That One Time Food Was Elevated to Art

The ElBulli tribute at the Alchemist

Is food art? I have debated this subject on and off for a number of years with a number of people and while the answer is not black and white - I have decided to record my opinion in Technicolor. As background, here is an article by Besim on the subject - Is Food Really Art?

First the arguments against:

The number one argument against is that art is eternal and influential while food is temporary and easily forgotten. Here is a quote from Michael Price - Chef/Owner of The Gourmet Kitchen:

For food to be art it has to be completely objective, created on a metaphorical blank canvas (so to speak) and non functional so can’t provide required sustenance and can’t be created as a lineage of craft….Cooking in general is a craft, it can be artistic for sure but if it were art would you actually want to consume it?

I generally agree with this - delicious cooking comes and goes and individual plates rarely/never leaves a lasting impact on society as say Van Gogh’s Starry Night did:

So I am going out on a limb to stay that only one chef has ever elevated gastronomy to the level of art and that is Ferran Adria from ElBulli and I am going to tell you why - Cue self serving photo with the master:

I had the great honor of dining at ElBulli (5 times topped the World’s 50 Best List) and it was one of the greatest experiences of my dining life. I do confess to have left hungry. I recall the waiter saying - don’t worry - the next dish is a lamb chop. My heart soared until I saw the toothpick size choplet 🤣 my wife gave me hers (which was delicious) but..that did not quell the hunger!. More about this visit at the end of this piece.

ElBulli impacted gastronomy in ways that no other restaurant ever did. Here is a summary of 12 reasons ElBulli changed the fine dining world by journalist Rafael Tonon Edited and summarized:

1. Cep Carpaccio (1989): Pine nuts, black truffles and rabbit kidneys. This creation paved the way for the popularity of vegetable and mushroom carpacci

2. Cocktails (Late 90’s): Pioneered cocktails as dishes creating a new connection between bars and restaurants. Many came in glasses: sometimes creamy (to eat with a spoon), others more liquid, to sip, such as the iconic hot frozen passion fruit whisky sour.

3. Deconstruction: Transforming traditional classics into different dishes mostly with the same ingredients/flavours like: Spanish Tortillas served in a martini glass had little in common with the dishes they represented, with the original dish rebuilt in different structures, plating and textures.

4. Ice Cream: They pioneered savoury ice creams in haute cuisine, creations that weren’t sweet, but salty – “instead of vanilla, cheese,” Ferran Adrià used to say.

5. Labs (1994): ElBulli started its creative team concept long before lab kitchens became commonplace in restaurants around the world.

6. Language and tools: They transformed tools, instruments and language from other industries to revolutionize their kitchen “ElBulli proved that the cuisine could be a language in itself,” said chef Joan Roca.

7. Molecular Gastronomy: The defining term of elBulli's cuisine was so widely used to explain the work that it became an entry in the encyclopaedia Britannica: “the scientific discipline concerned with the physical and chemical transformations that occur during cooking.”

8. Rock Star Chefs (Bullianos): Too many to name were alumni: Jose Andres, Rene Redzeppi, Joan Roca, The Disfrutar boys etc…

9. Science (2003): ElBulli began seeking a more scientific aproach, including experts, manufacturers of food products, new devices, gathering information and studying books yielding things like foams, hot jellies, clouds, air, spherification, etc.

10. Spherification The jellification of a liquid – transforming it into a sphere with a thin gel membrane, It has become a widely used technique in modernist cuisine, in many ‘caviars’ and even in cocktails served at bars worldwide.

11. Tasting menus - “We all made tasting menus of 10, 12 courses, and Ferran started making 20-somethings,” said chef Juan Mari Arzak ElBulli showed that small snacks and highly conceptual dishes also had a place in restaurants.

12. Tweezers - “Today, all chefs use tweezers. [Then] it was unconventional to see a photo of them carrying tweezers in their pockets,” says designer Luki Humbert.

While this is an admirable list it actually leaves out, arguably, ElBulli’s most important achievement. They recorded, in great detail all of the 1846 recipes in huge volumes owned and studied by chefs around the world. This enduring library plus the 1000+ chefs that worked there has created a legacy that will mark the history of gastronomy forever. It is this profound, unforgettable impact and influence on world dining that elevates the work of Ferran Adria at ElBulli to art.

In the end they had 8000 seats available per season and 2 million requests!

He was like Pablo Picasso’s impact on art - it was so vast it overshadowed everyone before and after. There is a quote I remember where an artist said about Picasso - “he left nothing for the rest of us to do”. Please DM me if you can find who said that?

My meal at ElBulli was towards the end of it’s reign in 2011 and standing in the kitchen Ferran seemed tired and said - he didn’t like cooking at ElBulli anymore because it was impossible to do everything right for 80 people per night. His wish was to open a 10 seat restaurant and charge €30,000 per night - only then could he control and deliver his vision.

Fast forward 13 years and Rasmus Monk orchestrated the greatest tribute in the history of Gastronomy when he reunited Ferran Adria with Albert Adria for 4 nights at the Alchemist where they projected all 1846 recipes on the dome of the planetarium…a tear crept out of the corner of my eye. The only time I had a similar feeling was at the London reunion of Led Zeppelin in 2004.

Experiential Art - While we are on the subject - Should we also assign artistic status to Alchemist and Ultraviolet for the immersive experiential experiences that surround their food - I think so - but nothing can equal the impact of ElBulli

And - while we are discussing art - I will drop a few comments about plagiarism behind this paywall to avoid getting trolled by passers by and tourists.

Ferran Adria:

Creativity means not copying.