After a decade of celebrating the food of the much-missed Chef Arthur Gonzalez, Panxa is now looking to a new leader in the kitchen with the hiring of Chef Richie Ramirez. Chef Art, who founded Panxa with his wife Vanessa Auclair in Belmont Heights on New Years Eve day in 2014, passed in 2022. Ever since, Vanessa has taken on the extraordinarily impressive task of becoming an equally extraordinarily strong pillar for Panxa to stay afloat.
But evolution is needed.
“Celebrating 10 years last year felt like the point where we knew it was needed,” Vanessa said. “And we’ve known that for a while because we know Art would have wanted it. Panxa was never meant to be a place that remained stagnant but evolved. Thankfully, Chef Richie grasps that.”
When Chef Richie walked into Panxa Cocina earlier this fall, he didn’t arrive to reinvent what’s already a Long Beach classic. Instead, the Orange County–bred chef brought with him a quiet confidence, a deep respect for Southwestern cuisine, and a determination to make the kitchen his own.
“I’m not trying to change the concept,” Ramirez says. “There are a lot of dishes on the menu that are still really good. But some, I think, just need an upgrade—either they’ve lost a bit of flavor, or the consistency’s been off. So I’ve been tweaking things slowly, just refining what’s already there.”
Chef Richie has gone from Broadway to, well, a different Broadway.
Ramirez’s culinary roots trace back to Laguna Beach, where he worked under Chef Amar Santana at the acclaimed Broadway. Chef Amar—known for his TV personality, deep friendship with Chef Ali Ghzawi (who is no stranger to Long Beach), and boisterous character—leads kitchens known for their intensity, precision, and creative rigor.
“I worked my way up in that place until I was basically running the kitchen,” Chef Richie said. “It took about four years of work… Amar’s hilarious and intense. You learn a lot under him—culinary-wise, I owe a lot to that experience. But with a chef that has the presence like that of Amar, I knew if I didn’t do my own thing, I would never be able to escape the shadow.”
Under Santana’s mentorship, Ramirez honed not only his technique but his curiosity. His “Destination Dining” program at Broadway explored regional cuisines from around the world, from Tuscany to Addis Ababa. “It was my way of traveling without traveling,” he explained. “I’d pick a region, research it, and cook my way through it. I did an Ethiopian one once, learned to make injera from scratch. That was insane—like, the fermentation process, the texture…”
And that ceaseless exploration makes him a perfect candidate for updating Panxa’s menu.
A new chapter at Panxa Cocina
Ramirez’s debut will be unveiled at a chef’s dinner on November 4, where he plans to showcase both his Southwestern foundation and his personal heritage. Think juniper-roasted venison. Diver scallops. And pork belly adovada.
“I’m Mexican and Persian,” Chef Richie said proudly. “So I’m starting the dinner with a little nod to that—a Persian-inspired first course, just to say, ‘Hey, this is also me.’”
One of his featured dishes already garnering buzz? A Basque cheesecake topped with hatch chile jam, paired with sopapillas. “It’s creamy, rich, and spicy in the best way,” he says. “I made a big batch of the jam for Bryce to use in cocktails—it’s that good.”
If Panxa has always been defined by its New Mexican soul—the smoky Hatch chiles, the layered red-and-green heat—Ramirez wants to both honor and evolve that flavor story. He talks about sourcing roasted Hatch chiles from friends in New Mexico, about missing the annual roast in Long Beach because he was still working at Broadway, about experimenting with the perfect level of heat.
“I’m not here to erase what Art created,” he said. “I’m here to build on it, to add my story to it. I think the community will see that—and taste it.”
And yes, Panxa has a Halloween cocktail menu to enjoy for the rest of the month…
Here’s a look.
Draculas at Sundown: Mezcal | Chambord | Grenadine | Lemon | Red wine float
Frankensteins Last Resort: Green Chartreuse | Rum | Coconut cream | Luxardo Maraschino | Pineapple | Lime
Burned at the Stake: Rye whiskey | Apple brandy | Cinnamon | Sugar | Activated charcoal | Smoke
Panxa Cocina is located at 3937 E. Broadway.
