about1
Luis Arce Mota
Chef / Owner
Chef Luis Arce Mota brings years of skill, experience and ambition to the kitchen of La Contenta Oeste. At La Contenta Oeste, it is his goal to showcase his Mexican roots alongside his classical French culinary training, offering Mexican cuisine with French accents.
Luis’ story is archetypal, that of someone starting at the bottom and determinedly working their way up the culinary ladder. Luis hails from Mazatlán, Mexico where his father was a fisherman, and where his love of seafood began. His earliest cooking endeavors occurred high in the mountains of the Sierra Madre Occidental during his military service in the Mexican Army. Emigrating to the United States in 1992, Luis began his culinary career as a dishwasher in Carmine’s Restaurant in Times Square. He also learned more about cooking during his three-year service in the United States Navy Reserve. Ultimately, his early exposure to and love for family cooking and traditions in Mexico primed his eagerness to learn more in New York at every opportunity.
Luis’ initiative and performance were rewarded, and he gained experience in many famous Manhattan kitchens, under the tutelage of renowned chefs including David Bouley, Cesar Ramirez, Michael Lomonaco and Michael Romano. In between stints at Bouley, Windows on the World and Union Square Café, Luis received formal culinary education at the Cordon Bleu in Paris – where he staged at several Parisian restaurants – and the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York. Read More
Luis eventually opened Café Condesa, a very popular and well-reviewed West Village eatery. Café Condesa was a tiny space with an even tinier kitchen containing just an induction stove and convection oven; for Luis these were not obstacles but creative challenges, and he succeeded brilliantly. He then moved on to open Ofrenda where New Yorkers reaped the benefit of what Luis can do in a real kitchen where he offered a menu rich in tradition and heritage and at the same time fun.
La Contenta Oeste is the newest development in Luis’ career as a chef-owner. In this boisterous West Village brasserie, he presents menus highlighting traditional Mexican ingredients while incorporating classic French technique. The goal at La Contenta Oeste is to offer excellent quality at a reasonable price point, with a particular focus on customer service. In addition to an extensive collection of agave spirits, Luis is especially proud of the all-Mexican wine list he has put together for La Contenta Oeste, the first of its kind in the United States.
Luis is honored to have cooked for Andrés Manuel López Obrador, former President of Mexico. He was also formally recognized by the Mexican Senate in 2023 for his outstanding international career and his contributions to the development and promotion of Mexican gastronomy, as well as the Mexican Secretary of Tourism in 2024 for the preservation and promotion of the historical, cultural and gastronomic identity of Mexico.
In what little spare time is available to him, Luis loves to travel. He has traveled around the world and has visited all seven continents, including Antarctica. He especially enjoys scuba diving and sampling and studying the cuisines of every destination he visits. Luis has been married for more than 30 years, and he and his wife Lisa have rescued many animals, including the parrot and turtle that share their home. La Contenta is Luis’ and Lisa’s homage to “Easy Rider,” the iconic 1969 road film, and the El Prado, New Mexico bar featured in its opening scene. ¡Salud!