Alex Beltran
Alex Beltran trained in California under three different chefs. He attended California Culinary Academy in San Francisco. Alex competed in cooking competitions nationally before he attended college. After college he worked for various corporations from around the U.S., such as Marriott. After working for a chef for 10 years (1986-1996), Alex moved into upper management. His specialty was multi-unit operations. He was district manager for 14 Denny's restaurants, then in 1997 was promoted to director of operations Northern California, supervising 30 Denny's and 35 Burger Kings in his division. In 1998, Alex transferred to the Human Resources Department to supervise human resources for the entire company, which had over 3,000 employees. In 2000, Alex was promoted to vice president of human resources & operations for RAAJ Foods, which operated over 75 units. During that time, he opened over 50 restaurants, building 25 from ground up and being involved in land and building transactions. Alexa left the company in 2004, the same year his wife opened Uncle Buck's (a bar and grill); he assisted her withmenu development and the business plan. In 2008, Alex joined the Ottumwa Hy-Vee #1 as its wine & spirits manager. The store has since put itself on the map with high-end wine sales and has grown a great club that supports our wine-tasting dinners. The store currently hosts seven-course dinners twice a month at various locations in Ottumwa.
