I grew up in San Diego with immigrant parents, before the food blogs, before this kind of celebrity chef culture we know now. It was not about Alice Waters for me, it was about the community and the world she had created.

I didn’t get to know her until about 2010, 2011. I started working with Michael Pollan. He’s really close with her.

Has she given you any advice about being a known food personality?

I was telling her how I was coming here, and how I was feeling kind of ill from all the eating I’ve had to do, and I said, “Oh my god, I don’t understand how you do this,” and she’s like, “You always have to bring your own food. You just have to figure out where the vegetables are.”

Where did you grow up?

University City. I went to La Jolla High School. My parents came from Iran in the 1970s.

I’m curious about how growing up in California informed your worldview and your work now.

That was all I knew. I really love the beach. The beach has always been a constant in my life. And you asked about how being a Californian has influenced me: Above any other way of identifying, like above race or religion or anything — or nationality — I identify as a Californian. This way that I’ve gotten to spend so much of my life outside, in different landscapes, has absolutely affected me. Agriculture has affected me. The way there are so many different kinds of people from all over the world — I’m so, so grateful for that. I remember being sick of the fact that it was always sunny in San Diego. My dad said to me: “What’s wrong with you? Everyone in the whole rest of the world aspires to live in California.”

I don’t know — I mean, I love Mexican food so much. I could probably go on for a long time about the differences between Northern California and Southern California Mexican food.