Chef Doug Robson is the founder of Gallo Blanco Cafe, Otro Cafe, and D&R Hospitality, along with his wife Denise. Gallo Blanco Cafe’s menu and culture is reflective of Doug being born and raised just outside Mexico City, of French-Vietnamese and Scottish-English descent. The concept is grounded in Oaxacan-style Mexican cuisine with fresh fusion interpretations representing local and organic philosophies. Doug was the opening Executive Chef of both La Grande Orange and Chelsea’s Kitchen in the Arcadia neighborhood of Phoenix, consulted for restaurateurs and touched menus around the city for landmarks like Crescent Ballroom. In 2008, after many years of servitude in the culinary community, Doug branched out on his own to pursue his lifelong dream to open his own Mexican restaurant. In April of 2009, his dream came true when Gallo Blanco opened inside the Clarendon Hotel. “Gallo Blanco” is a slang term for “white guy”, reminiscent of the Mexican roots for the concept. Gallo Blanco closed in 2015 but reopened in 2017 under the same name in the Historic Garfield District at 928 E. Pierce Street.
In 2013, D&R Hospitality expanded their offerings in the Midtown community of Phoenix with Otro Café. Otro, meaning “other”, is the sister restaurant to Gallo Blanco. It provides other outlets of culinary and mixology offerings while maintaining Latin roots.