El Bulli 2007 reports

[Neu]

I think you had the icy truffle of meringue instead of the fever tree tonic.

Can you elaborate on the technique (since when Adria has used it etc)? And do you know

if the sweet frost fruits or the rasberry with wasabi were done similarily?

[Gabe Q]

OK from what I've seen:

Beetroot meringue: is done just in the oven. Pastry does it though so I can't guarantee that.

Fever Tonic meringue: in a siphon with soda charges and gelatine sheets.

Pistachio meringue: in siphons with cream charges and then freeze dried.

Pine meringue for the daquoise: they mount pine infused water with several things I can't recall and then pipe it in sheets and put it in the dehydrator overnight.

So they are applying a whole bunch of techniques to come up with all those textures. Out of those the tonic is wet, and the rest are completely dry.

I have noticed that once they get a product they like they go crazy with it. To an extend that to me is bad. Like for example I think this year they are going way overboard with the algae. Since the beginning of the season I have seen like 20 different ones used, but there are a few of them that they just use and use non stop. They try not to put the same thing twice on a persons menu. For example in the razor clam dish with the algae salad, if they are served a new dish now that has an algae they call "Codium", then they put a substitution on the other dish's salad. But it's getting to a point where a couple of them I have seen used in like 6-8 different plates throughout the season. So in that sense I think they are overdoing it.

[Gabe Q]

Forgot these ones:

Icy Truffle meringue: that was carrot juice that was mounted similar to the pine meringue, and then also piped in little dots on sheets and put overnight in the dehydrator.

Sweet Frost Fruits: That meringue I recall has many different things, including Xilitol which is a type of sugar that's commonly used for "sugar free" chewing gums that doesn't promote dental cavities and feels cool in the mouth. They cover blackberries with it and sculpt it by hand and again put it in the dehydrator overnight.

The raspberry with wasabi: is just a raspberry that is dipped in hot "Manitol", which is a type of sugar that comes in powder form and is heated until it melts completely into liquid state and can reach very high temperatures with no color change. It is just like a one second dip and then taken out and the freshly scrapped wasabi is put on top and it goes with the raspberry liquor.

[docsconz]

Forgot these ones:

The raspberry with wasabi: is just a raspberry that is dipped in hot "Manitol", which is a type of sugar that comes in powder form and is heated until it melts completely into liquid state and can reach very high temperatures with no color change. It is just like a one second dip and then taken out and the freshly scrapped wasabi is put on top and it goes with the raspberry liquor.

←

Funny thing is that mannitol is a sugar used for therapeutic purposes. We give it IV to induce a diuresis from the kidneys. It is most commonly used during neurosurgery. I love the way Ferran Adria and Co. take elements from different contexts and apply them in novel ways.

[Gabe Q]

Funny thing is that mannitol is a sugar used for therapeutic purposes. We give it IV to induce a diuresis from the kidneys. It is most commonly used during neurosurgery. I love the way Ferran Adria and Co. take elements from different contexts and apply them in novel ways.

←

[docsconz]

Funny thing is that mannitol is a sugar used for therapeutic purposes. We give it IV to induce a diuresis from the kidneys. It is most commonly used during neurosurgery. I love the way Ferran Adria and Co. take elements from different contexts and apply them in novel ways.

←

I remember reading somewhere that it was not recommended to overdo it with sugar-free gum/candy because it did have diuretic consequences!

←

True, but since much of these sugars are not absorbed through the GI tract the diuretic effects can be somewhat different. The diuretic effects can indeed be dire!

[Gabe Q]

Just as a fun fact, in tonight's service the special guest was non other than "Yukio Hatori" (hope that's spelled good), the main commentator from the original Japanese Iron Chef show! The kind of chubby one with the white hair. The whole kitchen staff including the Adria brothers seemed very excited to welcome him.

[Silly Disciple]

Just as a fun fact, in tonight's service the special guest was non other than "Yukio Hatori" (hope that's spelled good), the main commentator from the original Japanese Iron Chef show! The kind of chubby one with the white hair. The whole kitchen staff including the Adria brothers seemed very excited to welcome him.

←

Gabe, Yukio Hattori is not only an Iron Chef commentator, but the head of one of Japan's most prestigious cooking schools if I recall correctly...

[Gabe Q]

Gabe, Yukio Hattori is not only an Iron Chef commentator, but the head of one of Japan's most prestigious cooking schools if I recall correctly...

←

[Mumin]

Hi Gabe.

I was at elbulli as a stagier in 2005 We hade som alges ther allredy then. Do you know the names of the ones you use now?

And then I whod like to know if som of the chef de parties is stil ther?

I miss the place.

[tan319]

Funny thing is that mannitol is a sugar used for therapeutic purposes. We give it IV to induce a diuresis from the kidneys. It is most commonly used during neurosurgery. I love the way Ferran Adria and Co. take elements from different contexts and apply them in novel ways.

←

I remember reading somewhere that it was not recommended to overdo it with sugar-free gum/candy because it did have diuretic consequences!

←

True, but since much of these sugars are not absorbed through the GI tract the diuretic effects can be somewhat different. The diuretic effects can indeed be dire!

←

mannitol can be a very tough ride!

[Neu]

Gabe, I just wanted to thank you for your explanations on how the different meringues

were made.

I went to the German 3 start restaurant Dieter Müller this weekend and it was the first time that I

was asked if I wanted to have a look at the cookbook during the meal.

This would have distracted me too much at El Bulli but it was quite nice to be able to look up

how parts of the food I was eating had been perpared.

[Stephen Jackson]

ElBulli, August 20, 2007

Apologies in advance for length. I figure if you’re interested you’ll want as much detail as possible.

OK, here goes. Last year I managed to get myself a reservation at elBulli. Several faxes and emails were fired at the restaurant from mid-October onwards, and I was deliberately ambiguous, asking for a table at ANY TIME in the 2007 season. The weeks passed, no reply. Nothing. I checked the fax cables. I tested my email. I was grumpy.

Then in December, an email arrived offering me a table for two in August. Remaining calm, I replied that I’d take the table, and I booked my flights almost immediately. And the day before yesterday, we set off to Roses, via Barcelona.

Now, hotels-wise, Roses isn’t exactly Monte-Carlo. Last time I went to elBulli I stayed at La Terraza, which is a pleasant enough place on the beach by the old sea fort, but in August they (understandably) don’t like short-stay reservations. So, the only place we could find was the Prestige Mar Y Sol hotel, right in the middle of the town, just by the beach. And y’know, it’s not bad at all. It’s an apart-hotel, so the rooms are big, and there’s a fridge, which is handy. Good TV, reasonably comfortable beds, really BAD breakfasts. Honestly, the coffee tasted like Mellow Birds that had been set to reduce gently in April. Avoid.

However, the attached restaurant is a very pleasant seafood joint, and I had one of the nicest grilled lobsters I’ve had in ages. The folks split a turbot, which was quiveringly fresh and grilled before our eyes in the corner of the dining room. We drank a smashing petillant rosé called Cresta Rosa, which was just the thing for seafood – light, crisp, tasty and cheap. It was one of *those* places, where there’s a merry sound of amiable chatter mixed with the clink of glasses, and the room enveloped in that sweet fug of grilling seafood, zested lemons and warm Mediterranean air. Recommended.

The next day provided a challenging 18 holes at the Pitch & Putt in Empuriabrava (beautifully manicured greens, and some tricky water shots on the second nine), and a trip to the Butterfly Park, which is always fun. Some absolute whoppers flitting around, including a couple of awesome Atlas Moths, still wrinkly from their cocoons. Massive, they are. Not the sort of thing you’d like bumping into your bedside lamp, I can assure you.

Then came the evening, and we headed off in our cab to elBulli. Situated a few miles around the steep coastline, it’s about 25 minutes from Roses, or 15 minutes if you happen to pick the lunatic cab-driver we did. He actually genuflected as we headed out of the suburbs and up into the stunning scenery of the wild pine-strewn hills and coves.

Arriving at elBulli is a very exciting thing indeed. You enter the building, which is an unassuming yet beautiful beach villa, set amongst pines, and built of thinly-stacked slate-like stone, and smooth white plaster. Julio Soler, the “director”, shakes your hand, and invites you through to the kitchen. Here, a waiter shows you around a bit. We met the man himself, Ferran Adria, who wished us a pleasant meal, and then we were shown back outside onto the terrace. What followed was about 2 ½ hours of unremitting genius, and I think to do it justice I’ll stop all the travelogue bullshit and simply list what we ate, with a few side-notes.

Firstly, we’re asked what we’d like to drink, and if anyone has any special requests or allergies. This having been established, our Cava arrived, along with the first ‘course’. Off we go…

1) Hibiscus Maragarita – a chilled martini glass filled with a deep, viscous hibiscus juice (I think there was pomegranate juice in there too), into which the waitress spooned a bright pink hibiscus ‘meringue’ – basically a freeze-dried puree of slightly salty hibiscus. It was nice and sour, and kicked off proceedings nicely.

2) Virtual Olives – Now these were fantastic. Olive-sized gelatine spheres, filled with a green olive purée and olive oil, scooped from a parfait jar where they’d been infused with thyme and garlic. The things popped on the tongue with minimal pressure, filling the mouth with an intense olive hit. Wow.

3) Golden Nuggets – A truffle-sized golden shape was handed to us to be eaten in one go – it was a few cubes of a crunchy parmesan foam wrapped in gold-leaf-flecked caramel. The flavour took a long time to come, but when it did, the jolt of cheese was intense.

4) Goat Cheese “Mercedes” – I ate this without photographing it – sorry guys. Basically it was a minuscule filo pastry tartlet filled with a powerful sheep’s cheese cream and with a tiny marigold (I think) flower on top. Such a brilliant reduction of flavour.

5) Crunchy Olive – this was a freeze-dried black olive foam in the shape of an olive, topped with a little dusting of what tasted like scallop powder. A bit odd, and, I thought, slightly burnt-tasting.

6) Beetroot and Yoghurt Meringue – 4 large freeze-dried ‘meringues’ of slightly sweetened beetroot purée which exploded in the mouth, yielding a deeply vegetal beetroot flavour.

7) Salty Macadamia – A large truffle-like shape, containing a huge fresh macadamia nut, surrounded by barely-sweetened chocolate and bitter cocoa dusting. Really strong, dark flavours.

8) Salty Chocolate – Amazing. Wafer-thin mini-bars of chocolate. One white chocolate with yoghurt (and something really tingly and sharp, like citric acid crystals), one dark with pureed crispy blackcurrants, and one made with pistachio. All of them very tasty, and surprisingly good with the savoury elements so far.

We were now led inside, to our table. The interior of elBulli is hugely incongruous with the space-food that’s served here. OK, the tables are beautifully laid-out, with a large white platter in front of each guest, a Riedel water goblet and a sinlge rose in a plain vase. The napery is thick and soft. But the rooms themselves are filled with amazing tat. To our right was a glass-doored cupboard containing a selection of the most appalling pottery bulldogs. It was like they’d got grandma in to decorate the place. And everywhere one looks, there’s an odd chair, a gaudy cushion, a knick-knack. Very odd. I fully expected there to be a print of the ‘Green Lady’ lurking on a wall somewhere. At the very least, a large stuffed donkey wearing a sombrero. Still, I spent 90% of the time staring incredulously at my plate for the rest of the evening, so the unusual décor wasn’t really a concern.

9) Tangerine Bonbon, Peanut & Curry – Sorry again, I got carried away and ate the peanut/curry thing before remembering to use the camera. This was the first of the truly stunning flavour combinations of the evening. A smooth, super-rich peanut purée set into the thinnest coating of curry-flavoured chocolate (well, I say chocolate, because it had all the texture of chocolate, and kind of melted the same way, but strangely there was no sense that it actually WAS chocolate). And to be eaten straight after this, a cube of the same chocolate-y stuff, filled with a chilled mandarin juice. The taste left in the mouth after these two tiny bites was amazing.

10) Pistachios With Honey & Roquefort – A small spoon arrived in which sat three beautiful plump green pistachio nuts resting in a blob of warmed honey, topped with a tiny cube of Roquefort. Gulp. In it goes. Wow – the intensity of the salty cheese faded gently to allow the honey and the nuts to follow through marvellously. So simple, so delicious. My mind is racing.

11) Pistachio Sponge & Milk Mousse – Two of the now-familiar lyophilised (freeze-dried) crispy sponge things, this time flavoured with pistachio. To one side, a simple acidic milk foam to be spooned onto each sponge and popped into the mouth in one go. Sparkly flavours. Each course seems to draw a line – it’s like an endless parade of palate cleansers. The woman behind us tries to eat hers in two goes. Big mistake. Dry cleaners tomorrow.

12) Sesame ‘Brioche’ with Miso – The next WOW dish. A cone-shaped cloud of jet-black ‘bread’, smeared with a little intense miso paste. I go for it in one go. The hit of black sesame is truly astonishing, the miso just adding some welcome salt from the ‘umami tsunami’. (I should copyright that one) It’s quite simply one of the best things I’ve ever had in my mouth. After that I’ll need something sharp and clean. Oh look, here it comes…

13) Raspberry Fondant & Vinegar – Another brilliant dish. A single fat raspberry, perfectly ripe, coated in a thin veil of fondant icing, and with a tiny point of horseradish paste on top. To the left, a teaspoonful of raspberry vinegar. The idea is to eat half of the raspberry, slurp the vinegar, and finish the fruit. Brilliant. Raspberries and horseradish. Who’dathunkit? I’m seeing a fillet of oily fish with this combination in my mind’s eye. Genius combination.

14) Tiger Nut Milk Flowers – A frozen tray is proffered, on which sit 4 delicate ‘flowers’ made of frozen tiger nut milk (Horxata, a traditional summer drink). We are advised to grab them quickly and eat them straight away. They melt away to nothing instantly, leaving a clean, almondy flavour in the mouth. Smashing. Nice techniques at work, too.

15) Oysters & Yoghurt, PX Tempura – a glass espresso cup of chilled oyster soup, topped with a delicate lemony foam. To be drunk in one shot, we’re advised. Wow! A hit of fresh seawater, with the milky citric taste following through. To one side, a tiny tempura-fried oval of PX sherry jelly. Brilliant juxtaposition of texture and temperature. By now, everyone in the room is smiling like a loon. This is FUN.

16) Haricot Bean With Joselito Ham – Another absolute belter. In a shiny bowl sit two ‘virtual’ haricot beans (more of the gel-capsule technology, this time filled with an intense bean puree) sitting in a delicious broth redolent of the slightly thickened brine one gets tinned beans in. Topping this were slivers of Joselito’s award-winning jamon. It’s brilliant stuff – almost liquefied fat and teneder meat, translucent and heady. To one side, a skewer of Korean black garlic – soft and chewy, with a slight garlic-y flavour, but smooth and wonderfully complementary.

17) Cashews & Yoghurt – After all that savoury, this came as a truly refreshing change. A little yoghurt foam, some Szechuan pepper flowers and a caramelised cashew nut (like all the nuts that night, huge and as fresh as a daisy). Into the bowl was spooned a frozen powder of cashews (made in the Pacojet machine) which melted on the tongue. Lovely.

18) Fig Soup With Its Own Fat – Funny one, this. Thinly sliced fig flesh (although the red centre with the seeds had been removed) with a kind of virtual ham fat (some form of alginate or gelatine), a little fig foam, a tiny bonbon of sherry vinegar and some fennel pollen. Now for me, this was a bit of a dud. The faux fat was interesting, but the figs tasted of very little, and the fennel pollen muscled in a bit too much.

19) Gorgonzola Shell, Celery, Walnut, Apple – Perhaps the star of the show. A thin, frozen dome of Gorgonzola cheese, under which sat a celery foam, with cubes of apple, and toasted walnuts. The effect was rather like licking a Waldorf Salad ice-cream. Utterly brilliant in both flavour and execution.

20) Polenta Gnocchi With Coffee – A bowl of tiny ‘virtual’ gnocchi, just set on the outside, with liquid polenta within, dusted with toasted coffee and a tiny amount of ‘yuba’ beancurd with super-intense saffron. Very delicate flavours at play here, with the faintest whiff of cheese in the polenta.

21) Fresh Walnuts – Curious. A bowl filled with a delicious, salty, sheep’s milk cheese liquid, and on one side, some of the freshest, palest green walnuts, with a few thyme flowers. On the other side, an evil-tasting syrupy walnut liqueur (British readers may think of Benylin at this time) which ruined the otherwise clean, clear flavours for me. A shame. I have never eaten nuts so fresh.

22) Ackees Ravioli – Brilliant. Back on track. Three delicious ‘raviolis’, the ‘pasta’ made from gelled meat stock, wrapped around poached ackee, with ackee leaf shoots (very succulent and astringent) and a hefty shaving of white truffle. Amazing, and really, truly delicious.

23) Razor Clams & Seaweed – Two colossal razor clam meats, barely cooked, served with a little briny foam and fronds of various seaweeds, with a little summer savory adding a nice herby touch. Not my favourite, as I found the texture of the clams a little hard-going at such a cool temperature, but it tasted like the freshest sea-water, and reminded me how much I miss my scuba-diving.

24) “Fiduea” Of Mushrooms With Clams – A brilliant humorous take on the Catalan speciality ‘Fiduea’, which is essentially a paella made with noodles instead of rice. This version used tiny strands of mushroom (it says Shimensi on my menu, but I’d swear they were enoki) in a strong shellfish-y broth, with a little seaweed and some tiny fingernail-sized clams (Donax). These clams were delightful, sweet little things, ice-cold against the hot, rich, savoury mushrooms.

25) Sea Cucumbers With Roe & Seaweeds – Stunning. Three little ‘envelopes’ of sea cucumber, filled with the tiniest ‘virtual’ seafood-flavoured roe (presumably made in the same way as the famed fake fruit caviars), alongside two tasty folds of sea-lettuce with samphire. Nice.

26) Eel & Custardapple – A thick-ish unsweetened ‘custard’ of cherimoya, atop which sat a single piece of fresh eel (still nicely jellified, East-End readers please note), and two tiny cubes of caramel-coated foie gras. All very nice, but a bit timid, flavour-wise.

27) Hare Juice – The ‘main course’!!! – A fabulous gellan-y jelly of apple (fading from deep red to clear in the centre), around which sat some tiny capers. A pan of rich, intense hare ‘gravy’ was poured around. This reminded me so much of my dad’s excellent bunny stew, which he was chuffed to hear. He agreed, and pointed out that a beef bone is the key to a good rabbit concoction. This was great, though, all rich and gamey, and absolutely the perfect way to bid adieu to the savoury part of the menu. Brows mopped, collars loosened, we are given several minutes’ grace to get ready for the desserts.

28) “The Wool 2007” – This was bloody magnificent. As a lover of really good Bourbon, this was like a glass of George T. Stagg, taken apart and put back together again. Under a slightly toasted ball of candyfloss sat some pieces of crunchy vanilla meringue, and a smear of bourbon-barrel syrup. This was the most wonderful woody flavour. A bit like tasty varnish. The whole thing was dynamite.

29) “Coquito” – Hilarious course, this one. A ‘virtual’ coconut, which was a smashing dense buttery coconut ‘macaroon’ in the shape of a coconut, coated in a little cocoa to give the desired effect, and ‘smashed’, then served with a chilled glass of clear, fresh coconut water.

30) Banana – A nice finish – a frozen ‘banana’ made of something with a texture similar to kulfi, atop some date flesh, accompanied by an intense banana sauce and some crunchy vaguely-liquorice-y things, similar to amaretti.

31) “Morphings” - A couple of morphings accompanied our coffees (and my excellent 21 YO Bowmore) – a strawberry topped with a ‘pearl’ filled with reduced balsamic vinegar, and then we were handed a large truffle-shaped object each, and told to scoff it in one go. It had a frozen centre, then a chibouste-type cream, then the thinnest crispy coasting and cocoa around that. It reminded me of a Toffee Crisp. It was ace.

To drink, we had a couple of glasses of Agusti Torello’s Gran Reserva Cava, our white wine was a straight Xarel.lo from Pardas in Penedes, and our red was a magnificent Bierzo from Bodegas Estefania. With dessert I drank a glass of a most excellent PX, put in cask when I was only a year old, made by Toro Albala.

And there we go. It’s all over….

The taxi arrived, we said cheerio, and off we sailed into the night, happy as anything. It really is a wonderful place, and the food is utterly extra-ordinary. A few things didn’t work for me, but the majority were excellent, and a couple were simply astounding.

The photos should be here, in order, starting with that massive moth.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/11917848@N07/...57601603256727/

Yer details:

http://www.prestigehotels.com/portal/Prest...Roses/mar-y-sol

http://www.hotelterraza.com/

http://www.butterflypark.es/paginas_ING/principal.htm

[docsconz]

Excellent report and photos. I always enjoy seeing what is the same and different about others meals at elBulli. There were certainly a number of similarities between our courses, but also a number of new dishes in your meal. Thanks for sharing!

BTW, I never knew that butterfly place ever existed there. I may just check that out if I am ever fortunate enough to find myself there again.

[Gabe Q]

Nice report Stephen. Just one thing to clarify, not to disappoint anyone, but the roe inside the sea cucumbers is real trout roe that they just buy in a jar.

The only caviar being made now (by myself I might add ) is olive oil caviar made with alginate that has been colored black with squid ink. So it looks like real caviar. That is then seasoned with salt and miso paste and goes with the dashi gelatine plate in the little caviar tin. And it's done with a special machine they have to encapsulate oils inside alginate, not in the old fashioned way like the melon caviar.

[Stephen Jackson]

Wow. Thanks for the update.

I've never tasted roe like that before - it was so very crunchy.

Nice to see that, on occasion, nature really can come up with the goods...

[Gabe Q]

I might have jumped the gun saying it was trout roe. But what I know is in fact that it is real fish roe bought in a jar.

[nathanm]

I am going to El Bulli in two weeks - it's great to get an introduction via these posts!

[docsconz]

I am going to El Bulli in two weeks - it's great to get an introduction via these posts!

←

I will be looking forward to reading of your experience and take on this year's offerings. Have you been before?

[catsrus9]

I had dinner last night at El Bulli! It was a dream come true, and the experience was as incredible as I could have hoped for. I got to speak to the man himself at the end (he signed my book )...I told him I'm studying food science and he told me I could visit his lab. I'm so excited!

Pictures to come soon

-Charlie

[nathanm]

I was there last night also - it was another incredible experience (third time for me). Just amazingly good. The stunning thing is the combination of technical excellence with incredible taste combinations.

[andy83]

just wanted to add the main course when I visited at the start of the month. Hare Royale. Looks like the Hare Juice from previous posts only with Foie Gras. Visible at the top is fried foie, underneath the Hare gravy is further foie. Stunning dish, the temperatures of the foie cubes, hare juice and foie mouse at the bottom was hard to pin down, with them all morphing into one savoury, sweet, livery liquid. Fantastic

[Gabe Q]

Hello everyone

Well I got a very unusual and interesting report from today. We had our typical meeting before starting the day and there were 5 guys in the kitchen there just watching. And they spent the whole day today walking around and filming everything and the chefs were all explaining to them all the techniques and things we were doing. And they told us the reason they were there. They were all spanish, and the reason they were there was because they are in the process of developing a VIDEO GAME based around elBulli!!!!!!!

This is like beyond reason. I have no idea what it will be like or when it'll come out or anything. All Albert Adria told us at the meeting is that those guys are game developers and will be working on making a videogame based on elbulli. They asked everyone in the kitchen who played video games and the people who raised their hands they told them to talk to the guys later to give them some imput. Needless to say we joked all day as to who could play the villain

[Stephen_K]

I wonder if it's for the Wii, what with all the weird games they are producing (have you seen the ads for the surgery game, fun for all the family as you remove someone's spleen). A game where you are a 3 star chef and you have to run the plate could be pretty cool....... I can see it now a pan on the screen with some foie gently sauteing, and the Wii controller is the handle......It could work!!!

[Gabe Q]

For all of you who were wondering how they did the oil caviar for the dashi dish, I present to you the oil encapsulating machine from elbulli.

You can see the machine in action right there. Basically here is how it works. On the left side you see a line with olive oil coming in, and on the right side is the second line with the alginate mixed with squid ink (to make it black obviously). The oil is pumped by a syringe that you charge everytime and it goes into a motorized lever that pumps it. The alginate goes into a bottle where there is an air pump and it forces the liquid out into the line. Inside the machine's central unit where both lines meet, there are 6 pivots and it joins both fluids, and so what comes out are drops which have oil in the center, surrounded by the ink alginate. And that falls into a Calcic bath to create a basic spherification. The thing though is that the machine doesn't just run perfectly by itself, so you have to constantly be observing the drops coming out because sometimes the oil is not "encapsulated" so it just falls into the calcic bath and makes a mess of oil and solidified alginate. So it needs tweaking all the time. Pretty interesting though.