WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:10.240 You're listening to Heritage Radio Network. Hi 00:00:10.240 --> 00:00:12.820 everyone, welcome to Potluck Food Talks. Today 00:00:12.820 --> 00:00:16.059 we have a special guest, Iñaki Bolomburu, straight 00:00:16.059 --> 00:00:18.899 from Bangkok, Thailand. How are you doing, Iñaki? 00:00:19.199 --> 00:00:21.820 I'm good, I'm good. I mean, can't complain, can't 00:00:21.820 --> 00:00:24.579 complain. How are you? Great, good, good, good. 00:00:25.280 --> 00:00:28.339 So Iñaki is a Basque chef that recently opened 00:00:28.339 --> 00:00:32.539 Amalur, which is a Basque restaurant in Bangkok. 00:00:32.880 --> 00:00:36.000 Amalur means Mother Earth, is that correct? Yeah, 00:00:36.020 --> 00:00:39.359 well, basically Amalur is a goddess in Basque 00:00:39.359 --> 00:00:41.659 mythology. It's the mother of the sun and the 00:00:41.659 --> 00:00:44.579 moon. And basically, yeah, the meaning is Pachamama 00:00:44.579 --> 00:00:47.600 or Mother Earth for us, for the Basque country, 00:00:47.640 --> 00:00:50.679 but maybe with our mythological sense, let's 00:00:50.679 --> 00:00:54.570 say. Okay, super interesting. So I wanted to... 00:00:54.570 --> 00:00:56.850 Let's start with the beginning. I think it's 00:00:56.850 --> 00:01:00.250 very interesting for me always to see... the 00:01:00.250 --> 00:01:05.709 experiences of chefs that are mixing or exporting 00:01:05.709 --> 00:01:08.549 their culture to other countries. There are always 00:01:08.549 --> 00:01:11.290 some things that have to be adapted. But before 00:01:11.290 --> 00:01:13.150 we get into that, let's start with the beginning, 00:01:13.290 --> 00:01:16.790 with your beginnings. How did you start cooking? 00:01:17.250 --> 00:01:20.629 When did you start? And how did you end up being 00:01:20.629 --> 00:01:24.129 a chef? Even when I was very little already, 00:01:24.329 --> 00:01:27.200 I was already sneaking in the kitchen. I was 00:01:27.200 --> 00:01:30.239 very lucky to come from a farmhouse where all 00:01:30.239 --> 00:01:32.400 the women of my family and even the men were 00:01:32.400 --> 00:01:34.900 in the Basque Country. All the people know how 00:01:34.900 --> 00:01:37.340 to cook something at least. So I've always been 00:01:37.340 --> 00:01:39.400 very interested. Even I remember to be looking 00:01:39.400 --> 00:01:41.459 at Carlos Arguiñano programs when I was a kid. 00:01:41.560 --> 00:01:44.439 I was very much a student, if I need to say that. 00:01:44.620 --> 00:01:47.959 A very productive guy, let's say. Well, I went 00:01:47.959 --> 00:01:51.959 to culinary school in Bilbao, in Achanda. Learned 00:01:51.959 --> 00:01:54.620 there, well, the basics. Again, I was not being 00:01:54.620 --> 00:01:57.439 the best. I worked in some traditional places 00:01:57.439 --> 00:01:59.900 in Basque Country. I was out inside the fine 00:01:59.900 --> 00:02:02.719 dining, let's say. And one day I end up in Venta 00:02:02.719 --> 00:02:06.340 Moncalvillo in Rioja, in a very little village 00:02:06.340 --> 00:02:08.900 as a, well, as a commis chef, let's say. They 00:02:08.900 --> 00:02:11.120 gave me the chance to work there. It was one 00:02:11.120 --> 00:02:13.300 amazing start on that time. And then I realized 00:02:13.300 --> 00:02:15.740 what was the fine dining and what was the creativity 00:02:15.740 --> 00:02:18.419 inside the food. And I get like, wow, wow, wow. 00:02:18.599 --> 00:02:22.020 This is amazing, no? After that time when I found 00:02:22.020 --> 00:02:26.020 like, okay, I love this. I want to, you know, 00:02:26.020 --> 00:02:29.039 to learn on this game, you know, get better and 00:02:29.039 --> 00:02:31.280 train every day, spend hours. You know, this 00:02:31.280 --> 00:02:33.780 is how you create a craft. And then I went to 00:02:33.780 --> 00:02:36.759 San Sebastian. So in San Sebastian, I went to, 00:02:36.780 --> 00:02:39.400 well, Bodebon Alejandro, more traditional. And 00:02:39.400 --> 00:02:42.919 then 20 years old, I end up in Mugaritz. And 00:02:42.919 --> 00:02:45.300 boom, they broke my brain, you know, everything 00:02:45.300 --> 00:02:47.280 is possible. You know, like everything is possible. 00:02:47.580 --> 00:02:50.900 Which year were you in Mugaritz? 2013. Actually, 00:02:50.979 --> 00:02:55.159 it was with Phil. ah okay okay okay okay super 00:02:55.159 --> 00:02:58.419 cool so yeah i mean there was like beautiful 00:02:58.419 --> 00:03:01.699 to see the sense of community of teamwork of 00:03:01.699 --> 00:03:04.199 you know like uh these things that they put you 00:03:04.199 --> 00:03:07.000 like in a way horny you know like uh it's something 00:03:07.000 --> 00:03:09.539 that gives you an extra energy to push every 00:03:09.539 --> 00:03:12.500 day to be more perfect you know all the systems 00:03:12.500 --> 00:03:15.000 all the details you know so then you get a little 00:03:15.000 --> 00:03:16.919 bit addicted to this and you want more and more 00:03:16.919 --> 00:03:19.479 and more And then you continue your travel, no? 00:03:19.580 --> 00:03:22.259 Like, I'm a chef that, again, I tell you, I was 00:03:22.259 --> 00:03:23.900 not the best student, so I learned English in 00:03:23.900 --> 00:03:26.000 the kitchen, you know? After Mugaritz, I end 00:03:26.000 --> 00:03:28.800 up in UC, in the Netherlands, because, of course, 00:03:28.840 --> 00:03:31.060 but I like to get that job in that time, saying 00:03:31.060 --> 00:03:32.500 that there was no one in English, so I arrived 00:03:32.500 --> 00:03:34.599 there for working for Sergio Herman and Steve 00:03:34.599 --> 00:03:37.599 Kovaker. Love you guys, because now they are 00:03:37.599 --> 00:03:40.659 good friends. And I went there without English, 00:03:40.719 --> 00:03:42.699 but knowing how to cook. And then I learned English 00:03:42.699 --> 00:03:45.120 there, and I started traveling. So the next step 00:03:45.120 --> 00:03:47.680 after there was... But when I went to Noma, you 00:03:47.680 --> 00:03:50.180 know, like I was, I'm a guy that I'm always, 00:03:50.280 --> 00:03:53.139 now it's true that I spend a lot of time in the 00:03:53.139 --> 00:03:55.319 big cities, you know, like for work or whatever. 00:03:55.520 --> 00:03:58.520 But I'm a person that I love forging nature. 00:03:58.800 --> 00:04:00.680 You know, Amalur is all about that also, no? 00:04:00.759 --> 00:04:02.599 Like you said, natural driving project, let's 00:04:02.599 --> 00:04:05.680 say. So yeah, Noma was also one of the places 00:04:05.680 --> 00:04:08.860 where more touched my creativity and also to 00:04:08.860 --> 00:04:12.259 see, well, the level of teamwork that is there. 00:04:12.439 --> 00:04:14.460 It's very similar to Mogadishu with another point 00:04:14.460 --> 00:04:17.120 of view, let's say. That was a little bit. Even 00:04:17.120 --> 00:04:19.180 I spent some time with an Echo in Affirmendi 00:04:19.180 --> 00:04:22.259 in my holidays when I was in Mugarit. So when 00:04:22.259 --> 00:04:24.740 I was quite young, I already pushed my one that 00:04:24.740 --> 00:04:28.540 is to the maximum level. And fuck, after 10, 00:04:28.639 --> 00:04:31.459 15 years, I continue pushing me like a lot, sometimes 00:04:31.459 --> 00:04:33.740 too much, let's say, no? But yeah, this was a 00:04:33.740 --> 00:04:36.259 little bit the thing. Then after that, after 00:04:36.259 --> 00:04:39.160 Noma, I end up in Nerua, in the good Camisier, 00:04:39.199 --> 00:04:41.899 in Bilbao, go back home. Yeah, so you spent like 00:04:41.899 --> 00:04:45.430 a fair amount of time in Nerua, right? yeah yeah 00:04:45.430 --> 00:04:47.689 yeah in there i spent quite a lot of time and 00:04:47.689 --> 00:04:50.250 uh because well i i'm very grateful it's one 00:04:50.250 --> 00:04:52.290 of the mentors that they give me wings let's 00:04:52.290 --> 00:04:55.189 say because well jose and take me if someone 00:04:55.189 --> 00:04:58.649 of my mentors is uh the one that take me this 00:04:58.649 --> 00:05:00.509 thing of traveling now because now a lot of people 00:05:00.509 --> 00:05:02.990 know me i've asked about my pop -ups and about 00:05:02.990 --> 00:05:06.110 being in this problem scene uh traveling quite 00:05:06.110 --> 00:05:09.050 a lot posion was the one like giving me the confidence 00:05:09.050 --> 00:05:11.790 to you know to travel with him to a lot of countries 00:05:11.790 --> 00:05:14.620 and to develop creativity in another atmospheres. 00:05:14.800 --> 00:05:17.180 So then I get addicted to that also, you know, 00:05:17.259 --> 00:05:19.540 like, I also like traveling, of course, but then 00:05:19.540 --> 00:05:22.399 like, you know, be out of your comfort zone is 00:05:22.399 --> 00:05:24.480 sometimes very beautiful, you know, like, you 00:05:24.480 --> 00:05:26.459 see, like something that we call force of creativity, 00:05:26.699 --> 00:05:28.980 that is what we do in that in a model, for example, 00:05:29.120 --> 00:05:33.720 like, we don't create this is because we want 00:05:33.720 --> 00:05:35.420 to do something we excited or with potatoes, 00:05:35.540 --> 00:05:37.839 you know, like, the potatoes tell us what to 00:05:37.839 --> 00:05:39.779 do with them, you know, in a way like, so we 00:05:39.779 --> 00:05:42.040 buy them and we start working with them and We 00:05:42.040 --> 00:05:44.600 try to don't have a waste. So we don't like to 00:05:44.600 --> 00:05:47.600 say waste. We like to say byproduct. So we try 00:05:47.600 --> 00:05:49.600 to don't drop nothing to the, to the beans. So 00:05:49.600 --> 00:05:51.560 we have an equation. Okay. What we can do with 00:05:51.560 --> 00:05:55.019 these before it gets, uh, bad or in bad shape. 00:05:55.160 --> 00:05:57.560 So oils dehydrate others, whatever. And then, 00:05:57.560 --> 00:06:00.319 oh, we have a big production of this. Okay. Let's 00:06:00.319 --> 00:06:02.800 start creating something about this product that 00:06:02.800 --> 00:06:04.720 we have, you know, as a seasoning or a principal 00:06:04.720 --> 00:06:07.420 product or whatever. So all these people like. 00:06:07.870 --> 00:06:11.629 They add things in what is today Amalur or what 00:06:11.629 --> 00:06:14.930 is happening with my pop -ups that have been 00:06:14.930 --> 00:06:17.029 traveling already in more than 40 countries. 00:06:17.230 --> 00:06:20.769 I still don't believe it. I feel lucky sometimes. 00:06:21.629 --> 00:06:25.509 Can you tell more about these pop -ups? How did 00:06:25.509 --> 00:06:30.129 you begin doing pop -ups? Which were the highlights? 00:06:30.589 --> 00:06:36.040 I also saw some of you traveled. Well, so basically, 00:06:36.220 --> 00:06:38.959 like, when I finished in Norway, I was having 00:06:38.959 --> 00:06:40.959 a bad time in my life. You know, like, my mom 00:06:40.959 --> 00:06:42.879 passed away. It was one of, well, it's your mom, 00:06:42.959 --> 00:06:45.399 of course, but it's one of the persons that teach 00:06:45.399 --> 00:06:47.920 me from scratch, like, cooking, the first things, 00:06:47.980 --> 00:06:50.040 you know. Of course, it was a very big thing. 00:06:50.360 --> 00:06:52.339 I was having a bad time, and someone told me, 00:06:52.379 --> 00:06:57.259 hey, why you don't come to Estonia? Why you don't 00:06:57.259 --> 00:06:59.180 come here and you do a pop -up? And I was like, 00:06:59.240 --> 00:07:01.560 okay, like, yeah, why not? You know, I was out 00:07:01.560 --> 00:07:03.540 of the kitchen for a few months. I was not feeling 00:07:03.540 --> 00:07:05.800 very nice, you know, so I said, okay, traveling 00:07:05.800 --> 00:07:08.259 maybe is going to be good. I went there, dropped 00:07:08.259 --> 00:07:12.259 my style, of course, with influences of all these 00:07:12.259 --> 00:07:14.899 restaurants that all of us we know and trying 00:07:14.899 --> 00:07:18.819 to do my thing, the thing that they really support, 00:07:19.040 --> 00:07:23.060 that they want to do. So then when I went there, 00:07:23.120 --> 00:07:25.560 everything was very good, you know, like I have 00:07:25.560 --> 00:07:27.879 very good feedback of some people that were there. 00:07:28.480 --> 00:07:31.300 And then, I don't know, like I went to a stage. 00:07:31.930 --> 00:07:34.029 that was Heston Blumenthal randomly was there 00:07:34.029 --> 00:07:36.290 speaking, you know, like, I was like, wow, what 00:07:36.290 --> 00:07:38.029 the fuck I'm doing here? You know, I'm no one 00:07:38.029 --> 00:07:40.750 here. Of course, well, hey, he's a legend, you 00:07:40.750 --> 00:07:42.269 know, what the fuck I'm doing here with Heston 00:07:42.269 --> 00:07:45.329 Blumenthal. Anyway, like, I do my talk about 00:07:45.329 --> 00:07:48.110 what was going to be in my mind, my next step 00:07:48.110 --> 00:07:50.750 in the pop -up world or the events that I was 00:07:50.750 --> 00:07:53.610 doing. On that time, I was planning to open my 00:07:53.610 --> 00:07:57.970 restaurant in the next month in Basque Country. 00:07:59.060 --> 00:08:02.399 And then I explained that before that, I was 00:08:02.399 --> 00:08:05.160 wanting to do more pop -ups to learn a share 00:08:05.160 --> 00:08:07.500 with another shares. Because, you know, when 00:08:07.500 --> 00:08:09.100 you do a collaboration with another share in 00:08:09.100 --> 00:08:12.180 another country, it's big knowledge in short 00:08:12.180 --> 00:08:14.620 time. It's like, bam, bam, you get crazy. It's 00:08:14.620 --> 00:08:17.060 like when I go to the wet markets in Thailand. 00:08:17.859 --> 00:08:19.939 Vietnam in Cambodia and you know, like there 00:08:19.939 --> 00:08:22.399 are crazy market this chaotic is sometimes even 00:08:22.399 --> 00:08:26.000 disgusting but it's quite Inspiring is full of 00:08:26.000 --> 00:08:28.660 energy, you know, so it's very immersive and 00:08:28.660 --> 00:08:31.740 impactful. Yeah, absolutely Yeah, yeah, it's 00:08:31.740 --> 00:08:33.899 like it's too much. It's like pom -pom -pom. 00:08:33.899 --> 00:08:36.840 It's too much. It is hardcore and then you know 00:08:36.840 --> 00:08:38.940 You get again like okay, let's do another pop 00:08:38.940 --> 00:08:41.940 -up and then you see that in each pop -up your 00:08:41.940 --> 00:08:45.139 knowledge doubles and the next pop -up triples 00:08:45.139 --> 00:08:47.440 and then you learn a share and then you see a 00:08:47.440 --> 00:08:50.039 chef using your technique and you have this connection 00:08:50.039 --> 00:08:52.840 with the chefs that is all about community hey 00:08:52.840 --> 00:08:55.539 how you was doing this can you give me the tip 00:08:55.539 --> 00:08:58.080 you know like and you help each other and it's 00:08:58.080 --> 00:09:00.000 super nice mood and then this starts getting 00:09:00.000 --> 00:09:03.100 like in a small snowball so from this talk that 00:09:03.100 --> 00:09:04.980 they did like i remember like they offered me 00:09:04.980 --> 00:09:08.340 to do a gig in uh In Portugal, we do a nice pop 00:09:08.340 --> 00:09:11.820 -up. In that time with Ona in Lisbon, we smashed 00:09:11.820 --> 00:09:14.759 it. It was a super nice pop -up. Then from there, 00:09:14.820 --> 00:09:18.159 two more. From these two, four more. It was like 00:09:18.159 --> 00:09:21.860 a snowball. And then at that time, pop -ups were 00:09:21.860 --> 00:09:24.820 already some chefs that they were following because 00:09:24.820 --> 00:09:27.120 of the pop -ups. And I was very crazy about that. 00:09:27.240 --> 00:09:30.940 For example, Nuno Mendes from Lisboeta, he was 00:09:30.940 --> 00:09:33.480 doing pop -ups at the time. But there were just 00:09:33.480 --> 00:09:36.879 a few. And then see how... all these years everything 00:09:36.879 --> 00:09:39.460 developed like fuck there are a lot of shares 00:09:39.460 --> 00:09:40.820 that there are no much shares that there are 00:09:40.820 --> 00:09:42.980 itinerant shares now it's a normal thing you 00:09:42.980 --> 00:09:46.139 know so yeah that was a little bit the clue you 00:09:46.139 --> 00:09:49.539 know i still like using this in my my actual 00:09:49.539 --> 00:09:53.279 restaurant and and concepts to to to continue 00:09:53.279 --> 00:09:55.259 like working on that at the end of the day we 00:09:55.259 --> 00:09:58.460 treat the restaurant as a controlled pop -up 00:09:58.460 --> 00:10:02.730 you know in a way Okay. So you also did a collaboration 00:10:02.730 --> 00:10:08.169 with Vasco Coelho? Was it a pop -up? Not yet, 00:10:08.289 --> 00:10:10.669 not yet. I'm going now in September. I'm now 00:10:10.669 --> 00:10:14.470 in Bangkok right now. On the, well, all the September, 00:10:14.470 --> 00:10:17.149 I have like a big tournée during all Europe. 00:10:17.429 --> 00:10:19.389 And one of them is going to be with Vasco that 00:10:19.389 --> 00:10:21.610 also, well, it's a person from Mugaris that we 00:10:21.610 --> 00:10:24.350 haven't met in Mugaris, but Mugaris have this 00:10:24.350 --> 00:10:26.710 special thing, right? Like all the people that 00:10:26.710 --> 00:10:29.360 have been there, we... we have something in in 00:10:29.360 --> 00:10:32.879 common in a way and vasco well i'm very glad 00:10:32.879 --> 00:10:34.820 to say that vasco is a very good friend already 00:10:34.820 --> 00:10:37.639 a brother of mine and we were talking about doing 00:10:37.639 --> 00:10:39.580 this collaboration for time now i was having 00:10:39.580 --> 00:10:42.220 time so yeah on day 10 of september and cooking 00:10:42.220 --> 00:10:45.200 there in oscalduna i eat there years ago and 00:10:45.200 --> 00:10:48.000 it's lovely i love these guys and i love portugal 00:10:48.000 --> 00:10:51.460 so i'm really really looking forward Yeah, there's 00:10:51.460 --> 00:10:55.240 an episode coming with Vasco. We already recorded, 00:10:55.379 --> 00:10:57.440 but there were some technical problems, so we 00:10:57.440 --> 00:10:59.940 have to do it again. But yeah, super interesting 00:10:59.940 --> 00:11:02.340 guy, super creative person. I really admire him. 00:11:02.879 --> 00:11:08.480 Amazing guy. I love you, Vasco. Why Bangkok? 00:11:08.700 --> 00:11:11.419 Let's get into Amalur. How did you end up there, 00:11:11.600 --> 00:11:15.110 and how did the project develop? Yeah, well, 00:11:15.190 --> 00:11:18.389 I mean, yeah, that was not on the plan, if I 00:11:18.389 --> 00:11:21.210 need to tell you. I'm very, like, impulsive in 00:11:21.210 --> 00:11:23.110 a way. And the people that know me, they know, 00:11:23.129 --> 00:11:26.149 like, it's full of energy, always good. And I 00:11:26.149 --> 00:11:28.309 always try to, yeah, let's make it, you know. 00:11:28.429 --> 00:11:30.309 Well, some people will know, like, I was having 00:11:30.309 --> 00:11:32.409 my last restaurant was in Amsterdam. Like, we 00:11:32.409 --> 00:11:34.610 was, like, already, like, getting quite big there. 00:11:34.789 --> 00:11:38.090 It was a very big project. And then, well, very 00:11:38.090 --> 00:11:40.450 suddenly, we need to stop the relation because 00:11:40.450 --> 00:11:43.460 we have a problem with the landlord. It was not 00:11:43.460 --> 00:11:46.159 business -wise oriented positively. So we decided 00:11:46.159 --> 00:11:48.919 to start with that project. It was sad. I continue 00:11:48.919 --> 00:11:50.840 having connection with Amsterdam because it's 00:11:50.840 --> 00:11:52.440 a beautiful city. And I really think they have 00:11:52.440 --> 00:11:55.039 a big potential soon. We are going to talk like 00:11:55.039 --> 00:11:58.419 Amsterdam, like the last year's Copenhagen, let's 00:11:58.419 --> 00:12:01.620 say, in my opinion. You got a recognition from 00:12:01.620 --> 00:12:05.080 Best Chef Awards. Was it in that project in Amsterdam? 00:12:05.379 --> 00:12:08.539 Yeah, it was. We contrasted Amsterdam. We were 00:12:08.539 --> 00:12:10.500 saying it was a beautiful project. It was very 00:12:10.500 --> 00:12:14.480 personal. No menu. Only the price. The first 00:12:14.480 --> 00:12:16.419 question was, well, welcome to the restaurant. 00:12:16.740 --> 00:12:18.100 What you don't want to eat tonight? Well, you 00:12:18.100 --> 00:12:20.519 cannot eat tonight. And then after that, it's 00:12:20.519 --> 00:12:22.860 our game, no? Like your home, gallery of art, 00:12:23.019 --> 00:12:26.659 some race under the boat, you know, like was 00:12:26.659 --> 00:12:30.059 a boat in Canada, two floors. Super cool. And 00:12:30.059 --> 00:12:33.320 I'm still like very like romantic with the fact. 00:12:33.769 --> 00:12:35.389 But, well, at the end of the day, like, I'm very 00:12:35.389 --> 00:12:37.690 passionate, but we always need to figure out 00:12:37.690 --> 00:12:39.110 that this, at the end of the day, is a business, 00:12:39.230 --> 00:12:41.450 no? But, yeah, we was, like, in a very good shape, 00:12:41.549 --> 00:12:45.370 huh? Gambero Rosso, Gormillo, the best chef of 00:12:45.370 --> 00:12:47.169 all. Well, all these recognitions that, well, 00:12:47.210 --> 00:12:50.210 for the ego of a chef or for people like us, 00:12:50.330 --> 00:12:53.250 we are, like, well, always trying to be the best, 00:12:53.309 --> 00:12:55.470 let's say. Like, there are things that they tell 00:12:55.470 --> 00:12:57.429 you, okay, you are in a good way. So, of course, 00:12:57.429 --> 00:13:00.600 it was very nice. It was very nice to... To be 00:13:00.600 --> 00:13:02.600 invited and when I finally do tell you when I 00:13:02.600 --> 00:13:04.279 went to the restaurant, I was saying, OK, what 00:13:04.279 --> 00:13:05.820 the fuck I'm doing here. You know, I was drinking 00:13:05.820 --> 00:13:09.039 a beer in Dubai. I mean, I saw my fucking face 00:13:09.039 --> 00:13:11.639 in the monitor and said, what the fuck? And the 00:13:11.639 --> 00:13:14.200 people were like, you know, so, you know, maybe 00:13:14.200 --> 00:13:16.039 the people think that I'm like, yeah, you know, 00:13:16.080 --> 00:13:19.700 but now I'm very down to earth on that. And now 00:13:19.700 --> 00:13:22.600 what happened is like, well, this year I started 00:13:22.600 --> 00:13:24.419 a year without restaurants. It was a little bit 00:13:24.419 --> 00:13:27.759 low on. positivity, let's say. And I always, 00:13:27.799 --> 00:13:30.820 when I'm a little bit sad, I always try to, you 00:13:30.820 --> 00:13:33.960 know, turn it over, double the bet. So I started 00:13:33.960 --> 00:13:35.659 the game with the pop -up game because it was 00:13:35.659 --> 00:13:38.139 already like a few years, well, focused on just 00:13:38.139 --> 00:13:41.720 one restaurant, one project. And I started popping. 00:13:41.940 --> 00:13:45.820 So in January, at the end of January, I was already 00:13:45.820 --> 00:13:48.740 in Asia. I'm in Bangkok. I live here. I have 00:13:48.740 --> 00:13:50.799 a lot of friends and we're in all Southeast Asia 00:13:50.799 --> 00:13:53.870 and we're quite well connected, let's say. So 00:13:53.870 --> 00:13:55.450 I always drop some pop -ups during the year, 00:13:55.509 --> 00:13:57.909 you know, like I use it as also a kind of inspiration 00:13:57.909 --> 00:14:00.389 because it's not the same to go to the market 00:14:00.389 --> 00:14:02.889 in Guernica or to go to the market in Bangkok, 00:14:03.149 --> 00:14:06.169 Tron Toi wet market. It's like, wow, you know, 00:14:06.190 --> 00:14:08.409 if you are vast, this thing is going to make 00:14:08.409 --> 00:14:10.850 you crazy. And if you are from Thailand and you 00:14:10.850 --> 00:14:12.669 are used to the wet market, you go to Guernica 00:14:12.669 --> 00:14:15.289 market and say, wow, you know, so it's like, 00:14:15.330 --> 00:14:17.769 is this fine? So at the beginning of the year, 00:14:17.870 --> 00:14:21.059 I was here doing a pop -up and then. Just randomly, 00:14:21.159 --> 00:14:23.259 I saw a friend of mine that he was having a location 00:14:23.259 --> 00:14:25.700 that they was having a restaurant that they closed 00:14:25.700 --> 00:14:28.440 because they moved the place. And I was there 00:14:28.440 --> 00:14:30.679 before, you know. I said, what are you doing 00:14:30.679 --> 00:14:32.679 with the location? You know, yes, the day when 00:14:32.679 --> 00:14:34.399 I was traveling back to Europe, I said, man, 00:14:34.519 --> 00:14:37.840 it's a stop. I said, well, hey, I'm doing some 00:14:37.840 --> 00:14:39.860 pop -ups this year. I don't want to invest again, 00:14:40.120 --> 00:14:42.559 you know, because I'm a little bit Chinese for 00:14:42.559 --> 00:14:44.370 these things, you know, like. When I don't like 00:14:44.370 --> 00:14:46.570 the number, like 2035, for example, it was like, 00:14:46.590 --> 00:14:48.809 hmm, it's in part, you know, like I got paid. 00:14:49.590 --> 00:14:51.950 No, yeah, I'm very like superstitious for other 00:14:51.950 --> 00:14:54.230 things in a way. It's quite a retarded thing, 00:14:54.289 --> 00:14:58.389 right? But yeah, it's the truth. It's the truth. 00:14:58.429 --> 00:14:59.970 I say, I'm not going to invest any money in the 00:14:59.970 --> 00:15:04.309 year. Let's make it happen for 2036. Let's use 00:15:04.309 --> 00:15:07.250 the year for learning what was wrong, what was 00:15:07.250 --> 00:15:10.009 good, what can be better. Let's make healthy. 00:15:10.639 --> 00:15:12.799 because of course like well a lot of chefs that 00:15:12.799 --> 00:15:15.139 maybe they are hearing this like having a project 00:15:15.139 --> 00:15:17.759 in amsterdam that was very big with very low 00:15:17.759 --> 00:15:20.279 team and trying to make be the best like also 00:15:20.279 --> 00:15:23.379 your your healthiness a little bit you know you 00:15:23.379 --> 00:15:26.419 know low hours of sleeping too much coffee too 00:15:26.419 --> 00:15:28.820 much tobacco you know so this year i say okay 00:15:28.820 --> 00:15:32.279 january is of tobacco detox you know like getting 00:15:32.279 --> 00:15:34.740 trained every day so it's go back in track just 00:15:34.740 --> 00:15:37.429 to be better the next time And then randomly 00:15:37.429 --> 00:15:40.470 I say, oh, should we take over this place? So 00:15:40.470 --> 00:15:43.789 we take now a mallour in Bangkok, in Soy 51, 00:15:44.230 --> 00:15:46.950 second floor of a crazy location. You saw it 00:15:46.950 --> 00:15:48.889 from outside and it looks like we are selling 00:15:48.889 --> 00:15:52.210 drugs, you know? I see the picture. It looks 00:15:52.210 --> 00:15:56.049 really like a joint in Bangkok. Yes, it looks 00:15:56.049 --> 00:15:58.690 like. But also, this is the beauty of Bangkok, 00:15:58.830 --> 00:16:02.230 because Bangkok is not, if you are not a tourist 00:16:02.230 --> 00:16:04.610 here, you see Bangkok as a controlled chaos. 00:16:05.200 --> 00:16:08.220 You know, it's a chaos. It's crazy. It's crazy. 00:16:08.360 --> 00:16:10.639 But it's controlled. All works, you know, in 00:16:10.639 --> 00:16:12.899 a way. And this is Amalur, in a way. Outside, 00:16:13.179 --> 00:16:15.860 it's like, what the fuck is this? It's very difficult 00:16:15.860 --> 00:16:18.980 to find it. We don't have parking. We don't have 00:16:18.980 --> 00:16:22.399 a host. And it's something that I wanted to make. 00:16:22.500 --> 00:16:26.759 Like, now, Amalur is a very casual thing for 00:16:26.759 --> 00:16:30.340 Bangkok. But Amalur, how I want it, it's like, 00:16:30.379 --> 00:16:33.919 it's a... nomad itinerant project, let's say, 00:16:34.019 --> 00:16:37.100 where we are taking over spaces and making the 00:16:37.100 --> 00:16:39.759 concept that fits for the area, the neighborhood, 00:16:40.059 --> 00:16:42.139 or even the restaurant where it's happening. 00:16:43.139 --> 00:16:46.639 So for now, actually, the next week is going 00:16:46.639 --> 00:16:49.580 to be the last week of this little short -time 00:16:49.580 --> 00:16:53.279 residency of two months. But it is true that 00:16:53.279 --> 00:16:56.059 I'm already thinking in making it longer because 00:16:56.059 --> 00:16:59.009 I need to be back in September in Europe. But 00:16:59.009 --> 00:17:02.350 I'm really thinking to make it open for long, 00:17:02.470 --> 00:17:05.049 for good, from October. We are already working 00:17:05.049 --> 00:17:09.970 on that. Because I was not expecting the very 00:17:09.970 --> 00:17:13.029 good feedback of the guests here. Because, you 00:17:13.029 --> 00:17:16.630 know, Asian guests sometimes can be amazing and 00:17:16.630 --> 00:17:18.650 sometimes can be something that they cannot. 00:17:19.049 --> 00:17:21.289 My state of kitchen is not that. For example, 00:17:21.410 --> 00:17:24.180 I remember... Years ago, in one of my pop -ups 00:17:24.180 --> 00:17:26.740 here in Bangkok, the people were asking me, can 00:17:26.740 --> 00:17:28.660 you put me Trafford with caviar and uni? And 00:17:28.660 --> 00:17:31.519 I said, I'm not this kind of chef. It's fine, 00:17:31.619 --> 00:17:33.599 I respect, but it's not what we do here. It's 00:17:33.599 --> 00:17:35.880 not what we do in Amalur. So basically, in Amalur, 00:17:35.940 --> 00:17:38.220 we are trying to bring the philosophy of the 00:17:38.220 --> 00:17:40.960 Basque choco. We are very inspired of the choco, 00:17:41.140 --> 00:17:43.740 of the Basque society, where we talk with the 00:17:43.740 --> 00:17:46.880 guests, and we try to say to him, I always say, 00:17:46.940 --> 00:17:51.140 the first rule is just have fun. We like to go 00:17:51.140 --> 00:17:53.619 home, but we have another rule on top. Behave 00:17:53.619 --> 00:17:56.380 and don't give us problems. You know, so that's 00:17:56.380 --> 00:17:59.019 normal. You go to a home with your friends, you 00:17:59.019 --> 00:18:01.339 do that. And then now people, I say to them, 00:18:01.400 --> 00:18:04.059 you know, people, they came and say, I went to 00:18:04.059 --> 00:18:06.019 it, but I say, sorry, I'm not bringing fees from 00:18:06.019 --> 00:18:10.539 overseas, you know, from Spain or Europe. You 00:18:10.539 --> 00:18:13.059 know, yes, I'm bringing fees from Japan because 00:18:13.059 --> 00:18:14.759 it's like, what, three hours fly, four hours 00:18:14.759 --> 00:18:17.619 fly. And it's like also talking about sustainability 00:18:17.619 --> 00:18:20.599 is also something that we found. And we always, 00:18:20.619 --> 00:18:22.819 we are working in that, found things in the local 00:18:22.819 --> 00:18:24.640 market that, for example, now we are working 00:18:24.640 --> 00:18:27.119 with amazing bonito and fits with the bonito 00:18:27.119 --> 00:18:29.599 season of Basque Country. Also, we are getting 00:18:29.599 --> 00:18:31.839 heirloom tomatoes from some friends that I met 00:18:31.839 --> 00:18:33.680 them three years ago that I started a beautiful 00:18:33.680 --> 00:18:36.460 project in Chiang Mai. They are very nice tomato. 00:18:36.779 --> 00:18:38.460 I mean, like, you know, even peppers, whatever. 00:18:38.599 --> 00:18:40.940 So we are trying to give the seasons of Basque 00:18:40.940 --> 00:18:44.940 Country in the same timeline in Bangkok, you 00:18:44.940 --> 00:18:46.500 know, with the same, it's like a chocolate, you 00:18:46.500 --> 00:18:48.460 know, the people gets here, sometimes they bring 00:18:48.460 --> 00:18:51.319 the wine. uh sometimes they ask hey can i have 00:18:51.319 --> 00:18:53.819 like i don't know i'm i want to like a grouper 00:18:53.819 --> 00:18:57.119 like full grouper whatever so we try to buy the 00:18:57.119 --> 00:18:59.680 best every time so we spend a lot of time in 00:18:59.680 --> 00:19:02.579 the market in the mornings the menu change daily 00:19:02.579 --> 00:19:05.640 with the best things that we have because i really 00:19:05.640 --> 00:19:09.880 believe that uh what we we we do is like i really 00:19:09.880 --> 00:19:12.660 believe that in the boss of fish your only one 00:19:12.660 --> 00:19:15.630 is the best right so we try to buy that one So 00:19:15.630 --> 00:19:17.690 that's why we always have like three portions 00:19:17.690 --> 00:19:19.829 of this, four portions of this. We work only 00:19:19.829 --> 00:19:25.049 a la carte now. And I found it like, wow, very 00:19:25.049 --> 00:19:28.049 inspiring. You know, I came from tasting long 00:19:28.049 --> 00:19:33.329 menus, experienced forward restaurants or pop 00:19:33.329 --> 00:19:36.529 -ups or fine dining and stuff. And now I'm doing 00:19:36.529 --> 00:19:39.670 something more casual. Yes, down to earth. Yes, 00:19:39.690 --> 00:19:41.630 product, good price. I mean, the people tell 00:19:41.630 --> 00:19:43.859 me that I'm cheap, you know. And I say, no, man, 00:19:43.940 --> 00:19:46.299 Bangkok is overpriced. That's the problem. But 00:19:46.299 --> 00:19:48.940 that's a good thing. So that's why now, like, 00:19:49.000 --> 00:19:50.660 even the people at the beginning, they was coming 00:19:50.660 --> 00:19:52.720 to the restaurant. They were saying, ah, this 00:19:52.720 --> 00:19:54.799 is a Spanish food. I say, no, man, this is Basque. 00:19:54.920 --> 00:19:56.900 They say, what the fuck is Basque? I say, okay, 00:19:57.000 --> 00:19:58.759 you can Google it, right? You have a mobile in 00:19:58.759 --> 00:20:01.220 your pocket. And then the people start with that, 00:20:01.259 --> 00:20:03.619 and I'm quite hardcore, you know? Like, sometimes 00:20:03.619 --> 00:20:05.160 when you're having a fine dining restaurant, 00:20:05.440 --> 00:20:06.940 all of us, we know that we need to be a little 00:20:06.940 --> 00:20:09.380 bit chill with the guests. And, you know, I give 00:20:09.380 --> 00:20:12.240 them all the love, of course, like, always. But 00:20:12.240 --> 00:20:14.279 it's true that here we are using the concept 00:20:14.279 --> 00:20:16.799 of the choco. So another day, for example, I 00:20:16.799 --> 00:20:19.579 remember like I cooked them like a grill. One 00:20:19.579 --> 00:20:21.880 second, one second. Let me, I wanted to get into 00:20:21.880 --> 00:20:25.019 that for people who don't know. So Iñaki is talking 00:20:25.019 --> 00:20:28.619 about chocos. Chocos is the way it's called in 00:20:28.619 --> 00:20:32.339 Biscay. Here in Gipuzkoa, it's called Gastronomic 00:20:32.339 --> 00:20:35.279 Society. These are basically supper clubs. So 00:20:35.279 --> 00:20:37.480 you're a member, and as a member, you invite 00:20:37.480 --> 00:20:40.519 your friends, and you're a host, and you cook 00:20:40.519 --> 00:20:44.279 for your friends. And yeah, it's basically like 00:20:44.279 --> 00:20:46.579 a private club that you have a space where you 00:20:46.579 --> 00:20:49.059 can cook and host, and you, as a host, you're 00:20:49.059 --> 00:20:52.339 responsible of your guests. So if anybody's doing 00:20:52.339 --> 00:20:55.519 a mess... You kick them out or whatever, more 00:20:55.519 --> 00:20:57.759 or less. That's how it works. And you have your 00:20:57.759 --> 00:21:00.700 own cave of wine and you pay after the meal. 00:21:00.940 --> 00:21:02.740 And it's something like it's very cultural in 00:21:02.740 --> 00:21:04.700 the West Country and not all the people know 00:21:04.700 --> 00:21:07.059 about. Like, it's crazy. For example, the one 00:21:07.059 --> 00:21:09.579 of my father, just for you know, if my father 00:21:09.579 --> 00:21:12.339 pass away, please know, never in life. But they 00:21:12.339 --> 00:21:15.259 will call me the first person. And if I refuse 00:21:15.259 --> 00:21:18.220 to continue his position, I will not be able 00:21:18.220 --> 00:21:20.740 to join this place anytime in my life and go 00:21:20.740 --> 00:21:23.339 inside. So in Vizcaya, they are hardcore with 00:21:23.339 --> 00:21:27.359 this. Wow, okay. They are very strong societies 00:21:27.359 --> 00:21:31.980 where the pictures of the guys, of the members, 00:21:32.220 --> 00:21:35.920 they are in the wall, you know? And appears there 00:21:35.920 --> 00:21:38.500 my father with a big mustache on the 80s, you 00:21:38.500 --> 00:21:40.500 know what I mean? Like, this is fine. You know, 00:21:40.539 --> 00:21:42.799 every time they call me, I go there to cook. 00:21:42.980 --> 00:21:44.839 And then you are cooking with a lot of like, 00:21:44.920 --> 00:21:47.920 well, elders, like... Basque, Basque, the idea 00:21:47.920 --> 00:21:49.980 that one is a fisherman, one is a butcher, the 00:21:49.980 --> 00:21:52.140 other one is a forager, hunters. And then you 00:21:52.140 --> 00:21:54.000 start cooking, and they're like, what the fuck 00:21:54.000 --> 00:21:56.140 are you doing? And man, I'm a professional chef, 00:21:56.279 --> 00:21:58.500 you know? What the fuck are you doing? You don't 00:21:58.500 --> 00:22:01.420 do things like that. Fuck off, you. Fuck me, 00:22:01.420 --> 00:22:04.279 you know, like this time I got. So then the best 00:22:04.279 --> 00:22:06.140 thing that you can do is grab your glass of chocolate, 00:22:06.400 --> 00:22:08.900 step away a little bit, and just learn, you know? 00:22:09.369 --> 00:22:11.609 So this is a little bit the idea, you know? I 00:22:11.609 --> 00:22:13.509 mean, I completely recommend to everyone that 00:22:13.509 --> 00:22:15.369 is showing this, you have a chance to go to a 00:22:15.369 --> 00:22:17.829 Choco by you, because otherwise you can't go 00:22:17.829 --> 00:22:20.769 by yourself. Do it, because it's like the most 00:22:20.769 --> 00:22:23.410 true Basque experience ever. Yeah, it's a beautiful 00:22:23.410 --> 00:22:25.670 experience. I love it. I became a member of one 00:22:25.670 --> 00:22:28.690 not so long ago. And yeah, it took me eight years 00:22:28.690 --> 00:22:31.710 living here to become a member of one, you know? 00:22:31.809 --> 00:22:35.049 You don't just become a member of a Choco. Yeah, 00:22:35.150 --> 00:22:37.869 it's like a thing. And you were saying that I 00:22:37.869 --> 00:22:40.450 also find that very interesting. How is it to 00:22:40.450 --> 00:22:43.890 cook Basque for an Asian audience? Because I 00:22:43.890 --> 00:22:46.430 also think these are not the most compatible 00:22:46.430 --> 00:22:48.970 cuisines, you know? Like Basque, I see it very 00:22:48.970 --> 00:22:51.910 minimalistic. And on the other side, Thai cuisine 00:22:51.910 --> 00:22:54.130 is very maximalistic. It's like a lot of spices, 00:22:54.390 --> 00:22:57.670 a lot of everything. You need to, like, twist 00:22:57.670 --> 00:22:59.549 your mind. And of course, look, I always say 00:22:59.549 --> 00:23:02.289 one thing. And it's something that with more 00:23:02.289 --> 00:23:05.650 years and more travel, I'm more sure about. Basque. 00:23:05.839 --> 00:23:10.000 Cuisine can be only really executed in Basque 00:23:10.000 --> 00:23:13.420 country. It's all about product. But yes, you 00:23:13.420 --> 00:23:16.240 can bring the philosophy, right? Philosophy of 00:23:16.240 --> 00:23:19.339 respect to the product. Actually, Basque cuisine 00:23:19.339 --> 00:23:21.799 is very natural forward. It's a lot of forage 00:23:21.799 --> 00:23:25.099 items, a lot of fish, a lot of farmer environment. 00:23:26.039 --> 00:23:29.200 So this is what we try a little bit with Amalur. 00:23:29.359 --> 00:23:32.700 We go to the markets, we found the best produce. 00:23:32.819 --> 00:23:34.660 For example, now we are having beautiful bonito. 00:23:35.289 --> 00:23:37.789 We have in bonito, we have in tomato. So we do 00:23:37.789 --> 00:23:40.690 these games. It's difficult because here, for 00:23:40.690 --> 00:23:44.950 example, like the people, the thing that we have 00:23:44.950 --> 00:23:46.309 is that the people, for the people here, it's 00:23:46.309 --> 00:23:49.250 salty, our food. It's salty. But then, of course, 00:23:49.289 --> 00:23:52.609 like I cannot like slow it down. It's like correctly 00:23:52.609 --> 00:23:55.289 done, whatever. Here they use a lot of like umami 00:23:55.289 --> 00:23:59.589 and sugar and spice, and they don't get the salt 00:23:59.589 --> 00:24:02.700 like we do, you know? This is the most tricky 00:24:02.700 --> 00:24:04.920 part for that. But then if I need to tell you, 00:24:04.980 --> 00:24:08.119 in Thailand, it's a lot of products. A lot of 00:24:08.119 --> 00:24:10.019 products. For example, the only big struggle 00:24:10.019 --> 00:24:12.660 that they're having these days is like finding 00:24:12.660 --> 00:24:16.180 a fish that is very high in collagen. Or pill 00:24:16.180 --> 00:24:18.519 sauce, for example, you know. This is one of 00:24:18.519 --> 00:24:20.720 the biggest. But we are working now in some techniques 00:24:20.720 --> 00:24:24.420 just to fix it. So we are like using balls of 00:24:24.420 --> 00:24:27.299 very reddish broth. So we just get gelatin and 00:24:27.299 --> 00:24:31.180 we use this as a little add. So, of course. As 00:24:31.180 --> 00:24:32.880 I tell you, you can bring the philosophy, but 00:24:32.880 --> 00:24:36.059 making vast food only can be in vast countries. 00:24:36.059 --> 00:24:38.259 It's all about the produce and the process. I 00:24:38.259 --> 00:24:41.839 guess that we can say the same about Japan, for 00:24:41.839 --> 00:24:45.220 example. You are in Japan, you see the craft 00:24:45.220 --> 00:24:47.319 and whatever, and founding this craftsmanship 00:24:47.319 --> 00:24:49.480 in other places of the world is quite difficult. 00:24:49.599 --> 00:24:51.799 Yeah, you can do a very nice Japanese restaurant 00:24:51.799 --> 00:24:53.619 somewhere in the world. Of course, there are. 00:24:54.059 --> 00:24:56.720 But you know what I mean, right? Absolutely. 00:24:57.000 --> 00:25:01.250 I agree 100%. And this is what we are doing. 00:25:01.390 --> 00:25:06.049 Again, the charcoal or the fire, the grill, is 00:25:06.049 --> 00:25:08.750 a very big item in the restaurant. So let's say 00:25:08.750 --> 00:25:13.470 that 70%, 80 % of the menu is toasted, but fire, 00:25:13.569 --> 00:25:16.690 but charcoals. We don't have lagrima pea, for 00:25:16.690 --> 00:25:19.109 example. When we have sugar, it's not pea. That 00:25:19.109 --> 00:25:22.309 good selected, that good buy it, let's say. I 00:25:22.309 --> 00:25:25.029 have some producers in Chiang Mai. They are doing 00:25:25.029 --> 00:25:27.269 good stuff, you know, because here in Bangkok, 00:25:27.349 --> 00:25:29.980 it's like a big metropolis. So you have... all 00:25:29.980 --> 00:25:31.680 the foods will fall around, and you have chips 00:25:31.680 --> 00:25:33.339 that fall around. So all of them, they bring 00:25:33.339 --> 00:25:36.440 seeds with them. So now in Thailand, we have 00:25:36.440 --> 00:25:40.240 a new movement of a lot of growers in Chiang 00:25:40.240 --> 00:25:42.759 Mai, because Chiang Mai basically is the north, 00:25:42.799 --> 00:25:45.140 is the mountain area. The weather is like summer 00:25:45.140 --> 00:25:48.039 in Basque Country. During the day, it's hot. 00:25:48.509 --> 00:25:50.609 But during the night, you need the jacket, man. 00:25:50.690 --> 00:25:52.490 Like, really, in the mountains. So, they are 00:25:52.490 --> 00:25:54.930 doing puntarelle, Italian vegetables, you know. 00:25:55.049 --> 00:25:56.849 They are doing tomatoes, they are doing peppers, 00:25:57.049 --> 00:25:59.430 you know. It's getting there. So, we try always 00:25:59.430 --> 00:26:01.630 to analyze what we have, what we don't. For example, 00:26:01.789 --> 00:26:05.289 we don't have, like, guindilla, like, dry guindilla 00:26:05.289 --> 00:26:08.069 or dry chili that is not spicy here. It's spicy 00:26:08.069 --> 00:26:11.190 as fuck. So, instead of putting four pieces, 00:26:11.250 --> 00:26:13.910 we put one, you know. So, we try to play the 00:26:13.910 --> 00:26:16.630 game with that, you know. And then, of course... 00:26:17.210 --> 00:26:20.049 The fish here, well, it's not the best because 00:26:20.049 --> 00:26:23.529 it's hot water, let's say. So we analyze what 00:26:23.529 --> 00:26:25.690 we use. For example, here we use oysters just 00:26:25.690 --> 00:26:28.589 for emulsion because they are not good for eating 00:26:28.589 --> 00:26:33.089 raw, at least on my opinion. Okay for eating 00:26:33.089 --> 00:26:35.970 them steamed, but we use them for basically emulsions 00:26:35.970 --> 00:26:38.390 and things like that. So this is that. Analyze 00:26:38.390 --> 00:26:40.569 each product for one technique. When we have 00:26:40.569 --> 00:26:43.279 like big clam, manila clam, like... we cook it 00:26:43.279 --> 00:26:45.119 in charcoal when it's later we use salsa verde 00:26:45.119 --> 00:26:47.660 so this is how the menu goes changing and evolving 00:26:47.660 --> 00:26:50.259 you know very naturally very organically you 00:26:50.259 --> 00:26:53.559 know super cool super cool yeah i thought on 00:26:53.559 --> 00:26:56.440 your social media that i don't know when maybe 00:26:56.440 --> 00:26:59.400 a few years ago you you you collaborated with 00:26:59.400 --> 00:27:03.000 with chelle in gallery chelle is a very good 00:27:03.000 --> 00:27:06.619 friend and he said well josean was the first 00:27:06.619 --> 00:27:09.680 the one taking me there to to cook in manila 00:27:09.680 --> 00:27:12.660 with chelle a few times actually And, yeah, Shelley, 00:27:12.759 --> 00:27:14.819 I guess, is a very, very good friend of mine. 00:27:15.420 --> 00:27:18.039 I see this Hossian, and, well, Hossian is one 00:27:18.039 --> 00:27:20.859 of the persons that introduced me to, well, a 00:27:20.859 --> 00:27:24.420 lot of the gastronomic world. Today, we are friends 00:27:24.420 --> 00:27:27.200 and brothers, let's say, and we collaborate a 00:27:27.200 --> 00:27:30.519 lot. Yeah, because he's also a good example of 00:27:30.519 --> 00:27:34.460 someone that took, like, Spanish cooking philosophy. 00:27:36.259 --> 00:27:40.660 into the Philippines and yeah and it became like 00:27:40.660 --> 00:27:43.799 its own new world. One of the first I would say 00:27:43.799 --> 00:27:45.940 you know like when Chele was already in the Philippines 00:27:45.940 --> 00:27:48.400 was like what 10 years ago now I mean like I 00:27:48.400 --> 00:27:50.079 know you have a lot of projects there that are 00:27:50.079 --> 00:27:54.599 amazing. I have been in a gallery by Chele or 00:27:54.599 --> 00:27:57.380 his restaurant and it's amazing every time that 00:27:57.380 --> 00:27:59.640 I have been there I have been like bam my blog. 00:27:59.819 --> 00:28:02.220 I remember the first time I ate like mantis you 00:28:02.220 --> 00:28:04.380 know it's like a kind of a Not the langoustine, 00:28:04.500 --> 00:28:07.480 but like a kind of big, long shrimp that looks 00:28:07.480 --> 00:28:10.220 like a mantis, but in a shrimp shape. I tried 00:28:10.220 --> 00:28:12.019 it there and it was like, boom, mind -blowing. 00:28:12.160 --> 00:28:13.900 Even like the river prawn and all that stuff. 00:28:14.200 --> 00:28:16.400 So these kind of travels, they really mark me 00:28:16.400 --> 00:28:19.279 like a lot, you know, because Chelly is like 00:28:19.279 --> 00:28:22.279 the best embajador. I don't know how you say 00:28:22.279 --> 00:28:27.059 this in English. Ambassador. Ambassador of Philippines 00:28:27.059 --> 00:28:29.339 and in Spain, in Philippines, you know, he's 00:28:29.339 --> 00:28:31.619 amazing, you know. He's super fun, actually. 00:28:31.740 --> 00:28:35.059 I love him. Yeah, also super funny guy. Yeah, 00:28:35.160 --> 00:28:37.500 as far as I know, like, I think that there are, 00:28:37.519 --> 00:28:39.299 like, three restaurants playing that game. That 00:28:39.299 --> 00:28:42.819 would be Gallery Baichele, The Wakan, Paidaren, 00:28:43.039 --> 00:28:45.539 and Locavore, right? Like, those three in Southeast 00:28:45.539 --> 00:28:47.559 Asia. Oh, the Locavore guys, man, like, wow, 00:28:47.740 --> 00:28:49.680 wow, wow. I mean, the Locavore guys, this is, 00:28:49.740 --> 00:28:52.640 like, a history, man. Like, I was, well, before 00:28:52.640 --> 00:28:55.000 coming to Bangkok now, like, I do a residency 00:28:55.000 --> 00:28:58.059 also in Indonesia, you know, and I lost Iceland 00:28:58.059 --> 00:29:00.220 there in Zumba, where we was working with. only 00:29:00.220 --> 00:29:02.339 natural product, changing the menu every day 00:29:02.339 --> 00:29:04.500 with one of the pop -ups. Maybe this is for another 00:29:04.500 --> 00:29:08.619 time of recording this. But we do, well, Elke 00:29:08.619 --> 00:29:11.420 and Ray, they are very good friends of mine also. 00:29:11.559 --> 00:29:14.440 Actually, we cooked together in Manila, at Cel's 00:29:14.440 --> 00:29:17.759 place one time, with Josian, with Julien from 00:29:17.759 --> 00:29:19.759 Ovet in Singapore. And from there, we are very 00:29:19.759 --> 00:29:21.839 good friends. So I was there, and then my brother, 00:29:21.900 --> 00:29:24.779 Iñaki, came here. I was in Bali the last time, 00:29:24.799 --> 00:29:28.430 like seven years ago, in the old Locavore. I 00:29:28.430 --> 00:29:30.450 fucking loved it at that time. It was a little 00:29:30.450 --> 00:29:33.990 space, like, very good tasting menu, fine dining, 00:29:34.109 --> 00:29:36.690 all local source. Okay, I went this time because 00:29:36.690 --> 00:29:40.309 they moved location. And I was like, man, I arrived 00:29:40.309 --> 00:29:43.029 there, these guys, they do like 10 steps now, 00:29:43.109 --> 00:29:46.890 100 steps level up. Like, they move from a little 00:29:46.890 --> 00:29:49.430 location of 30 couverts to something that is 00:29:49.430 --> 00:29:52.910 like a, wow, huge restaurant with fermentation 00:29:52.910 --> 00:29:57.579 lab, mushroom lab, super old cycles. totally 00:29:57.579 --> 00:30:01.660 sustainable 97 i think of the waste changing 00:30:01.660 --> 00:30:05.420 into new materia the water everything these guys 00:30:05.420 --> 00:30:09.039 i park man like i was there i'll say guys like 00:30:09.039 --> 00:30:13.980 this is insane insane about the investment here 00:30:13.980 --> 00:30:16.420 like there is everything you know it's a very 00:30:16.420 --> 00:30:18.880 big place you know and these guys i love them 00:30:18.880 --> 00:30:22.299 everything is local you found a little like jungle 00:30:22.299 --> 00:30:25.740 garlic, like little garlic. You found things 00:30:25.740 --> 00:30:27.880 that, again, like traveling is this, you know? 00:30:28.440 --> 00:30:31.039 I think they are doing a very good work for the 00:30:31.039 --> 00:30:32.940 community, man. Everything that they are using 00:30:32.940 --> 00:30:36.460 is like crafted there in the Iceland. And we 00:30:36.460 --> 00:30:38.059 have a collaboration there where it was like 00:30:38.059 --> 00:30:41.200 black boxes. So basically you team up with a 00:30:41.200 --> 00:30:44.380 chef that you don't know. By sorteo, you know, 00:30:44.460 --> 00:30:47.519 by, you know, playing the name of the papeletas. 00:30:47.559 --> 00:30:49.480 I don't know how to say that. Yeah, you gamble 00:30:49.480 --> 00:30:52.279 it, yeah, like a contest. Gambling, no? And then 00:30:52.279 --> 00:30:54.460 you have a box, and then I open it, and what's 00:30:54.460 --> 00:30:59.579 there? Like sea cucumber and scoby from the kombucha, 00:30:59.599 --> 00:31:01.859 no? So you need to use this in your dishes. But 00:31:01.859 --> 00:31:03.359 then another share, they get, like, I don't know, 00:31:03.400 --> 00:31:05.200 a snake and whatever. You know, it's almost like 00:31:05.200 --> 00:31:09.349 that. So it was a play of crab. creativity, but 00:31:09.349 --> 00:31:11.369 again, forced creativity. You know, someone is 00:31:11.369 --> 00:31:15.089 putting you like, okay, jump, create, you know, 00:31:15.109 --> 00:31:18.309 and then we are going to sell a menu in 10 hours 00:31:18.309 --> 00:31:21.750 to a packed restaurant of 80 comers, you know, 00:31:21.750 --> 00:31:23.849 that they are expecting the best of all of you 00:31:23.849 --> 00:31:25.930 motherfuckers, you know? So it was a beautiful 00:31:25.930 --> 00:31:28.009 experience, man. I loved it. Yeah, everything 00:31:28.009 --> 00:31:31.349 I've heard about Locavore, it's like you were 00:31:31.349 --> 00:31:34.589 saying, like, they're really like game changers 00:31:34.589 --> 00:31:36.569 in the region and everything they do is really 00:31:36.569 --> 00:31:39.220 admirable. Which are going to be your stops in 00:31:39.220 --> 00:31:42.140 your Europe tour? Are you coming to San Sebastian? 00:31:42.440 --> 00:31:44.960 I will try my best, but if I need to tell you, 00:31:44.980 --> 00:31:48.240 I'm tired as fuck this time. I will be like, 00:31:48.299 --> 00:31:50.299 so, this is going to be fast because I have all 00:31:50.299 --> 00:31:53.700 this in my brain. Day three, I fly from here 00:31:53.700 --> 00:31:56.839 to Transylvania in Romania. We are going to expose 00:31:56.839 --> 00:31:58.519 what we are doing with Amalur because at the 00:31:58.519 --> 00:32:01.220 end, Amalur has a nomad beginning, let's say. 00:32:01.400 --> 00:32:03.640 And in Transylvania, well, Romania, they have 00:32:03.640 --> 00:32:07.019 a lot of like GFC. philosophy you know like it's 00:32:07.019 --> 00:32:09.819 a thing there you know uh gypsy tradition or 00:32:09.819 --> 00:32:11.880 whatever so we are going to expose it there we 00:32:11.880 --> 00:32:14.079 don't know hunting a little foraging there like 00:32:14.079 --> 00:32:16.900 the wildlife there is amazing then from there 00:32:16.900 --> 00:32:20.599 we will go to porto to cook with vasco on day 00:32:20.599 --> 00:32:24.099 10 of september from there i'm going to bilbao 00:32:24.099 --> 00:32:26.980 just for three days very fast like my family 00:32:26.980 --> 00:32:29.000 is gonna kill me i think but uh because my need 00:32:29.000 --> 00:32:31.750 i have a new nephew so of course You know, sometimes 00:32:31.750 --> 00:32:33.329 they forget that they have family. You know, 00:32:33.369 --> 00:32:37.069 that's a big problem. So I'm going to be a nice 00:32:37.069 --> 00:32:39.329 family member, go hunting with my father, some 00:32:39.329 --> 00:32:43.750 foraging, some, you know, last summer time mushrooms, 00:32:43.950 --> 00:32:47.029 let's say. And then after that, we go to London, 00:32:47.230 --> 00:32:50.450 cooking in Carousel. A nice spot. I cooked there 00:32:50.450 --> 00:32:52.410 a few times when I started with all these crazy 00:32:52.410 --> 00:32:54.710 things, so the pop -ups. And it's a good spot 00:32:54.710 --> 00:32:56.869 for pop -ups. So London is always very nice. 00:32:57.029 --> 00:32:59.380 I hope to visit a lot of friends there. From 00:32:59.380 --> 00:33:01.839 London, we go to Asterland, trying to fit something 00:33:01.839 --> 00:33:04.259 else, but we are still not confirmed, but maybe 00:33:04.259 --> 00:33:06.980 taking one week there. And then going to Angwerb, 00:33:07.059 --> 00:33:09.000 also cooking there in a restaurant of a friend. 00:33:09.200 --> 00:33:12.960 And then I'm going to Milan for the Best Chefs 00:33:12.960 --> 00:33:16.119 Award. I think this year I'm going just to chill 00:33:16.119 --> 00:33:17.819 and have some drinks with friends, let's say. 00:33:17.980 --> 00:33:21.200 But yeah, just having some time for rest. I'm 00:33:21.200 --> 00:33:22.640 not going to cook. I'm not going to pressure. 00:33:23.079 --> 00:33:25.579 I don't have pressure on this year, so everything's 00:33:25.579 --> 00:33:28.119 chill, you know. And then from there, going back 00:33:28.119 --> 00:33:30.900 home. Stay a little bit with the family, just 00:33:30.900 --> 00:33:34.240 out of the mobile, out of the social life, you 00:33:34.240 --> 00:33:36.380 know, like just friends and family, choco, of 00:33:36.380 --> 00:33:39.500 course, cooking a little bit. And then planning 00:33:39.500 --> 00:33:43.720 to come back to Asia on, what, 8th, 15th of October 00:33:43.720 --> 00:33:46.519 to make it a Malur for long. We're going to do 00:33:46.519 --> 00:33:49.940 like, well, the plan is to do some renewals, 00:33:49.940 --> 00:33:54.369 some new ceramic chains, so put it in. in really 00:33:54.369 --> 00:33:57.269 like in a good shape to be like a top restaurant 00:33:57.269 --> 00:34:00.750 in the city of Bangkok. How many are you in Amalur? 00:34:00.829 --> 00:34:05.970 How big is the team? Myself, I mean, just for 00:34:05.970 --> 00:34:08.349 the start, I take bookings, I put the marketing, 00:34:08.570 --> 00:34:10.429 I mean, I'm doing quite of everything, you know 00:34:10.429 --> 00:34:14.469 what I mean? So I'm myself plus Anne, that is 00:34:14.469 --> 00:34:16.989 like I call her mama because she's like my manager 00:34:16.989 --> 00:34:19.889 and she's amazing. She's also a very strong lady. 00:34:20.590 --> 00:34:23.750 Tai, that is also a team. And then I have another 00:34:23.750 --> 00:34:27.929 three boys. Another three boys that are not professional 00:34:27.929 --> 00:34:32.590 chefs, but they are aiming to learn. And we are 00:34:32.590 --> 00:34:35.550 doing this. We're giving opportunities to everyone. 00:34:35.789 --> 00:34:38.010 And then the beautiful thing of Amalur is it's 00:34:38.010 --> 00:34:42.750 a 35 -seat restaurant. Half of it is a counter. 00:34:43.269 --> 00:34:46.989 So it's very nice. For one chef, I mean, I am 00:34:46.989 --> 00:34:50.849 able to manage. With two chefs, like 300 chefs, 00:34:50.989 --> 00:34:53.309 it's... super easy going, you know, like and 00:34:53.309 --> 00:34:55.690 at the end of the day, we're doing just good 00:34:55.690 --> 00:34:59.869 food, tasty food, nothing super crazy, a lot 00:34:59.869 --> 00:35:03.409 of fire, you know, so I really love the location. 00:35:03.829 --> 00:35:06.289 And two things I wanted also to ask, what about 00:35:06.289 --> 00:35:09.550 drinks and desserts? What are you offering at 00:35:09.550 --> 00:35:14.389 Amalur? Now I have only two desserts. Desserts, 00:35:14.389 --> 00:35:16.070 we always have like an option of an ice cream. 00:35:16.130 --> 00:35:18.269 Right now, for example, this week was a reduced 00:35:18.269 --> 00:35:20.369 mint ice cream with fast pickled strawberries. 00:35:21.590 --> 00:35:25.030 and salted cashew nut cookie let's say super 00:35:25.030 --> 00:35:28.510 nice and then we are having like yeah we are 00:35:28.510 --> 00:35:31.489 having always an option of a cake no not very 00:35:31.489 --> 00:35:33.710 heavy like always is very light my dessert because 00:35:33.710 --> 00:35:36.710 i'm not really a sweet tooth guy uh we're having 00:35:36.710 --> 00:35:39.690 now this week was a cacao wet cake with olive 00:35:39.690 --> 00:35:42.489 oil instead of butter and we bring some i bring 00:35:42.489 --> 00:35:45.289 some um vanilla from my last travel to cambodia 00:35:45.289 --> 00:35:48.670 it's amazing amazing quality polyphonia like 00:35:49.000 --> 00:35:50.539 Super nice. So we're doing like a cream with 00:35:50.539 --> 00:35:53.019 vanilla and some extra virgin olive oil. Probably 00:35:53.019 --> 00:35:55.039 this week is going to be a coconut cake. You 00:35:55.039 --> 00:35:57.420 know, like we get some nice coconut another day. 00:35:57.519 --> 00:35:59.619 So it's a little bit how we work, right? Like 00:35:59.619 --> 00:36:02.079 we go change. And then about the beverage access, 00:36:02.280 --> 00:36:03.940 I mean, like it's amazing, you know, because 00:36:03.940 --> 00:36:05.940 it's basically what they drink. So basically 00:36:05.940 --> 00:36:08.860 25 labels of natural wine, natural, organic, 00:36:08.960 --> 00:36:11.639 dynamic. All of them that are from Europe is 00:36:11.639 --> 00:36:13.539 the only thing that we import is the preserves 00:36:13.539 --> 00:36:15.920 or the liquors and things that they really can 00:36:15.920 --> 00:36:18.820 be imported, you know, like no fresh stuff. So 00:36:18.820 --> 00:36:21.400 25 labels that they go changing when I finish 00:36:21.400 --> 00:36:23.760 or when I'm a little tired or bored, I ask for 00:36:23.760 --> 00:36:25.900 another new label to my friend, Pablo, that is 00:36:25.900 --> 00:36:28.139 my supplier here. He's a very good friend. He's 00:36:28.139 --> 00:36:31.699 a spice also. And he sent me new things and I 00:36:31.699 --> 00:36:33.940 love his space. He has wine bars here. It's amazing. 00:36:34.219 --> 00:36:36.679 So we are also giving the offer of the 50 % of 00:36:36.679 --> 00:36:39.280 the concept is natural wine, let's say. That 00:36:39.280 --> 00:36:43.599 is how it should be. And then mixed drinks, only 00:36:43.599 --> 00:36:45.840 the big classics and the things that they drink, 00:36:45.940 --> 00:36:48.880 like nothing cocktails, like gin tonic, very 00:36:48.880 --> 00:36:53.000 good gin tonic, and Negroni. Done. For the snaps, 00:36:53.219 --> 00:36:56.239 Pacharan. Done. That's what we are. Perfect. 00:36:56.360 --> 00:36:59.179 You don't need anything else. No, I mean, the 00:36:59.179 --> 00:37:01.119 people are happy. They don't need to be thinking. 00:37:01.360 --> 00:37:06.079 They go very fast. It's easy for them. Super 00:37:06.079 --> 00:37:08.980 cool. Iñaki, thank you so much for sharing everything. 00:37:09.639 --> 00:37:11.360 And I hope to see you soon in San Sebastian. 00:37:11.719 --> 00:37:18.719 Please. That's it for this week's episode of 00:37:18.719 --> 00:37:20.940 Putt Lock Food Talks. If you like what we're 00:37:20.940 --> 00:37:23.079 doing, make sure to subscribe to the podcast 00:37:23.079 --> 00:37:26.059 so you never miss an episode. You can also find 00:37:26.059 --> 00:37:28.400 us on Instagram and TikTok as Putt Lock Food 00:37:28.400 --> 00:37:30.599 Talks. The show airs every Monday.