MILFORD — Platt Tech grad Alberto Baez has big plans that start with Small American Kiechen— his takeout restaurant that opened on 11 Berwyn Street.

Being born into a family of restaurateurs, Baez’s experience gives him a leg up in the industry. His father was a bartender at several places when Baez was growing up and also owned a restaurant in West Haven for a little under two years. Baez would spend his weekends hanging out with his father at the kitchen.

“He would introduce me to the guys in the kitchen. They would be playing music as they worked,” Baez said. “I really liked the atmosphere, and I like to eat, so they gave me little samples here and there.”

One early professional cooking experience came when Baez was in Platt Tech’s culinary arts program. At Club Vandome in New Haven, where Alberto Sr. was a bartender, he and his father prepared Puerto Rican food for the club’s guests in a side kitchen, Baez said.Â

“Imagine a 15-year-old boy in an adult atmosphere of that magnitude serving food and watching these beautiful people eat with big smiles on their faces,” Baez said. “It was awesome.”

As a graduate of Johnson and Wales University in Rhode Island with a bachelor’s degree in food and beverage service management, one of Biaz’s unique aspects of his university education is his understanding of classical French and international cuisine. Particularly with soups and sauces.Â

“I learned a lot of stuff that I incorporate now into my roasted jalapeno ranch and bourbon glaze,” Baez said.

Regarding his future plans, Baez stated that he hopes to operate a food truck and sell his restaurant’s menu items, and if he gets successful enough, franchise his Small American Kitchen or transition to owning a sports bar.Â