The dose of realism is essential if one wants to achieve a perfect balance. If every single day 2 or 3 courtesans whisper in your ear that you are the best chef in the whole world, this would eventually go to your head. It would be enough to rule your life, and it would turn most of us into arrogant, dictatorial and intolerable individuals. However, we can still be thankful that even today, when all the plutocrats of the world phone up to book a table, Adrià still has his cheeky smile from the district and the intact knee which he used to dribble a ball through the streets of L’Hospitalet dreaming that one day he would be playing at Camp Nou. And the truth of the matter is that he has somehow succeeded in doing just this. His normality is a great source of consolation in a world of exceptions.
He managed to conquer the planet between 1996 and 2006, armed with foams, airs and all sorts of soft and sensual weapons. Adrià is like Alexander the Great, but a positive version. The next 10 years promise to be the most exciting yet. They will be the years of reinvention. The years of awareness. Although there has already been a change in perception: so far he has been regarded as a chef, but from now on he will be received as an artist. However, it is true to say not even the journalists who wrote about him really believe it; it was just a way of singling him out. But, it is he himself who should consider whether cuisine is art, craftsmanship or artefact!
EL BULLI
ADDRESS: Cala Montjoi., Ap. 30 17480. Roses. Girona, Spain
TELEPHONE: (34) 972 150 457
WEBSITE: www.elbulli.com
CUISINE: Spanish, Catalan
OPENING HOURS: July-Sept daily 8-10:30pm; Oct-June Wed-Sun 8-10:30pm
RESERVATIONS: Reservations required
PRICES: Main courses 28€-38€ ($41-$55); menú de degustación 155€ ($225)
TRANSPORT: From Girona, take N-I north to Figueres, and then Rte. 260 east to Roses, a total of 56km (35 miles)