Alex Meyer and Luciana Giangrandi
Alex Meyer & Luciana Giangrandi
Alex graduated from Emory University in Atlanta in 2008 with a degree in economics. Like Luciana, Alex felt the pull toward something outside his studies. The same year, Alex began his career under the guidance of Jon Shook and Vinny Dotolo at Animal Restaurant in Los Angeles. While still working at Animal, he helped Jon and Vinny with the opening of their second restaurant, Son of a Gun. After almost three years in Los Angeles, Alex moved to New York City where he started working at Eleven Madison Park. A few months later, Alex joined the opening team of The Nomad, where less than a year later was given the position of sous chef. It was in this role and at this restaurant where Alex would spend the rest of his three years in New York City. Alex credits his time at Animal as crucial to his appreciation for well-sourced ingredients and thinking outside the box and The Nomad, for incredible attention to detail, technique, and precision.
Shortly after, Alex made the move to Miami with Luciana and successfully opened a food truck called La Pollita, which served traditional and modern tacos in Midtown Garden Center from 2016 to 2017 before moving to its final outpost in Design District until 2019. In late June 2019, Alex and Luciana’s brick and mortar dreams came true with the opening of Boia De, a neighborhood restaurant tucked in a bustling shopping center in Miami’s upper east side. Today, the culinary duo shares equal responsibilities as co-owners and executive chefs of Boia De, serving modern American cuisine with a touch of Italian influence.
Since its opening, the restaurant has garnered a handful of prestigious accolades and honors, including the esteemed title of Eater Miami’s Restaurant of the Year and a James Beard Award semi-finalist nod. Most notably, in 2022, Boia De became one of the first Miami restaurants to attain a coveted Michelin Star, an achievement it has now successfully maintained for two consecutive years.
Luciana grew up in a large, Italian-Latin family in which the dinner table and food were primary focuses each evening, bringing family and extended family together to socialize, trade stories, and continue the tradition.
Although a Miami native, she moved around spending time in Chile, Switzerland, and Italy. After a few years in Europe, Luciana moved to New York City and graduated from the Eugene Lang School of Liberal Arts at The New School in NYC in 2008. With a journalism degree in hand and a head full of dreams of food writing, Luciana attended the Institute of Culinary Education to create a stronger connection with the world she hoped to one day write about. During her internship at the 3-star New York Times restaurant Scarpetta in Manhattan’s Meatpacking District, Luciana fell in love with kitchen life, and what started as a 6-month stint turned in a 3-year tenure. Luciana would go on to work on the opening team of The Nomad before ending her 8 years in New York City in the kitchen of Carbone, the Michelin starred Italian-American restaurant by Major Food Group. During her time at Carbone and Scarpetta, she acquired the skill set to match her passion for Italian cuisine. After her years in NYC, Luciana spent a summer cooking in the kitchen of Ristorante La Dogana, a highly acclaimed restaurant in the hills above the Tuscan coast.
Bringing her career full circle, Luciana returned to Miami with partner Alex Meyer and together they opened La Pollita, a beloved Mexican food truck formerly stationed in Miami Midtown Garden Center before its final outpost in Design District. In June 2019, the two closed up the taco shop and opened Boia De, a 24-seat restaurant and bar in Miami’s charming Buena Vista neighborhood. Today, Luciana and Alex serve as the co-owners and co-executive chefs for the retro-modern restaurant delivering modern American fare with Italian influences.
