It couldn’t have a more suggestive name: Enjoy. Because that’s what it’s all about when you cross the threshold of its door, enjoying the hedonism of the best gastronomy, that of chefs Oriol Castro, Eduard Xatruch and Mateu Casañas. This trio of disciples of El Bulli culminated yesterday in Las Vegas a year of grace in which, after obtaining the third Michelin star and being the 2023 National Gastronomy Award, they rose to number one on The World’s 50 Best Restaurants list.
The Barcelona restaurant was also placed in the small Olympus of Spanish establishments that have topped the prestigious ranking, which was occupied by El Bulli – on five occasions, 2002, 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009 – and El Celler de Can Roca, among the Roca brothers, who also received this distinction in 2013 and 2015.
Xatruch, Castro and Casañas, “three cooks, three friends”, as they consider themselves, spent 15 years working at El Bulli until in 2012 they decided to open Share Cadaqués, and two years later Enjoy, in Barcelona, where they now work same more than 40 people.
The rise of Enjoy on The 50 Best list has been dizzying in recent years, from the number 18 position with which they debuted in 2018 to number nine in the 2019 edition, fifth in 2021, third in the 2022 edition and seconds in 2023.
Upon taking the stage of the gala, Oriol Castro confessed that it has been “a magical moment” because they did not expect it despite the fact that all the pools pointed to them as the new number one: “Until the last second we have maintained this emotion and we “We will remember all our lives.” Castro referred to all the colleagues on this list, who “each one does his project, and each one contributes their grain of sand to build this great world gastronomy.”
Mateu Casañas recalled, for his part: “When we started 10 years ago, none of the three of us could imagine that we would get this far” and added that this job “requires many hours, but it also provides a very beautiful thing, being able to make many people happy.” ».
On the other hand, the Basque Asador Etxebarri from Bittor Arginzoniz was on second place after climbing two places, while the French restaurant Table by Bruno Verjus, located in Paris, completed the podium. DiverXO, by Dabiz Muñoz, gave up one place and was placed in fourth place, while Quique Dacosta reached 14th and Elkano by Aitor Aguerri in Guetaria (Guipúzcoa) gave way to 28th place.
