22 Dec 2010, Posted by admin in L'Epicurien, 0 Comments

view from the front row’s people, places and things that mattered in 2010: el bulli

View From the Front Row will be highlighting the people, places and things that mattered in 2010 in food, fashion and design picked by our editors and contributors. Weigh in in the comments section, what made your 2010 list?

2010 will be forever remembered in the culinary world as the year that Ferran Adrià, revered chef and father of molecular gastronomy, announced that he would close the world’s most famous restaurant, El Bulli. El Bulli, located in Catalonia Spain, has for years been the hardest dinner reservation to secure in the world. The restaurant can accommodate 8,000 diners a year, but usually receives more than 2 million requests. Adrià is renowned for altering simple dishes like chicken curry into something inventive and transformative. The restaurant, which will close its doors in 2012, will be converted into a non-profit educational foundation in 2014 for gastronomy lovers, creating fellowships for aspiring chefs.

Adrià, swapped out his apron for a bowtie this month, and came to Harvard University to co-teach “Science and Cooking: From Haute Cuisine to Soft Matter Science” where he emphasized to the class that cooking needs to come into universities (teaching is clearly a priority for Adrià going forward).

We look forward to seeing what other ventures Adrià has in mind, especially for New York. Hopefully going forward this master chef will be able to create a positive revenue business while still preserving his brand, something that he has consistently struggled with at the revenue bleeding El Bulli.

–Melissa Matarese

Follow Melissa on Twitter @MelissaMatarese