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A table for history

  • A group of chefs and representatives from Bacalao Barquero posing during a gastronomic event. Several people are wearing black jackets featuring the event's logo, and a screen displaying the text "La Noche de la Excelencia" (The Night of Excellence) appears in the background.

Bacalao Barquero unites culinary masters for the first time in an unprecedented gathering, celebrating its 40th anniversary by bringing together the fourteen most influential and acclaimed chefs from the Iberian Peninsula.

Marking the celebration of its forty-year history (1986–2026), the prestigious Asturian firm Bacalao Barquero made history in the gastronomic sector by organizing the decade's most exclusive gathering: «The Night of Excellence: Forty Years, Forty Legacies.»

The event, held at the iconic Espai Esperit Roca restaurant (Sant Julià de Ramis, Girona), achieved an unprecedented milestone: bringing together a historic constellation of MICHELIN-starred chefs at a single table.

Figures of the caliber of Albert Adrià, Martín Berasategui, Joan, Jordi, and Josep Roca, Jordi Cruz, Paolo Casagrande, the Torres brothers (Javier and Sergio), Nacho and Esther Manzano, Paco Roncero, Ramón Freixa, and Henrique Sá Pessoa—among other prominent names in the culinary avant-garde and industry critics—gathered for a unique evening that has already become a landmark event for the peninsula's gastronomic culture.

A three-part gastronomic showcase

Fittingly, the evening's menu was a consummate tribute to high-end ingredients, structured as an exceptional culinary journey. It began with enticing welcome appetizers from Espai Esperit Roca, including a steamed summer truffle brioche, a frozen olive "bonsai," and a foie gras turrón with hazelnuts and cocoa.

Next, the team from Atempo (led by Jordi Cruz and Iñaki Aldrey) took the helm, placing Bacalao Barquero—the "white gold of the sea"—center stage. Highlights included creations such as a crispy coca crujiente de brandada (crispy flatbread with milky cod) with tomato-water gelée, creamy romesco with cod loin carpaccio, and main courses of the highest caliber, such as esqueixada with sun-dried tomatoes, cod loins with white asparagus and their own reduction, and a tender, morro de bacalao confitadoI (confit cod snout) served with a stew of callos de bacalao (stewed cod tripe).

Sliced cod served on a white and blue plate, garnished with red tomatoes, black olives, lettuce leaves, and small decorative sprouts.

Jordi Roca provided the grand finale with a complex dessert featuring strawberry sorbet, cream, Occo juice gel, Fermió cheese, anise-flavored sprouts, and a caramel spiral—a showcase masterfully paired with wines selected by sommelier Josep Roca.

Four decades of pursuing the true taste of the sea

Following the exclusive tasting menu, Gonzalo Álvarez, founder and CEO of Bacalao Barquero, recounted the history of the company he started with his brother José Luis in Oviedo in 1986—a journey defined by defying product seasonality and embracing cutting-edge innovation and sustainability.

"Nearly a decade ago, we realized that the future lay not in volume, but in value. We decided to catch wild cod one by one, exclusively by hook and line, and to implement an at-sea flash-freezing system—carried out within four hours of the catch—to safeguard the fish's texture and properties. Today, seeing this historic constellation of talent gathered here—sharing our code of absolute respect for the product's origin—is a true privilege," noted Gonzalo Álvarez.

A tribute to the guardians of culinary heritage

The evening’s crowning moment came courtesy of Daniel Fernández, the firm's General Manager, who presented awards to the attending chefs. In a moving tribute to their contributions to gastronomic culture, each chef received a commemorative 40th-anniversary jacket, a personalized diploma, and an exclusive, handcrafted professional-grade knife, numbered 1 through 40. As a gesture of camaraderie and a shared future, the chefs signed a commemorative jacket that will be kept at the company's headquarters.

The evening concluded in the venue's gardens amidst a relaxed atmosphere among the forty guests, cementing "The Night of Excellence" as an unforgettable milestone where Spanish haute cuisine united—like never before—around a single table. 

The Mystery Solved: "White Gold" Appears Across Spain

The evening’s anticipation was heightened by the recent, mysterious disappearance of 40 boxes of the company’s prized "white gold" from its central facilities. With the help of master of ceremonies Carlos Latre —and via a dramatic special appearance— renowned illusionist Anthony Blake revealed to the audience that he was the mastermind behind the disappearance.

Far from being a disruptive incident, the stunt was revealed to be a bold move to celebrate the brand's anniversary. The 40 boxes have been strategically distributed to restaurants throughout Spain. Through a social media campaign, the first person to locate a box and share it on their Stories—tagging the brand—will receive a full kilogram of *Bacalao Barquero* cod loin delivered to their home, completely free of charge.

"Forty years of excellence deserve to be known across all of Spain—not just by those lucky enough to be here tonight," Anthony Blake declared during the on-stage reveal.