Nuestro Equipo
Mark Mendez
Chef
Chef Mendez is well known for his use of seasonal and local ingredients and his mastery of Latin flavors. A Chicago native of Puerto Rican descent, Mendez returned from his studies in NYC, alongside chef/restaurateur/ author Douglas Rodriguez, determined to
return to his roots as well.
He succeeded again and again at bringing Latin flavors to the forefront, through his tenures at Jerry Kleiner’s hugely popular Carnivale, and at his own restaurant Vera, together with his wife Liz, in Chicago’s red-hot restaurant row. Chef Mendez joined Libertad in 2022, and immediately imbued a now team-wide respect for the simple, quality ingredients that bring the best flavor.
Marcos Rivera
Owner
Marcos Rivera grew up, quite literally, in the restaurant business, working from a very young age at his father’s Las Palmas family of restaurants. After collegiate studies and work in several fields, he returned to the family business in 2002, to assist in the opening of the first downtown location of Las Palmas, in Chicago’s Wicker Park.
There he brought in Chefs and Mixologists and a new Las Palmas emerged, garnering awards and accolades as a Nuevo Latino hot spot. In 2011, Marcos stepped out, to open Libertad in his home town of Skokie. He and his wife Leo have been warmly welcoming both loyal guests and newcomers to the award-winning Libertad ever since. Having always sought out the brightest and best, he is so excited for the future with this creative team.