Eneko Atxa, chef patron at restaurant Azurmendi (Spain)

Eneko Atxa is a genius. At his young age, he has already won the third Michelin star. It happened in 2012, just five years after he opened his restaurant Azurmendi.

Eneko is constantly exploring new flavours, moving the norms and borders and impressing everybody with his creativity on one side and with the deep knowledge of tradition, technique and skills on the other side. His visionary mind flies to the future while his hands of a master create beautiful and delicious masterpieces for all the five senses to be enjoyed today.

Eneko, what does chocolate mean to you?

For me, chocolate means most of all pleasure. In my childhood it also meant the way to be rewarded, it means sharing, friendship, a caress to the palate…

Why have you chosen this particular dessert, pictured below? What is in your opinion so special about it?

I understand chocolate in our menu as the final part of the experience, it is the final touch, something which should not be missed when we talk or we look for pleasure.

Tell us please about the flavours, temperatures and textures that describe this dessert.

With this dessert based on chocolate, we intended to create a pure pleasure by extolling the virtues and perfect harmony with which we combine the flavours of citrus, herbaceous, toasted … so that with we get with the chocolate as the base the pleasure of the final experience. This dessert is created from the chocolate with a wide variety of techniques and flavours, looking for the crunchiness in chocolate, elasticity in the marshmallow, creaminess in choco-hazelnuts, enhanced aroma of cocoa jellies, freshness of chocolate with mint …

Chocolate as seen by Eneko Atxa

What has inspired you to create it? How was it born?

I got inspired by the characteristics of the various textures and aspects which can be created from the cacao and I tried to use all my knowledge to show people that there is a wide world full of codes, techniques, contrasts … around it.

Does it require any special technique?

The most traditional techniques and the most advanced are combined, looking for all the shapes, structures, tastes and possible flavours.

What was the special challenge with it?

We were looking to reach new horizons which are highlighting all the best things of the product and we played with different elements which are adding different gustative temperatures such us, for example, a spicy taste…

You can enjoy this lovely chocolate indulgence and many other divine dishes at Azurmendi in Biscay, Spain.