Spicing up tradition: How Lauren Corugedo is stirring her energy into Chef Merito

Chef Merito has been a pantry staple here in Los Angeles for nearly 40 years. My grandfather, Lino Garcia Sr., started it pretty much from his house. One thing that I always like to share is that Chef Merito even began before its official inception. My grandfather was a classic ‘cocinero’, always cooking for family and friends. I grew up at the dinner table; we’d be there for hours, with him at the head of the table, joking, laughing, and always having something delicious while we chit‑chatted.

He eventually opened a restaurant to really fine‑tune and finesse the recipes, but it became too demanding on family life, so he ended up shutting it down. Still, tíos and tías were always knocking at the door asking, “Hey, I love ese pollo—can you come over and make it for us?”

That’s when my grandma encouraged him to bottle the seasoning. He was an avid reader, so he researched how to create the formulas and began building out Chef Merito.

He tested it with the community, taking samples to the carnicerías and asking the butchers, “Let me know what you think.” Charismatic as he was, those butchers became friends, and his strong community connections helped the brand grow.

When you talk about how rich the history is with Chef Merito, it truly stands out: it’s not just a pantry staple—it’s the heart of carne asada seasoning. Now you have major brands mimicking something, but it’s a testament to how special and unique our original blend is.

My abuela also curated the logo. It’s funny: while the classic street sales guy was rough and ready, she was the refined professor, well‑mannered and precise. She worked with an artist to develop the design and name. I notice now in business that my grandfather’s spirit is captured in the logo: he always wore a mustache, and although the image isn’t an exact portrait, you can feel his presence there.

Chef Merito was founded in Northridge, in the heart of the San Fernando Valley, and later moved to Van Nuys in Los Angeles. We’ve just grown ever since.

For me, Chef Merito was always around, so when people ask my favorite seasoning, I say I have one for everything. Want papitas fritas? Use the chicken seasoning. Making black beans or arroz con pollo? There’s a blend for that, too. I’ve always been mixing and combining different seasonings to create new flavors.

What was important to me was knowing that if I joined the family business, I do something I truly love.

I studied entrepreneurship at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo’s School of Business, where we regularly participated in startup weekends. I naturally gravitated toward marketing and branding, helping set up each event—and our teams often won awards for best branding.

That experience showed me where my passion lay. Later, the timing was perfect: the company needed someone to connect with Hispanic users,  with the next generation of bicultural Latinas, shoppers trying to stay true to their traditional roots and cooking yet embracing the American culture of hustle and ease of use.

I wanted to make sure that not only was I doing something I love, but that I wasn’t just handed an opportunity—I was going to earn it. As I proved my value, I helped elevate and modernize the brand. That’s when I really fell in love not just with cooking—the passion and the flavors—but also with the branding and the chance to bridge that gap.

Since we had no marketing department, my entrepreneurial side came out. I built out all our social channels and branding, and we even started running brand‑awareness studies.

One of the iHeartMedia radio stations pitched us because they had a strong Hispanic demographic. I noticed “Dodgers” on their portfolio and asked about it. This was before the McCourt ownership era, so I reached out to Jorge Jarrín in their partnerships division (the sports broadcaster who previously worked in Spanish‑language radio for the Los Angeles Dodgers). We immediately clicked and realized Latino fans weren’t being catered to in the ballpark food scene—how could Dodger Stadium not have carne asada or tacos?

We proposed carne asada tacos and the “nacho helmet,” and they’ve become the top‑selling menu items year after year. We provided the seasoning and work closely with their chef on marinating techniques. We were able to bridge that gap and truly offer what the fans wanted and loved.

It’s unreal. Our entire team has been working extremely hard to get to this point, and the Costco milestone hasn’t just been a year in the making—it’s been a decade in the making. To be in Costco, there are certain requirements you have to meet. In our family business, we learn by doing: we tackle one challenge at a time, set the company up for success, optimize every dollar, and reinvest in the brand. Year over year, we ask ourselves, “How do we make the most out of this investment and ensure success?” So this has truly been years in the making for me and for all of us.

When I saw our boxes on Costco’s shelves for the first time, I kind of had to take a step back. One minute you are working towards it, it’s happening, and then to actually see it on the shelf. I got very emotional and so excited and pretty much lost it. It’s a big, big accomplishment.

There have been a couple of moments, like at Dodger Stadium, that first year, social media wasn’t as big when we partnered with them. So we created the first L.A. Taqueria stand featuring Chef Morito tacos right on the actual stand.

That was another point where I lost emotionally, I was like, “Oh my gosh.” And it happened right after my grandfather had passed, so I got chills thinking, “This is something he’d be so proud of.”

Being able to carry on his legacy and step back to realize what we’re doing… it’s an incredible feeling. There’s nothing like it. It’s hard to describe. It’s a sensation you just can’t replace and keeps me going daily.

These are extremely useful tools, especially when you’re starting out. However, the first and most important step is to do your due diligence on any asset you bring into the business. For us, being community‑forward meant reaching out to experts in each area to gather the knowledge we needed before taking on any debt.

Be very mindful of how you spend money: don’t take on debt you don’t need or can’t pay off. Identify your key priorities each year and only borrow for initiatives you’re confident will generate a return. As a small business, we believed in our product, saw positive audience responses, and continuously reinvested profits back into the brand to sustain our legacy.

If you do decide to take out a loan or open a business credit card, make sure it aligns with your strategic priorities and that you have a clear plan to pay it off. That balance of careful planning and disciplined reinvestment is what’s kept us growing.

I use my credit card regularly in the business for expenses. It makes things a lot easier with our Dodgers partnership. We were able to take care of things on the spot. However, as I mentioned, my advice is to be mindful in that regard.