Ferran Adrià—chef and co-owner of Spain's famed El Bulli, which has been deemed "best restaurant in the world" four times in the last six years by England's Restaurant magazine—recently spent a day with students at The Culinary Institute of America (CIA) in Hyde Park, N.Y.On the morning of Wednesday, March 25, about 1,100 students came to hear Adrià speak about his culinary background and cooking philosophy. The 90-minute presentation included an opportunity for students to ask questions of the man who is widely considered the best and most innovative chef in the world today.
In the afternoon, Adrià's cooking style—which he calls "deconstructivist"—was on full display as he showed how he develops recipes with unexpected contrasts in flavor, temperature and texture. The two-hour demonstration was a treat for the more than 1,300 students and faculty attending, as Adrià rarely cooks away from elBulli and his test kitchen in Barcelona.
The following day, Adrià received the college's Augie Award as Chef of the Year during the annual CIA Leadership Awards dinner at Cipriani 42nd Street in New York City.
Chef Ferran Adrià talks with CIA students (Photos: CIA/Keith Ferris)
