12 Feb Chef Carlos Salazar of Lil Dumplings on IBJ 40 Under 40 List
Written by Jolene Ketzenberger
We’re so proud!
Fishers Test Kitchen congratulates chef Carlos Salazar of Lil Dumplings, a global street food stand in the Test Kitchen, on being named to the Indianapolis Business Journal’s 40 Under 40 list.
Chef Carlos Salazar accepting official designation on the IBJ’s prestigious 40 under 40 list.
The annual list honors local business and professional leaders who have demonstrated leadership, initiative and dedication in pursuing their careers and who are expected to achieve in the future – and that definitely describes chef Carlos.
As a co-owner at Rook and now as chef/owner at Lil Dumplings, Carlos continues to push the local culinary scene forward. In fact, that goal is part of what motivated the 35-year-old to launch Lil Dumplings in the Fishers Test Kitchen.
“Growing up in a Filipino family, food was everything,” says Carlos, who grew up in Westfield and whose first job was at Jan’s Village Pizza. “My inspiration for cooking came from being able to change people’s perspective on how to eat and what they can eat.”
Salazar poses with his wife, Kristin, at the IBJ 40 under 40 luncheon.
As he noted in the IBJ article, he’s currently focused on testing ideas with the goal of opening a full-service restaurant in Fishers, where he lives with wife Kristin and their two children, the “lil dumplings” that inspired the Test Kitchen stand’s name.
“I’ve always been a Northsider, a Hamilton County guy,” he says. “Fishers is my home.”