The Federalists

• Cesar Zapata aka. Stove Master & Pig Whisperer

  

  Cesar Zapata is the Stove Master and Pig Whisperer at The Federal Food, Drink & Provisions and Executive Chef of the Pious Pig Restaurant Group.

  After nearly a decade behind the range at numerous restaurants, Zapata is finally getting the recognition he deserves. His riffs on classic Americana cuisine at the Federal Food, Drink & Provisions, ambitious efforts at the Vietnamese,/hip hop-inspired Phuc Yea! (Miami’s first pop restaurant), and ‘haute stoner food’ at The Blue Piano have all garnered him critical acclaims as well as a touch of notoriety for always thinking out of the box. After launching three projects in the last year, one thing is for sure, Zapata has a penchant for giving the classics a quirky twist along with a dusting of whimsy.

  Zapata studied and graduated from the Art Institute in Houston in 2003. From the get go, Zapata only wanted to learn from the best; he opted to hone his skills at luxury hotels and fine dining restaurants. Zapata’s formative years were spent at the Four Seasons Hotels Houston, under the tutelage of JBF nominated Chef Timothy Keating. He later moved to Miami in order to open the Four Seasons Hotel Miami; subsequently opened the Setai, under 2-Michelin star Chef Shawn Hergatt; and served as Executive Sous Chef at Karu & Y during the initial years of its inception.

  After having launched three critically acclaimed projects in 2011 alone, in Zapata’s mind, the sky’s the limit!

• Aniece Meinhold aka. Bar Wench & Pot Stirrer

  

  Aniece Meinhold is a passionate service professional and consummate lover of all things porcine. Having recently opened The Federal Food, Drink and Provisions in January 2012, Meinhold spends her evenings wooing guests with her toothy smile, pig wings and wine key in hand.  She serves as Bar Wench, ie. General Manager, of the Federal.

  Meinhold, Zapata and Ortiz, have formally created the Pious Pig Restaurant Group, a Miami-based restaurant group hell-bent on creating compelling and concept-driven restaurants with serious food, drink and attitude. She spearheads the beverage, marketing and communications arm of the company. Now in addition to The Federal Food, Drink & Provisions , the trio is in the process of opening Acme Bakery & Coffee Miami’s Midtown mixed-use complex and in the stages of continuously popping up Phuc Yea! - the über-successful, hip hop inspired, modern Vietnamese restaurant; and Miami’s first pop up restaurant.

  In her pre-entrepreneurial life, Aniece had been at the helm of some of Miami’s finest establishments. In addition to honing her skills with the Ritz Carlton and Four Seasons Hotels, Meinhold’s impressive repertoire includes serving as General Manager of Mosaico & Salero Restaurants at the height of the vanguard, molecular Spanish food movement in Miami (2005); working side-by-side with Chef Michelle Bernstein as Marketing & Media Relations Manager (2007); and General Manager and Wine Director of Fratelli Lyon, Miami’s hippest Italian Enoteca & Ristorante, until February of 2010. 

  Passionate about life and living it fervently, Aniece is an impressive cook, cycles and practices yoga avidly. She also has the distinct luxury of living with her “partner-in-crime”, aka. life, Cesar Zapata, and their two chihuahuas, Lola and Sophia.