LUIS IRIZAR

Prestigious Chef, recognized as ‘Master of Masters’ in his profession.

He started his career very young at the Hotel Maria Cristina in San Sebastian. He worked as a Chef in various Restaurants and Hotels, both home and abroad (Restaurante Azaldegui in San Sebastian, Restaurant Royal Monceau in Paris, Hilton Hotel in London, etc.).

In 1967 he founded the first Catering School in the Basque Country at the Hotel Euromar in Zarauz, which produced some excellent and renowned Chefs, such as Pedro Subijana, Carlos Arguiñano, Ramón Roteta, José Ramón Elizondo and many others.

A few years later, with a group of restless Basque Chefs and stimulated by their French colleagues, he initiated what was to be known as the

‘New Basque Cuisine’ movement.

Their aim was to promote the rebirth of Basque cooking in order to make it more modern and equal the level of the European cuisine of the day.

After working in the Basque Country for several years and later in Madrid, as Manager of the Hotel Alcalá and Manager-Owner of the Restaurante Irizar for 10 years, he returned to San Sebastian where he founded the ‘Luis Irizar Cooking School’ in 1992.

Luis Irizar has always been renowned for his total dedication to teaching professional cooking.

Acknowledgements

2013 Lifetime Achievement Award, Royal Academy of Gastronomy.
2013 Patron of Honour of the Basque Culinary Center.
2011 Lifetime Achievement Award, San Sebastián Gastronomika.
2009 ‘Cereza de Oro’ Award.
2008 ‘Kalitatea′ Award.
First Prize of the Gastronomic Critics to the best teaching and professional work in 1980.
Member of Honour of several Gastronomic Societies.
Member of the Spanish jury of the ‘Paul Bocuse’ Cooking Competition.
President of the Spanish jury of the ‘Pierre Taittinger’ International Cooking Competition, held in Paris every year.
Member of the Board of the ‘Eurotoques’ European Chefs Association.
In 1992, the town of San Sebastian awarded him the ‘Gold Drum’ for promoting the city and basque cooking around the world.