cuisine

Female chef with most stars in the world shuts down famous eatery after 30 years to "reorient" her professional life

Catalan cook recognized as number 1 at 'The Best Chef Awards'

World-class chef Carme Ruscalleda to "redirect" her career

Roca brothers back at No.2 of the World's 50 Best Restaurant ranking, while Disfrutar in Barcelona gets the Highest New Entry Award after becoming No.20

Roca brothers back at No.2 of the World's 50 Best Restaurant ranking, while Disfrutar in Barcelona gets the Highest New Entry Award after becoming No.20

Five-time number 1 holder Ferran Adrià states that internet and TV have changed cuisine dramatically

Catalan gastronomy got reinforced and gained even more prestige in the presentation of the Spain and Portugal Michelin Guide 2017, one of the most important events on the world’s gastronomic calendar. There are now 67 restaurants awarded with a Michelin star in Catalonia. The most important ‘star’ went to ‘Lasarte’ Barcelona, which joins the select group of those outlets which have three ‘macarons’ in Catalonia, together with ‘El Celler de Can Roca’, which was named best restaurant in the world in 2013 and 2015, and ‘Sant Pau’, by Carme Ruscalleda. Moreover, ‘Lasarte’, led by Italian chef Paolo Casagrande, who was a disciple of renowned Basque chef Martín Berasategui, is not only the first three-Michelin star restaurant located in the Catalan capital but the only restaurant on the Iberian Peninsula which this year obtained its third ‘star’. 

Partner and director of El Bulli restaurant for over 30 years, Juli Soler, died Monday morning, Ferran Adrià confirmed with ACN. He was 66. Soler suffered from a neurodegenerative disease for over two years that forced him to abandon the BulliFoundation project to focus on his recovery. Doctors diagnosed the disease in October 2012. Soler was the person who hired the chef Ferran Adrià in the early '80s before El Bulli became the best restaurant in the world. Both always worked closely together and shared the executive direction of BulliFoundation from its inception.

Catalan cuisine is continuing to gather top international distinctions and the restaurant run by the 3 Roca brothers, El Celler de Can Roca, is the flagship of this trend, following the path opened by Ferran Adrià’s El Bulli in the 1990s and 2000s. Each year the London-based ‘Restaurant’ magazine compiles a ranking of the world’s 50 best restaurants. El Celler de Can Roca tops the prestigious list for the second time, after already doing so in 2013. In fact, since 2011, the Girona restaurant has been either the world’s best or second-best establishment, competing with the Danish restaurant Noma, which falls to 3^rd position this year. As well as this, Catalan Albert Adrià, who is the younger brother of Ferran Adrià, has been recognised as the World’s Best Pastry Chef, an award created last year. In 2014, the World’s Best Pastry Chef was Jordi Roca, the youngest brother of El Celler de Can Roca trio. In addition, Adrià’s restaurant Tickets, which is located in Barcelona, is included among the top 50 for the first time.

The Province of Girona, in the north eastern part of Catalonia, contains 13 restaurants which among them have 17 Michelin stars, thus making it home to some of the best restaurants in the world. In fact, Girona is the area with the highest Michelin star to population ratio (one star for every 44,000 inhabitants), in the world, ahead of Paris, Rome or London. On top of this, Girona hosts what was awarded Best Restaurant in the world in 2013 by the English magazine 'Restaurant Magazine' and it has been among the top 3 for the last decade: El Celler de Can Roca. In an attempt to raise awareness of its culinary success, all establishments in Girona have united under the brand "Girona Territori d'Estrelles" (Girona Land of Stars).

The 'calçot' - a type of long white spring onion - is a traditional food in Catalonia, a delicacy from the winter months, eaten with its own sauce. In Valls, the cradle of 'calçots', local and international chefs meet to create new dishes with this ingredient. The 'calçots' season, which starts in November and lasts until April, officially begins during the last weekend of January, when Valls celebrates its ‘Gran Festa de la Calçotada’. This party, which attracts thousands of people and media from around the world, is one of the most important Catalan gastronomic events. But why is Valls the capital of 'calçotades'? What is the correct way to cook 'calçots' and its sauce like a professional, and why is this event becoming so international?

Is life really that difficult as a vegetarian in Barcelona? We challenged the predominantly meat and fish-based Catalan cuisine through a week of discovering restaurants, organic shops and vegan eateries in the city. Ham legs tied to the ceiling do not help the perception that vegetarians would have to survive on a diet of nuts and bread, but after our search we found that Barcelona is an incredibly vegetarian-friendly city. This short guide, organised following the days of the week, will help you to know your way around it.

Cookbooth and dondeEsta Family are two of the sixteen apps which are finalists at the Mobile Premier Awards, which will be awarded at Barcelona's Sala Apolo on the 2^nd of March, coinciding with the first day of the Mobile World Congress (MWC). The MWC is the world's largest event of the mobile and phone-related industry, which takes place each year in the Catalan capital at the end of February or in early March. The Best App Award, the Best Audience App and the Big Impact Award will be given. Cookboth is a recipe photo-sharing platform for chefs and food connoisseurs and dondeEsta Family helps families locate their members. Both are available for iOS and Android devices.

The 20^th edition of the Manga Fair is taking place between Thursday 30^th October and Sunday 2^nd November at the Fira de Barcelona's Montjuic exhibition space. The Manga Fair is an annual event that celebrates the popular Japanese anime, bringing together fans from all around the world, through a series of exhibitions and activities in Barcelona. This year, the space has increased to 50,000m², and the opening times will be extended. There will be a variety of special guests attending, including the author Kengo Hanazawa, artist Takeshi Obata from Japan, and Ken Niimura, a Spanish author of Japanese descent. There will also be a number of musicians participating, such as the Japanese pop group Loverin Tamburin. The programme features various exhibitions on Japanese authors and illustrators. On the catering side, the event will feature Michelin-star chefs including Ricardo Sanz and Jordi Roca.

The French chef Jean Luc Figueras died on Wednesday night in Ankara, the capital of Turkey, in a sudden cardiac arrest. The news was announced as part of a statement from the Mercer Hotel Barcelona, where the chef ran his current restaurant. Jean Luc Figueras had a long career as a chef at the best restaurants in Barcelona and he had held a Michelin star for a past project. One year ago he started work as the head chef at the 5-star Mercer Hotel Barcelona, an establishmed designed by Rafael Moneo within a Gothic Palace and which included the Roman city wall from the 1^st century. Figueras died whilst participating in a team of chefs in Ankara's festival of Mediterranean cuisine called 'Mediterranean Culinary Days'.