The Live-Fire Tamer

Bruno Salas

Bruno grew up tending the asador at his family's roadside parrilla outside Mendoza, where he learned that fire is an ingredient, not a setting. After a decade running open-hearth kitchens from Buenos Aires to a wood-fired pintxos bar in San Sebastián, he stopped chasing regional labels and started teaching the thing underneath all of them: how to read a coal bed, where to rest a fillet, when char becomes bitter and when it becomes glory. He now cooks everything — fish, fowl, vegetable, shellfish — on the same logic of flame, smoke, and patience.

Live-Fire GrillingMediterraneanArgentine Asado

Voice · primal, precise, unhurried, sensory, encouraging

Signature Dishes

The essential curation of Bruno's favorites.

55 MIN

Charred Buckwheat and Eggplant Fritters with Garlic Yogurt

Smoky charred eggplant and nutty buckwheat bound into crispy fritters, finished with a bright garlic yogurt sauce that cuts through the char. A primal, satisfying dish built on flame, texture, and balance.

22 MIN

Fire-Blistered Scallop Bites with Cantaloupe and Mint

Caramelized scallops kissed by open flame, their sweet brininess tempered by cool cantaloupe and a bright mint-oil finish. A study in fire and fresh.

45 MIN

Coal-Roasted Fennel and Lamb Skewers with Charred Lemon

Tender chunks of lamb threaded onto skewers alongside thick-cut fennel, roasted over hot coals until blistered and fragrant, finished with halves of lemon charred until the edges turn black and sweet. A squeeze of that smoky acid, a drizzle of olive oil, and you have fire doing what it does best.

45 MIN

Fire-Kissed Butternut Squash with Smoked Paprika and Rosemary

Butternut squash halves charred over open flame until deeply caramelized, finished with a bright lemon-rosemary oil and smoky paprika.

30 MIN

Smoked Paprika Shrimp Skewers with Charred Lemon and Garlic

Plump shrimp coated in smoky paprika and garlic oil, threaded on skewers and grilled over fierce heat until blistered and pink. Charred lemon halves and roasted garlic cloves served alongside add bright, smoky acid to cut through the richness.

35 MIN

Coal-Charred Pinto Bean Smash with Smoked Paprika and Garlic

Blistered pinto beans smashed in a searing cast iron with whole charred red pepper, finished with smoked paprika, raw garlic, bright lemon and a generous pour of olive oil. The fire does the heavy lifting here.

30 MIN

Charred Cantaloupe with Mint and Rice Vinegar

Thick-cut cantaloupe wedges charred directly over live coals, finished with a sharp rice-vinegar drizzle, grassy mint, and a veil of olive oil. The fire concentrates the melon's sugar into something almost smoky; the vinegar cuts straight through like a cold stream.

60 MIN

Ember-Roasted Pumpkin with Honey and Star Anise

Whole pumpkin roasted over fierce embers until the skin blisters and the flesh turns silky-sweet, finished with a warm honey glaze spiked with star anise — primitive, smoky, and unapologetically bold.

25 MIN

Fire-Kissed Pineapple with Sesame and Brown Sugar

Pineapple wedges blistered over fierce heat, their sugars concentrating into a smoky caramel, finished with toasted sesame and a bright squeeze of lemon — primal sweetness cut by char and acid.

45 MIN

Salmon with Smoky Chimichurri and Charred Peppers

Wood-fired salmon fillets with blistered skin served alongside charred bell peppers and a vibrant smoky chimichurri that cuts through the richness with bright acid and fresh herbaceous heat.

60 MIN

Lamb Chops with Smoked Paprika and Chickpeas

Thick-cut lamb chops charred over high heat, served atop smoky paprika-braised chickpeas with a bright lemon-olive finish. Fire and patience meet garlic and acid in this primal, protein-forward plate.

35 MIN

Mixed Vegetable Skewers with Olive Oil and Lemon

Char-blistered vegetable skewers kissed by flame, finished with bright lemon and garlic-infused olive oil. A live-fire side that holds its own next to any protein.

30 MIN

Grilled Corn with Feta, Lime and Herb Oil

Smoky charred corn tossed in a vibrant cilantro and garlic herb oil, finished with crumbled feta and a bright squeeze of lime. The primal heat of the grill caramelizes the corn while the herb oil ties it all together.

45 MIN

Duck Breast with Charred Beets and Rosemary

Duck breast seared skin-side down until the fat renders into a crackling crust, rested and sliced over smoky charred beets kissed by rosemary and bright lemon. A primal, precise plate where fire is the star.

28 MIN

Garlic Shrimp Skewers with Lemon and Parsley

Plump shrimp kissed by flame, glazed in garlicky oil and brightened with lemon. A simple skewer done right over live fire.

45 MIN

Charred Leeks and White Bean Stew

A smoky, primal stew where leeks are charred over high heat until blistered and sweet, then nestled into a velvety white bean broth. Bright lemon and rosemary cut through the smoke at the end, just as the fire gods intended.

40 MIN

Mussels with Charred Fennel and Leek

Briny mussels steam open over a smoky bed of charred fennel and leek, finished with a drizzle of garlic oil and bright lemon. The fire does the heavy lifting — you just learn to read it.

170 MIN

Beef Short Ribs with Char and Crushed Garlic

Bone-in beef short ribs seared over live coals, finished with a smashed garlic-and-lemon finish that cuts through the smoke and char. This is primal cooking at its most honest.

120 MIN

Whole Chicken Ember-Roasted with Rosemary and Lemon

A whole chicken roasted directly in ember heat, stuffed with lemon and rosemary, finished with blistered skin and a bright acid squeeze.

43 MIN

Smoked-Paprika Lamb Chops on the Asador

Bone-in lamb chops rubbed with smoked paprika and garlic, charred over live coals until crusty and rosy within, finished with lemon and rosemary.

35 MIN

Coal-Kissed Tuna with Charred Lemon and Rosemary

Thick-cut tuna seared over fierce heat until a smoky char crust forms, then finished with bright acid from charred lemon and the piney perfume of fresh rosemary. A primal, simple celebration of fire and sea.

40 MIN

Ember-Blistered Eggplant and Pepper Plata

Whole eggplants and thick-sliced bell peppers charred directly over embers until the skin blackens and the flesh turns silky and smoke-sweet, finished with garlic oil, lemon, and fresh rosemary.

40 MIN

Rosemary Mushroom and Pepper Skewers

Mushrooms absorb whatever surrounds them — here that means garlic, rosemary, and olive oil soaked in before they go onto the grate. Bell pepper threads between them on the skewer, its edges blackening faster, providing contrast in texture and a sweetness that the rosemary pulls into something almost resinous. Lemon at the end is the cut that separates the woodsy from the heavy.

90 MIN

Smoky Octopus and Potato Hash

Octopus earns its tenderness before it earns its char — once it is yielding all the way through, the pieces go onto high heat to caramelize at the edges. Potato crisps in the same olive oil alongside garlic and smoked paprika, and torn tomato collapses into the pan to pull everything into a loose, fragrant hash. Every bite has a different texture and that is exactly right.

35 MIN

Grilled Salmon with Charred Lemon and Dill

Salmon has enough fat to protect itself on a hot grill — press down gently at the start so the skin makes full contact, then leave it alone until the flesh has turned opaque halfway up the fillet. Lemon halves go cut-side down on the same grate, caramelizing until their juice is sweet and slightly smoky. Dill and garlic stirred through olive oil rest on the fish the moment it comes off the heat.

30 MIN

Charred Zucchini Salad with Feta and Parsley

Zucchini needs high, dry heat to shed its water and concentrate into something worth eating — a grill or a screaming-hot griddle, nothing in between. The blistered planks go down still warm onto a plate, and the feta crumbled on top begins to soften at the edges immediately. Lemon, garlic, parsley, and olive oil are the dressing, and they ask for nothing more.

55 MIN

Smoky Chickpea and Sausage Stew

Sausage goes in first, broken up and browned until the pan has a proper fond, then garlic and onion soften in what is left. Smoked paprika blooms in the fat before the tomato and chickpeas join — the legumes are there to absorb and carry the stew's character, not to bulk it out. It thickens slowly into something rustic and deeply savory that improves as it sits.

25 MIN

Grilled Corn Salad with Feta and Lime

Husked corn goes straight over the flame, rotating until char marks appear on every side and the kernels at the edges are just beginning to pop. Once cool enough to cut, the charred kernels fall into a bowl with diced bell pepper, crumbled feta, and a handful of cilantro. Lime and olive oil is the whole dressing, and the smokiness of the corn makes it more than enough.

45 MIN

Cumin-Lime Pork Loin Skewers

Pork loin cut into generous pieces and given time with cumin, smoked paprika, garlic, lime, and olive oil before the coals are ready — not hours, but enough for the spices to pull into the meat. Over high heat the outside tightens quickly and the fat edges crisp, while the interior stays just past pink and juicy. Lime squeezed at the table is not optional.

55 MIN

Charred Pepper and Tomato Soup

The peppers and tomatoes go directly over the flame until the skins blister and blacken in places — that char is not damage, it is depth. Softened with garlic and yellow onion in olive oil and rounded out with smoked paprika, the blended soup carries a gentle, layered heat that is warm rather than sharp. Nothing here is meant to be subtle.

From the Pantry

Signature staples

olive-oilgarlicsmoked-paprikalemonrosemarysaltbell-peppereggplant

Favorite tools

GrillTongsCastIronSkilletChefKnife

Reaches for

whole and bone-in proteinssturdy charrable vegetableshigh-smoke-point fatfresh acid to cut the smoke

Steers clear of

delicate microgreens that wilt near flamepre-marinated wet mixes that steam instead of searpowdered flavor crutches

Flavor Profile

The Loves

charsmokeblistered skinbright acid against fatgarlic-and-oil simplicity

The Defaults

a finish of olive oil, lemon, flaky salt and a single bold herb

The Avoids

acrid over-burnmuddy gray steamingtimid heatmasking sauces that hide the fire