Perfectionist Huyke ‘conscious of the pressure every single day’

including a 26-year-old son who is now a chef in Puerto Rico.

In 2011, she returned to an executive chef role at Mio restaurant in Washington, D.C. It felt daunting at the time, said Huyke. But, though Mio has closed, Huyke earned strong reviews during her time there.

She's intent on doing the same at La Fabrica Central. The restaurant is the fourth owned by husband-wife team Hector and Nivia Piña. Their mini-empire launched in 1994 with Merengue in Roxbury, where Hector Piña prepares plates reflecting his Dominican roots. The pair also owns two South End restaurants: Vejigantes, specializing in Puerto Rican cookery, and the Cuban outfit Doña Habana, which opened in September.

La Fabrica Central, opened with a third partner, Dennis Benzan (former Cambridge vice mayor and the first Latino elected to the city council), culls inspiration from all three cuisines — plus foods from other Spanish Caribbean islands. The name, which means “factory,” nods to the industriousness of immigrant communities, said Hector Piña, who filled the space with his original photographs of a working Dominican sugar cane plantation. The classy-casual dining room hosts live music many evenings, and there's patio seating and a rear nightclub room used for parties and special events.

On the menu, Huyke continues to put contemporary spins on classic dishes. Rather than traditional mofongo, a Puerto Rican dish of mashed fried plantains, she makes it with yucca and adds lobster meat cooked in rum sauce. Fried whole snapper is treated with a tomato-coconut sauce, served with sweet potato puree and papaya-avocado mojo. Braised short ribs receive a red wine reduction and guava sauce, paired with garlic hominy prepared like risotto. There are some simpler staples, like octopus escabeche salad, and Huyke even serves feasts of whole roasted pigs — complete with fixings like sweet plantains — for large groups.

Huyke's passion is palpable. So is the self-avowed perfectionist's desire to hit a home run each night.

“I'm conscious of the pressure every single day,” said Huyke when asked how her existing reputation in Latin-American communities impacts her work. Though she's purposefully adopted a low profile in these early months at La Fabrica, the better to get operations running smoothly, already fans are stopping in for food and photo ops. Huyke is always happy to oblige.

“It's part of the job,” said Huyke of greeting excited diners weaned on her television shows. She's doing just fine without cameras, but the appreciative attention still brings a smile to her face. “If you can't see people enjoying your food, what good is it?”