Rafael Anson to Be Praised by Star - Studded Chefs

A total of 35 chefs who boast 10 Michelin Stars and 17 Repsol Suns huddled in Vitoria to pay tribute to Rafael Anson, president of the Royal Academy of Gastronomy, someone those great chefs consider a visionary in spreading out the values of haute cuisine. 

The Zaldiaran de la Alava Restaurant is the venue of choice to pay tribute to this entrepreneur, gourmet man and traveler who at age 83 presides over the gastronomy academies of Spain, the Mediterranean, Europe and Iberian-America, and has written countless books, collections and guides on the art of good eating. 

To recognize his tireless work, Michelin star recipients Adoni Luis Aduriz (Mugaritz), Diego Guerrero (DSTAgE), Paco Roncero (La Terraza del Casino), Mario Sandoval (Coque), Ricard Camarena (Ricard Camarena Restaurant) and host Patxi Eceiza have come up with a menu that’s up to par with the moment and the celebration.

All of them have wanted to praise Anson’s commitment to haute cuisine and express to him that, as Ferrán Adriá puts it, “without him, Spanish gastronomy would not be what it is now.” 

Some of Rafael Anson’s quotes, such as “gastronomy is the happiness industry”, paint a pretty good picture of ​​his commitment to promoting good food and its creators. 

An advocate of raw materials, of culinary miscegenation, of the addition of technology in the kitchens and of healthy nutrition, Rafael Anson has been a discoverer of culinary talents who have always stood up for cooks and chefs. 

Carme Ruscalleda defines him as the promoter of the “freedom cooking”, something that put Spain on the culinary world map back in the 1990s and made interest in gastronomy accrue. 

Celebrated Peruvian chef Gastón Acurio says that “today Spain and Latin America embrace each other in cooking thanks to the vision and enormous work that Rafael has dedicated to this effort every step of the way.” 

Among the countless recognitions Mr. Anson has garnered throughout his life, he treasures the Great Crossings of Civil Merit, Isabel the Catholic, Alfonso X the Wise and the Legion of Honor of France.