When a school official came to speak to Andoni's class when he was 14 about their plans for the future, Andoni was shocked that so many of his classmates knew what they wanted to do with the rest of their lives, he had no idea. But he had a cousin who was a chef so "by chance" he decided to go to culinary school. Struggling in the early years until he found inspiration, Andoni began to seek out study with professionals whose work wasn't just a technical expression but a personal one. These tutorials became the basis for his philosophy of artistic cooking based on personal expression, what he calls "auteur cooking." The journey Chef Aduriz seeks to take through his cuisine is illustrated in this story he told us:
"The other day, in Brazil, I ate a worm which was called a Tulu. I experienced it from different perspectives. From a culture gastronomica, what flavor did it have, what texture, the organoleptic characteristics. I also ate it from a cultural-perspective. This is part of a culture of the forest, this is a part of the diet of these people. I am also going to experience it from this anthropological perspective, if you will, cultural. But also, I experienced it from an emotional perspective. You realize that the worms were on a trunk? Be careful there. You must embrace this experience when you are not prepared. You also have to pass this border. This barrier between what you are and are not capable of eating. And they said 'Try it, try it.' You try and surpass you own limitations. And I ate the worm. I never thought in my life I would be capable of eating a worm like that. Never. So, pay attention there as you manage your emotions and what could be a meal, a dish, a good experience, one more excuse to learn from ourselves."
This unique way of approaching his culinary artistry is alive at his restaurant in San Sebastian, Mugaritz. Named after the word "Muga" meaning border, the restaurant embodies the border between contradictions that keep it dynamic. In Andoni's words "this border, is a border where we mix the past with the future, the vanguard with the tradition, the rural with the urban, the collective with the individual, in this border of contradictions between the known and the unknown, what you know how to do and what you would like to learn." After ten years, many of the early years struggling to succeed, Mugaritz was just awarded its fifth consecutive honor as one of the ten best restaurants in the world by Restaurant Magazine. Now facing another challenge, after a fire has destroyed the original building, Mugaritz is being rebuilt with its philosophy as its blueprint. "The reconstruction begins from the foundations."
