Chef Adrianne Calvo didn't plan to become one of the most influential chefs in Miami or anywhere. In fact, her journey started by mistake.

"I was incorrectly placed in a culinary arts class in high school," she tells Restaurant Influencers host Shawn Walchef of Cali BBQ Media. "Total accident. But when Johnson & Wales came in to do a demo, I felt like they were speaking directly to me. That was my lightning strike."

What followed was a full-on pivot. Calvo started entering culinary competitions to raise money for college. Her food began winning on taste, not trends. No smoke or foam, just flavor. One judge urged her to write a cookbook of her winning recipes. She was only 18.

"I didn't even want to do it at first," she says, laughing. "But then I was like, no, I am going to do this." The result was Maximum Flavor, her first of many cookbooks.

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