Our Story
Where Global Flavors Meet a Local Table
Our Beginning
Chef Enrique Limardo and Ezequiel Vázquez-Ger opened their first concept in 2019, a vibrant Latin American hotspot called Seven Reasons. Seven Reasons became the first of many restaurants in Seven Reasons Group, a Washington, DC based restaurant group commitment to bringing the fun back to fine dining.
Seven Reasons quickly established the group’s culinary excellence, earning Esquire’s #1 Best New Restaurant in the Country and The Washington Post’s #1 Restaurant in DC in its debut year. In 2022, they opened Imperfecto, blending Mediterranean and Latin American flavors. It also made Esquire’s top list and earned the group’s first MICHELIN star, making Chef Enrique the first Venezuelan MICHELIN-starred chef in the US and only the second ever.
The group has grown rapidly since then, adding four more concepts to their roster, including upscale Spanish and Latin restaurant, The Saga.
They've earned countless accolades along the way including Chef Enrique's semifinalist nomination for Best Chef Mid-Atlantic from the James Beard Foundation in 2023, closely followed by Ezequiel's 2023 Washington Business Journal's 40 Under 40 recognition.
In 2023 Seven Reasons Group was named the 8th Fastest Growing Company in the DC Region by the Washington Business Journal achieving a 123.6% average growth for the past two years.
Enrique Limardo
Born in Caracas, Venezuela, Enrique Limardo, is Chief Culinary Officer of Seven Reasons Group, in Washington, DC. He is Co-Owner & Executive Chef at Seven Reasons, DC’s Best Restaurant (Washington Post, 2019), and the Best New Restaurant in the Americas (Esquire, 2019), as well as Co-Owner and Executive Chef at Imperfecto (1 Michelin Star, 2022) in Washington, DC.
The Michelin-starred chef is commonly credited as the pioneer of modern Venezuelan cooking in the United States. When Enrique fled violence in his country and came to the US on an Exceptional Talent Visa in 2014, he brought culinary techniques that were brand new to the States with him.
Limardo’s inventive Latin-inspired fare has earned local and international accolades, most recently during his stint from 2014 to 2019 as the Executive Chef at Alma Cocina Latina, in Baltimore, Maryland. “Alma” was acclaimed by Washington Post food critic Tom Sietsema with a rating of 3.5/4 stars, making it one of the highest-ranked restaurants in the Washington area.
In 2009, Chef Limardo was named best chef in Venezuela by the Venezuelan Gastronomy Academy, and in 2016, he was named the best chef in Baltimore by Baltimore Magazine.
Chef Limardo began his culinary journey in 1997 in Venezuela at La Casserol du Chef and continued his studies in Spain at EUHT Sant Pol de Mar in Barcelona and the Luis Irizar Culinary School in San Sebastián, Basque Country. While pursuing a post-graduate degree in culinary arts, he had the privilege of learning from and working alongside some of Spain’s most celebrated chefs, including Michelin-starred Joan Roca, Ramon Freixa, Xavier Pellicer, Joan Pique, and Carles Gaig.
His dedication and skill earned him the role of Sous Chef at Mas de Torrent Relais & Châteaux, an exclusive luxury property in Spain. Following his time in Spain, Chef Limardo worked with British chef Paul Owens at The Cliff in Barbados and served as a chef adviser at several high-end restaurants in Caracas, Venezuela while cementing his success as the owner of Paprika and Yantar, two of the most acclaimed restaurants in the city of Caracas.
Before moving to Baltimore to assume his role as Executive Chef at Alma, Chef Limardo spent four years traveling to and cooking in worldly destinations around the world as a private chef. A man of many talents, Chef Limardo is also an accomplished painter, artist and musician, and even recorded a rock album in his younger years.
