Ferran Adrià was a young chef at the Spanish restaurant El Bulli, near Roses on Catalonia’s Costa Brava, during the height of nouvelle cuisine. In 1987 he attended a conference in Nice that questioned the concept of creativity and it set Adrià on a new path. It was the spark that would transform the identity and food style of the restaurant. Adrià developed a way of engaging with food that was initially referred to as molecular gastronomy then “techno-emotional” cuisine. Over time this became a fully-fledged “modernist cuisine” movement which introduced scientific concepts and techniques to the culinary arts. Adrià worked with scientists to study flavour perception and create dining experiences rather than meals. He introduced industrial food science techniques such as spherification, airs, gels and foams to restaurants and deconstruction – familiar flavour themes presented in unconventional ways. In 1998, El Bulli became the first restaurant to publish a detailed description of its creative process and recipes and in 2002 it was named the top restaurant in the inaugural list of The World’s 50 Best Restaurants. It went on to top the rankings in 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009. Through the publication of his creative processes and food philosophy and the many young chefs and stagiers who worked in his kitchen, Adrià ignited a movement.

This course will study the principles and techniques of the Modernist Cuisine movement.