Spanish Cuisine - Chefs

Chefs

Today, Spanish cooking is "in fashion", especially thanks in part to Ferran Adrià, who in the summer of 2003 attained international renown thanks to praise in the Sunday supplement of The New York Times. His restaurant El Bulli is located in the province of Girona, near Roses. In a long article, the New York Times declared him the best chef in the world, and postulated the supremacy of Spanish cooking over French cuisine.

Four other Spanish chefs hold three stars in the prestigious Michelin Guide:

• Juan Mari Arzak (/" in San Sebastián, Guipúzcoa, since 1989)
• Santi Santamaría ("El Raco" of Can Fabes, Barcelona, since 1994)
• Martín Berasategui ("Berasategui" in Lasarte, Guipúzcoa since 2001)
• Carme Ruscalleda ("Sant Pau" in Sant Pol de Mar, Barcelona since 2006)

• Karlos Arguiñano, who over the years has presented cooking programmes on various Spanish television channels, in which he shows his communication skills and sense of humour while cooking.

• Simone Ortega, author of the best-selling cookbook in Spain, "1080 recetas".
• Sergi Arola, chef at "La Broché" and a disciple of Adrià.
• José Andrés, chef/owner of "Minibar by José Andrés" in Washington D.C., and a disciple of Adrià. Current host of Made in Spain, airing on Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) Public television.

Prominent names in the history of Spanish cuisine include:

• Ángel Muro: 19th century food expert and author of the book "Practicón", which is equivalent to Ma cuisine by Escoffier.
• María Mestayer de Echagüe, "Marquesa de Parabere": author of a two-volume cooking encyclopedia (with the second dedicated to the pantry) that is still in print, and that contains a large number of recipes, as well as chapters dedicated to table manners.

Other notable chefs specializing in Spanish cuisine:

• Ilan Hall, winner of Top Chef Season 2, was known for his Spanish-inspired dishes. He has worked at the acclaimed Casa Mono Spanish restaurant in Manhattan.