Ladies not waiting

Carme Ruscalleda, Moments, Barcelona, 1952

AS legend has it, the Catalan chef began selling a bit of home-cooking at the family charcutería and before you know it the shop had become Sant Pau, one of the best restaurants in Spain. For a while Ruscalleda, mother of two, had three restaurants with seven Michelin stars between them.

Sant Pau closed in 2018, and these days, she just manages Moments (at the Mandarin Oriental) and Sant Pau Tokyo, advocates for healthier food options in hospitals and schools, writes foodie books and serves as an example of all that’s possible.

Susi Díaz, La Finca, Alicante, 1956

IN Netflix movies, the pressures of running a restaurant break up marriages, but Diaz jokes that she opened this gem of a restaurant in Elche in 1984 to save hers because, with a husband also working in hospitality, without a joint project they’d never see each other. Self-taught, she’s known for fish and seafood dishes using citrus and edible flowers that are as exquisitely beautiful as they are delicious. Author of a popular cookbook (Sentidos) familiar to Spanish TV audiences as a judge on Top Chef, Diaz is also an ambassador for the Marine Stewardship Council.

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Elena Arzak, San Sebastian,

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SHE spent seven years training in Switzerland and working in top restaurants across Europe (including London’s Le Gavroche and elBulli) before coming home to work with her Dad.

It was a risk: Juan Mari Arzak is one of the biggest names in Spanish gastronomy. But talent, technical skill and her own distinct approach have seen her scoop up awards in her own right – Best Female Chef in the World (2012) among them. She is the only woman running a three-Michelin star restaurant in Spain, albeit with Juan Mari along- side. ‘He’s my maestro,’ she says. ‘I love it!’

Maria Jose San Roman, Monastrell, Alicante, 1955

VANGUARD technique, a celebration of the local gambas, and playful tasting menu have won her multiple awards at this top marina-front spot. San Roman also has the very important role of president of the Asociación de Mujeres en Gastronomia (MEG) pushing for visibility and equality.

As International Women’s Day celebrations continue, Sorrel Downer takes a look at Spain’s top female chefs

OF all the very many things women do at least as well as men, most people would seem to agree standing in a kitchen and cooking stuff is among them.

Yet only one in 10 of all Michelin-starred restaurants in Spain has a female head chef. And in the Repsol Guide only three restaurants run by a woman have the maximum three Sols (suns) – out of 42.

The obvious conclusion is that women are too busy creating alta gastronomia to go around blowing their own trumpets. While some of the most famous male chefs seem to be just as interested in self-publicity and burgeoning business empires as in their food, many a talented female pours all their creativity into the dishes they lovingly assemble.

KNOWN as the ‘volcanic chef’ not for a Ramsay style temper but for being part of the ‘volcanic cuisine movement’ dedicated to using local produce, most ingredients in the minimalist dishes she creates with precise and scientific skill come from her own orchard, veg plots and chickens in Olot.

Home-grown and KM 0 also applies to her team: Daughters Martina (ex of Blue Hill at Stone Barns, New York) and Carlota (ex of El Celler de Can Roca) now work alongside her, while her third Clara works front of house.

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To get to the top as a female chef in Spain takes a lot of talent and oomph. Here are the brightest stars in the gastronomic galaxy, and the rising stars with restaurants that every self-respecting gourmand should know.

Cristina

Figueira, El Xato, Alicante, 1974

INSPIRATION struck while helping her mother-in-law in the family tapas bar in La Nucia. After studying the culinary arts in Benidorm, absorbing the molecular gastronomy teachings of Ferran Adria, and working as an intern at El Celler de Can Roca, she diplomatically transformed the traditional venue into a sophisticated Michelin restaurant voted fifth best in the world by TripAdvisor punters, and winning the title of best chef in the province of Alicante along the way.

Fina

Puigdevall, Les Cols, Girona, 1963

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