Masterchef S03 ep9 : Josean Martinez Alija, Restaurant Guggenheim, [Bilbao]
Interview with Josean Martinez Alija
My philosophy is a work in progress, which, during nearly two decades, has grown to harmonize with the things with which I most closely identify: basically, the authentic and the natural. In some way, the value of my output will be in the eye of the beholder, but I aim to bring my diners to a world in which everything is special. Perhaps the work consists in discovering where it is exactly—the magic that makes it special. The aromas connect you to memories and create an infinite number of imaginary ideas that invite you to travel and play. It’s where sensitivity and instinct come face to face with consciousness and permit access to a world of endless possibility. To cook is to transform; change; provoke; and conjugate flavors, textures, dreams, and appearances. To cook is to give life to ideas and share unique experiences by taking on new challenges. A dish approaches wisdom when it provokes emotions and promotes good health. To surprise with the familiar is difficult, as it is inherently a challenge; it transports us to the essence: the earth and its bounty. Currently I’m preparing a work which I will present in Identità Golose in Milan under the theme: “The luxury of simplicity,” in which I reflect on the pure essence of my cooking as though it were a brief Japanese poem, or haiku."
13:43 The Guggenheim museum, in this case its director Juan Ignacio Villarta,
has always considered gastronomy to be an important part of the culture of
a society, and believed in the concept of having a gourmet restaurant inside
the museum. I think it’s the first museum in the world that combines the
culture of food, which represents a way of life, people’s eagerness... This
is... the beginning, right?
14:17
14:40
I order vegetables, the best fish and meat and apply all my experience, in
some cases using imaginative ideas, in others techniques. I rely on my
teams in the dining room, on the kitchen’s research and development team
and on the chefs to somehow make a....a project come true. A project that
seeks pleasure and is born from pleasure. We want, well... for people to
enjoy themselves, we want to seduce them...We want many things.
15:15
15:30
I have been and am very lucky...because I was born in the country and
understand nature and livestock very well, how to go out to collect
mushrooms, berries...all kinds of food that can be found in nature. This is
something you experience and know when you live in the country. It’s not
something you study, it’s something that you learn. It’s...well...a natural,
pure and simple way to be in touch with nature.
16:07
16:24
Well, then comes the time when you are going to primary school and your
father asks you what you want to do. The first answer is, well, I don’t want
to do anything...I want, I just want to have fun, right?
And well, he puts me to the test, changing the way I think. He changes the
way I’m thinking and asks again a few months later, “what do you want to
be?” and I say...well...I want to be a cook, right? The answer surprised him
because I wasn’t a very good eater. I wasn’t much interested in food, you
see?
Well, then he asks me “why do you want to be a cook?” I say well, I think
cooking is fun, I think the way food is transformed interests me, when you
put something in the oven, all the changes that cooking is all about, right? It
seemed fun. So then I started school. Alternating between catering school
and training in the restaurants that marked that period in the city.
17:38
17:52
Actually, when you start to cook you discover a completely new world. It
attracts you and you start to like something that at that stage in your life,
like any kid, you haven’t shown much interest for yet: food. You start in the
kitchen, you start to like the taste, and you start to become a gourmet... a
person who tries out things, who shows interest, a desire to learn, discover
tastes, textures, meats, fish, vegetables... In those, well, initial moments,
because it’s obvious I had an advantage having lived in the country, it
helped me to reveal my interest in school much more quickly. Because
many references were unknown to me, you see?
18:46
19:02
In Spain there are actually many types of cuisine. What defines the food is
the region, the food and ingredients you find in that area.
That’s what makes the cuisine interesting in one region or another. Original,
popular and traditional cooking...
19:27
19:43
Today things have changed a lot. My cuisine is more of an avant-garde
cuisine, with different references... Maybe my part, the part that connects, is
that I prepare food with local products. I use local products, but interpret
them differently, not forgetting tradition in some cases and applying a high
level of creativity in others. I don’t reject tradition, creativity, avant-gardism;
we actually mix one and the other. There are things that, well...go better
with one or the other.
20:31
20:45
The actual menus depend on various factors. One of them is the seasons.
We use different products in each season.
The other factor that is very important is that we ask those who come to the
Guggenheim restaurant what they want. You can live a true experience or
dedicate 45 minutes to your meal. This makes a difference. How wonderful
do you want the experience to be? That’s established by the menu, right?
What are your preferences? That’s in the menu. I’m open to things; I think
everyone has the right to choose from what I have to offer to come up with
their own ideal menu. I will help them make it as perfect as possible.
21:40
21:56
How is the kitchen structured? A kitchen, well, let me think...I think it’s
organized according to your needs. Before everything was based on a
French model which prevailed. But what worked in the past is not
necessarily valid today. Things have changed, now you structure things
depending on your actual needs. We have structure, an R & D department
where concepts are developed. Concepts are developed and people are
trained to be able to prepare and reproduce the dishes.
22:39
22:49 I believe that what all chefs have in common is passion. We all have that in
common. Spanish chefs are probably less conservative, which doesn’t mean
they reject traditional food, but in Spain we take more risks, yes, more risk.
This has helped us in many ways; to move on...to make our cuisine evolve
e. That is to say, in very few years Spanish cuisine has developed a lot and
that’s because a lot of risks have been taken along the way.
23:31
23;38 First of all, let me explain that molecular gastronomy doesn’t exist.
Molecular cuisine is an invention, it doesn’t exist. There are two types of
gastronomy, signature cuisine which is based on your own rules and a more
conservative, more traditional cuisine. I aim for a cuisine that I enjoy, that
teaches me. I think it’s important to help you always be different and
continue evolving. I don’t believe in an established cuisine that you continue
repeating every single day of your life. That’s very boring. I look for
something else.
24:23
24:33
Well, I think in the end this is like the magnetic waves from mobile phones...
We have magnetic waves related to art which affects us, right? They affect
us and clearly help us to be much more creative, right?
24:48
OFFICIAL WEBSITE: Josean Martinez, Restaurant Guggenheim, [Alija]
