Federico Laboureau and Maximilian Pizzi: From Argentina to LA — Building Business and Life Together for 12 Years

When you hear about a restaurant popping up in Exposition Park that’s bringing the spirit of Argentina to life through wood-fired empanadas and Malbec pairings, it’s effortless to assume it’s just another trendy LA eatery. But dig a little deeper, and you’ll discover the story of Fuegos LA isn’t just about food—it’s a direct extension of a creative partnership that designed one of the most talked-about moments in recent Super Bowl history. The connection between a halftime demonstrate set for Bad Bunny and a neighborhood restaurant in South Los Angeles might seem unexpected at first, but it’s actually a seamless thread of vision, craft, and cultural translation that’s now shaping how locals experience both dining and design in one of LA’s most dynamic corridors.

Fuegos LA, nestled near the intersection of Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and Figueroa Street, didn’t emerge in a vacuum. Its founders, Federico Laboureau and Maximilian Pizzi, brought more than culinary ambition when they relocated from Buenos Aires to Los Angeles over a decade ago—they brought a design sensibility honed through years of operate in set creation, art direction, and immersive storytelling. Their studio, FLatelier, has collaborated with major names like Disney, Warner Bros., and Sony, crafting visual narratives that blend wardrobe, set innovation, and special effects into what they call “fantasy moments.” That same philosophy now informs the ambiance of their restaurant: the warmth of Argentine tradition filtered through a lens of theatrical precision, where every detail—from the tile pattern to the lighting over the pizza oven—feels intentionally staged, not just decorated.

Their breakthrough moment came during the 2024 Super Bowl halftime show, where Laboureau and Pizzi designed the iconic “casita” that served as Bad Bunny’s intimate performance space. That structure—a fusion of rustic charm and modern theatricality—wasn’t just a set piece. it was a cultural statement, a temporary home built to honor the artist’s roots while dazzling a global audience. The success of that installation didn’t just earn acclaim in entertainment circles; it sparked real-world interest in the aesthetic they’d created. Soon after, patrons began asking if they could experience that same warmth in a lasting space. That curiosity, combined with steady growth in their original restaurant footprint, led them to take over the adjacent venue in November 2025, tripling their seating and expanding their menu to include house-made chorizo, provoleta, and expanded malbec selections—all while maintaining the handcrafted, wood-fired authenticity that first drew people in.

This kind of cross-disciplinary influence—where set design informs hospitality, where entertainment aesthetics shape neighborhood dining—isn’t isolated to Fuegos LA. In recent years, we’ve seen similar transitions across creative industries in Los Angeles: production designers consulting on retail environments, art directors shaping hotel lobbies, and immersive experience artists launching pop-up dining concepts that double as narrative installations. What makes Fuegos LA distinctive is how deeply rooted this evolution is in personal narrative. Laboureau often speaks about missing the smell of wood smoke from Argentine asados, a sensation he now recreates nightly in his restaurant’s open kitchen. That emotional authenticity, paired with professional precision, creates something rare: a space that feels both intensely personal and universally welcoming.

Locally, this impacts more than just diners. Exposition Park is already a cultural hub, home to institutions like the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, the California Science Center, and the upcoming Lucas Museum of Narrative Art—each drawing thousands of visitors weekly. The addition of a destination restaurant like Fuegos LA doesn’t just add another dining option; it enhances the area’s appeal as a full-day destination. Families visiting the museum can now extend their outing with a meal that reflects the same care and storytelling found in the exhibits nearby. Students from USC, just a few miles north, have begun frequenting the space not only for its affordability but for its role as a gathering point where conversations flow as freely as the malbec. Even the Metro Expo Line’s proximity—particularly the Expo Park/USC station—means the restaurant is accessible to those coming from downtown, Santa Monica, or Long Beach without needing a car, reinforcing LA’s gradual shift toward transit-friendly, walkable neighborhoods.

Given my background in urban storytelling and cultural analysis, if this blend of design-driven hospitality and community-focused growth resonates with you in the Exposition Park area, here are three types of local professionals worth seeking out—not as generic categories, but as specific archetypes shaped by what’s unfolding here:

• Cultural Placemakers: Look for urban designers or community developers who specialize in translating cultural narratives into physical spaces—those who understand how to embed heritage (like Argentine gaucho traditions or Indigenous California histories) into streetscapes, plazas, or storefronts without resorting to cliché. They should have experience working with public arts commissions or layers of neighborhood input, and ideally, familiarity with projects along the Figueroa Corridor or South LA’s emerging cultural districts.
• Experiential Hospitality Consultants: These aren’t just restaurant advisors; they’re professionals who bridge set design, lighting theory, and culinary operations to create environments where service feels choreographed. Seek those with portfolios in themed entertainment or immersive theater who’ve pivoted to hospitality—people who can explain how a pizza oven’s placement affects sightlines, or how acoustic treatments in a dining room influence conversation flow, not just noise levels.
• Transit-Adjacent Small Business Strategists: Focus on advisors who understand the unique economics of businesses near Metro stations—those who’ve helped cafes, bookstores, or bodegas thrive by leveraging foot traffic patterns, first/last-mile connections, and peak-hour surges. They should be versed in Metro’s Transit-Oriented Communities (TOC) guidelines and have case studies involving Expo Line-adjacent ventures, particularly those that balance walk-in appeal with online ordering resilience.

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