29-06-2018
In the middle, Martín Berasategui, 56, for 25 years at the helm of the restaurant named after him in Lasarte-Oria, in the Basque Country, in Spain. Beside him, his wife Oneka and daughter Ane (photo from Lobo Altuna/Gastroctitud)
A good cook and an even better person. This is how Martín Berasategui would like people to remember him. Popular, charming, caring, generous, enthusiastic... He’s always ready to encourage, with a big smile and an arm ready to pull a fist to the sound of "Garrote!", the motto he invented at 21, now his trademark. A perfectionist, intuitive, tenacious and hard worker, he was ahead of his time in many ways. First in the kitchen, then in business. His palate is impressive: few other professionals are capable of combining so many ingredients and in such harmony. He’s the Spanish chef with the largest number of Michelin stars, a total of 8. He runs his personally owned restaurants, offers consultancy and manages his public image. In Spain he’s the closest example to the Robuchon model. His restaurant in Lasarte, which recently turned 25 (it opened on May 1st 1993), has been one of the best cooking schools in the country. Among others, Pepe Rodríguez Rey, Dani García, Andoni Aduriz, Josean Alija, Iñigo Lavado, Rodrigo de la Calle have spent some time in his kitchen… Martín is proud of this, of having contributed to improving the restaurant industry. Today, at his restaurant you can enjoy the Gran Menú Degustación 25 Aniversario, which Berasategui and his team created especially for the occasion. It's a sort of edible summary of 25 years of accomplishments. The restaurant turns 25, but how long have you been in this profession? What’s your evaluation? I’ve been working for 43 years this September. I’m very happy, it wouldn’t be right to say or think differently. Six months after opening, we got the first Michelin star. Three years later the second, and in November 2001 the third, the maximum. We’ve also been the only restaurant that TripAdvisor’s users chose as "Best in the world" for two years in a row. I’m also the Spanish speaking chef with the largest number of Michelin stars and (American) Diamonds. I enjoy everything, including the awards that still await me because for me, on top of the above mentioned ones, every project is a great award. Given I’ve accomplished all this while having fun, what can I say? I can only continue to have fun.
The entrance to the Basque restaurant, 3 Michelin stars since 2001. On top of these, there are 3 stars for Lasarte in Barcelona and two for MB at the Ritz-Carlton Abama, in Tenerife
Berasategui’s famousTorrija (photo from esdiario.com)
Ostra tibia, a more recent recipe
What’s the first thing that you learnt to cook from your mother and aunt? I remember this perfectly: garlic soup. I was 15. I listened to their advice. There are dishes that made a mark ever since they were born. Not because they were the best, but because of what they represented. With your torrija [pan brioche with custard, almond cream and coffee gelato] the same happened to you that had happened to Michel Bras’s molten cake: did anyone think it would have made you famous? Today torrija is everywhere... It gives me the same pleasure I get when I see people copying my dishes. Every time it happens, I think I’ve done something good for the restaurant industry.
There’s a touch of Italy in the Martín Berasategui group: in the photo, Paolo Casagrande, from Treviso, chef at Lasarte in Barcelona, 3 Michelin stars. Among others, Matteo Torretta and Floriano Pellegrino have worked in the maestro’s kitchen
The Basque chef in a portrait by Bob Noto
What do you do when you’re not working? I walk a lot, I go hiking. Or I cook for family and friends. Most of all, I enjoy what I believe is the best city in the world, San Sebastián.
Berasategui in a photo from when he was young (cadenaser.com)
With friend and colleague Ferran Adrià (ecodiario.eleconomista.es)
Translated into English by Slawka G. Scarso
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Spanish food reporter for El Mundo and Gastroactitud. Her book, "100 Culinary experiences not to be missed", insipired a TV series on Tve