Best Chef in Nashville 2026: Julio Hernandez, Maíz de la Vida
Putting out consistently excellent food should be the base line for any Best Chef candidate. But sometimes it’s a broader mission that sets them apart. Julio Hernandez of Maíz de la Vida undoubtedly produces some of the most exciting food in Nashville, and his progression — from cooking at Hillwood Country Club to selling “Build Your Own Chicken Fajita Bar” family packs at Nectar Urban Cantina during the pandemic to partnering with Chopper by parking his Maíz de la Vida food truck in front of the robot-themed tiki bar — has been gratifying to witness.
Beyond financial success, Hernandez has been driven by a mission and a vision — to bring molino-ground, nixtamalized, heirloom corn to the people of Nashville. It’s right there in the name of his restaurant (“Corn of Life”) and in his personal motto: “sin maíz, no hay país,” meaning “without corn, there is no country.”
By sourcing regional corn varieties from heritage farms across Mexico, Hernandez has introduced the wonderful variety and complexity of real masa to local diners, some of whom probably previously considered blue corn Tostitos to be exotic. Hernandez champions his culture in other ways too, offering his restaurant walls as gallery space for bold works by Mexican painters and ceramicists. His chef collaboration series Ni de Aquí Ni de Allá invites guest chefs into his kitchen to cook and explore the feelings of being “neither from here nor from there” — a feeling some immigrants experience while living in the liminal space between two cultures.
Best of all, Hernandez shares his complicated culture with a sense of joy and generosity. Whether it’s over an after-dinner glass of a new favorite mezcal or at a table in the kitchen watching a Mexico match during the World Cup, Julio Hernandez is an essential culinary voice of Nashville — someone you want to spend time with, and who deserves even more attention.
