Albert Adrià, the Second-Best Chef in the World According to The Best Chef Awards, Which Recognizes Spanish Culinary Excellence

The Best Chef Awards list continues to speak Spanish. Headed by Dabiz Muñoz (DiverXO, Madrid) for three consecutive years (2021, 2022, and 2023), this year’s list introduced a new format, replacing the ranking with a top 3 and an excellence classification, with three knives as the highest distinction.

Albert Adrià, the chef who, alongside his brother Ferran Adrià, built the legend of elBulli, was chosen as the second-best chef in the world. Adrià, currently leading the restaurant Enigma (Barcelona), offers in this project an advanced “seasonal cuisine,” inheriting the discoveries of elBulli. The menu doesn’t shy away from featuring Spanish products like gambas (prawns) from Palamós, Cantabrian anchoas (anchovies), or azafrán flowers, presented in surprising ways. Joining Adrià in the top 3 are Rasmus Munk (Alchemist, Copenhagen) at number 1 and fellow Dane Eric Vildgaard, of the restaurant Jordnaer (Gentofte, Denmark), in third place.

Among the restaurants awarded three knives, a total of 97, there are 16 from Spain, making it the country with the most representation. Among the honorees is Mugaritz (Errenteria, Basque Country), led by chef Andoni Luis Aduriz, whose iconoclastic cuisine ranges from jamón ibérico to lentils, even churros, all passed through Mugaritz’s unique filter. Ángel León and his restaurant Aponiente (El Puerto de Santa María, Andalusia) are also prominent, with his comprehensive work on the sea that includes everything from lesser-known fish to more noble ones like tuna.

Dabiz Muñoz also appears on the list, breaking boundaries at DiverXO with products like Riofrío caviar, suckling pig, or trout from the Pyrenees. Diego Guerrero (Dstage, Madrid) also features with his signature cuisine, which is built on ingredients like chorizo ibérico, Beasain blood sausage, or cod. Eneko Atxa, whose restaurant is in Amorebieta (Basque Country), offers a menu featuring local delicacies such as salazones, peppers, and beans.

Among the standouts are the mother-daughter duo at Les Cols (Olot, Catalonia), Fina Puigdevall and Martina Puigvert: their local cuisine, characterized by seasonality and sustainability, utilizes nearby ingredients like buckwheat or Santa Pau beans, protected by a DOP. The three-knife list would not be complete without Martín Berasategui, who runs his eponymous restaurant in Lasarte-Oria (Basque Country), where his menu features jamón ibérico, red tuna, or Galician beef tenderloin. The brothers Javier and Sergio Torres, at Cocina Hermanos Torres (Barcelona, Catalonia), bring sensitivity and technique to dishes with ingredients such as Ganxet beans, white gambas (prawns) or sea urchins from the Costa Brava.

Also on the list are the three chefs at Disfrutar (Barcelona, Catalonia) - Oriol Castro, Eduard Xatruch, and Mateu Casañas. Their menu features creations that reflect their time at elBulli, with ingredients like sea cucumbers, carabiners, or seasonal tomatoes. Paco Morales, at Noor (Córdoba, Andalusia), reflects on Spain’s history through gastronomy, using ingredients like tuna belly, quisquillas (shrimps), or Pedro Ximénez wines. Another Paco, Pérez, crafts Catalan signature cuisine at Miramar (Llançá, Catalonia), using ingredients like different types of gamba (prawn) - from red to white - ceps (mushrooms), or kokotxas (cod cheeks).

Madrid-based Paco Roncero (Paco Roncero Restaurante, Madrid) is also recognized for his work, with extra virgin olive oil as one of his key products. Paolo Casagrande (Lasarte, Barcelona, Catalonia), trained with Berasategui, combines his mentor’s dishes with his own creations featuring ingredients like goose barnacles, Iberian pork jowl, black garlic, or Jerez wines. Quique Dacosta (Quique Dacosta Restaurante, Denia, Valencian Community) is a master of rice and a fan of seafood products like clóchina (Mediterranean mussels), or guisantes lágrima tear peas. The list also includes grill master Bittor Arginzoniz (Etxebarri, Axpe, Basque Country), who grills everything from prawns to chorizo to aged beef ribeye. Finally, the list is completed by Mexican Chef Paco Méndez of the restaurant Come, based in Barcelona, who uses products such as Ibérico pork in his recipes.

Special Distinctions

In addition to the podium and the three-knife award list, The Best Chef Awards offers special distinctions this year. Two have gone to Spaniards: Albert Adrià received the (R)Evolution Award, recognizing the most revolutionary proposal, while Ángel León won the Science Award, acknowledging his scientific contributions to the culinary world.

The professional trajectory and milestones of Albert Adrià, Ángel León, and many other Spanish chefs can be found in Who is Who, the section within Foods Wines and Spain dedicated to listing the most important names in Spanish gastronomy.