo, head chef at Bottura’s three-Michelin-star restaurant Osteria Francescana in Modena, Italy. The two met while working together at Central, in Lima.

Source: El Universal (sp)

CORRECTION: The Copenhagen restaurant where López worked was incorrectly identified in the previous version of the story.