There's a little place I know . . .
In order to get to Ferran Adria's Michelin three-star restaurant, people have been known to fly in by helicopter, or take a taxi and have the driver wait for five hours while they dine. It takes planning and dedication to get there: El Bulli is tucked away on the Costa Brava, far from the tourist track, and the degustation menu is 135 euros (about HK$1,180) without wine. But people are anxious to make the pilgrimage because El Bulli regularly makes the list of best restaurants in the world, and Adria is considered the most innovative of Michelin-starred chefs.
Adria is Catalonian, as was Salvador Dali, whose take on art was as surreal as Adria's interpretation of food. He works with his brother, Albert, El Bulli's pastry chef, and a kitchen team of about 40. For six months of the year, the crew turns out a minimum of 30 courses for each dinner. Each course is comprised of several elements - it might be three different 'shots' of soup - cold, warm and hot - or a custom-made plate with small soup spoons containing ingredients that need to be eaten in a particular order. A meal at El Bulli requires that the diner not just eat, but think and wonder.
Apart from his famous foams and warm jelly, Adria is renowned for the 'deconstruction' of cuisine. He takes apart the expected and thinks of new ways of putting them back together. The menu might list gazpacho, but it won't be the expected cold soup. Adria separates all the elements - tomatoes, cucumbers and other vegetables - and puts them back together in another shape so it tastes like an entirely new gazpacho. Spaghetti parmesan isn't spaghetti with parmesan cheese - it's spaghetti made from parmesan.
While other chefs might work on their new dishes between the lunch and dinner rushes, Adria, his brother and a small team take a six-month retreat to a workshop/laboratory in Barcelona. Adria is so famous he's become a culinary ambassador for Spain, cooking for royalty and heads of state and participating in food festivals.