English with Dane
Hey, I'm Dane. I grew up bilingual and after 15 years of teaching and working with English learners, I've realised that true fluency comes from understanding how the language fits into real life. I created English with Dane to give Spanish speakers a calm approach to becoming fluent through practical conversations about language, culture, TV and current events. No stress, just English that makes sense and gets easier to use over time.
English with Dane
Secrets of a Michelin Star Chef (con Coco Montes)
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Hoy hablo con mi amigo Coco Montes (@coco.montes), uno de los chefs más talentosos de España y creador de PABÚ, un restaurante que hace poco recibió su primera estrella Michelin 🌟Hablamos sobre el proceso secreto de evaluación de la guía Michelin y si realmente es como lo pintan en las pelis o en los programas de cocina. También sobre por qué ser chef puede ser una experiencia tan solitaria, qué es lo que de verdad separa a un chef con estrella Michelin de una persona normal, y la filosofía de Coco sobre la alta cocina, la hospitalidad y si la industria está fallando a la gente común.Coco isn’t just a great chef — he’s also a perfect example of how having a non-native accent but speaking English at a high level can sound incredible. His comfort with the language and his natural communication style allow him to express his ideas clearly and be himself — which is the whole point. He doesn’t stress about pronunciation or trying to sound “more native.” He speaks calmly, chooses his words carefully, and gets his message across beautifully. I think there’s really something to that.Let me know what you think about this type of episode, and if there’s anything I can do to make it an even richer experience.As always, thanks for watching (or listening) 🙌
So the other day I had the pleasure of sitting down with my good friend Coco Montes, who is the creator or the artist really behind the restaurant Babu here in Madrid, which was recently awarded its first Michelin star. We talked about the secrecy behind the assessment, the people coming in to check everything about your restaurant. We talked about his philosophy behind hosting and making people feel comfortable. We talked about connections with music. I thought it was a really fun conversation, and I hope you do too. I wrote some things down on the screen. So if you missed a word or vocabulary thing in general, you can go back, check, write down the ones that you like. And if it's too fast or too slow, speed it up or slow it down to your liking. Alright, you are listening to episode 27 of season two of English with Bane. Hit it. Is being a chef a lonely experience?
SPEAKER_00Well, yes, it is because first of all, you need it's a it's a trust issue. So I need to demonstrate to my team every day that the direction is the right direction. Because if not, they'll just stop trusting you and not necessarily leave. But they they're with you and they don't trust you. And this is horrible, man. To any boss out there, this happens. No, and um it's very lonely because I need to trust myself. It's the first thing. I need to I need to be sure of myself when I wake up and say, You're gonna kill it, man. You you're the one. No, I don't say this in front of the mirror, but you need in reality, you have to. So it's it's super lonely because it I'm the only one that that has the control of the big boat, and it doesn't matter what happens, I'm the one steering. And and people are there with you and they help you, but they only help you as much as you want to be helped. And and I've I've learned in these two years that the Resin has been open, um the thing that I've learned the most is how to communicate with other human beings.
SPEAKER_01Which is strange because I feel I've known you for like 25 years and I think of you as a good communicator.
SPEAKER_00But yeah, uh I try to be, but the difficult part is to communicate to someone that really doesn't want to receive your communication. When you're in front of an audience and you're gonna talk about something you're good at, this audience in 90% of the audience trusts you. No, it says, hey, this guy, no, it's it's the controller, yeah, yeah. He's gonna say something, no, they're already no longer. Everything starts, yeah, and they're 30%, they they bought in 30% at least. Workers, not so much so many times. So you need to be able to communicate your ideas and make sure they're plausible and they can be carried out by other human beings without the level of passion you have. There's many people in my team that are better than I am, for sure. So uh out of the question, but they don't have the same level as passion as I do for for my own ideas. I don't know if I'm that makes total sense. Yeah. So so it's very hard, it is very lonely. It is it's super lonely, but uh but it's beautiful. It's something that I really enjoy. If not, I wouldn't be doing this, man. Uh I enjoy it very, very much.
SPEAKER_01So the first time me and you actually got to spend some time together, um, just one-on-one, and we got to spend some time, and I was really picking your brain about different things, and we were talking about a whole a whole bunch of stuff. I asked you what I can do to make my cooking better. What specifically, specifically with rice, I remember, because I I make a lot of rice. Okay. And I I I took you through my rice making process, and much to my surprise, you were like, that sounds good. And I was like, oh fuck, thank God. And then uh, if I remember correctly, you told me to add a little butt a little butter when it was finished, and then just with a fork kind of air it out a little bit.
SPEAKER_02Exactly.
SPEAKER_01What are what are other things that like this that like that quote unquote normal people that people that are not Michelin star chefs could do like just today?
SPEAKER_00The thing the thing is that I'm I'm learning I learn I'm learning to cook every day. This is this is super interesting to know and to to let you know. Okay, my job it changes all the time, and it depends on the ingredient. And I'm I have to constantly be on top of things, no? They've taught me that this is the best way to make rice. Yeah, okay. I went to Colorado to Aspen um not long ago. Go try to make rice that way there, and you'll see what happens to you. Rice will not cook, really. Uh yeah, because we're at different altitude.
SPEAKER_01Well, of course.
SPEAKER_00And you say, nah, this is try. So there's many things that are very hard to tell you. This is, you know, this is the way to do it. I had a cooking class yesterday, I was I was teaching uh at 20 students, and um it was very fun. And they tell you, yeah, but at what temperature and for how long? Tell me the answer. Yes, yeah, I want to know. It's like, okay, I'll tell you the temperature in this oven that I have here. That's the first time I use, by the way. So the interesting part that I cannot tell you is that I'm trying to learn right now what to do with this oven. The difference between chefs and people that are not chefs is that we are we adapt very fast. That's the difference. So I don't freak out. I see an oven that does that is not my oven, I don't care. I'll find it out. I'm telling you, man, in a minute or two or ten minutes, but in 10 minutes it'll be my best friend and I'll know exactly what it needs. Um so I told him, I cannot tell you the time, neither can I tell you the temperature. I can tell you what I what I'm waiting for when it comes out of the oven. We were making like the signs, tuna belly. Okay. And I can tell you I can show you um the belly of Bonito, belly, okay. Um, I'll show you when it comes out of the oven, and I'll show you what I'm what I'm expecting. And and I can show you what to expect. And I can tell you, well, put it for 200 degrees Celsius for more or less 20 minutes. This is a a question that comes up uh with friends and family. It's like, I wanna I wanna bake uh a three kilo fish for how long do I bake it? You're like taking out the math, your pen and paper. What can I tell you? I can give you a range that I think more or less would be good and e daí puedes to like This cannot even porque imagine this fish, okay. Imagine this is a farmed fish, okay? And and what would be the difference if it was if it was wild? It's the fat. Okay. So farmed fish have more fat because they they need to survive less. Right. This is the thing.
SPEAKER_01So they're very That's why we have really fat cows.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, they're very comfy. They have they have nothing to do, they're all day, they don't even swim, no, they're there chilling, so they have a lot of fat. And and the way to cook them, the skin, the skin is much thinner. So if you don't specify, and if I tell you, ah right, 250 degrees for 20 minutes, and it's farmed, what'll come out of the oven, you won't like it. Claro. Uh this is the thing, they're not they're not set set rules are very hard to tell you. Um pastry, we have more rules, right? But still, um, I don't know if I'm gonna be able to give you a tip. If I can give you um a nice tip, uh when you're working with chocolate and you're and you're melting it over water, if one drop of water touches your chocolate, you're dead. What why? Because it it it separates it, it separates the fat from the water. I I don't know why. Um there's chefs and then there's scientists and nutritionists and people that study many years and know a lot about food. No, so probably you'll have to ask an expert. But this happens. So it's a tip for you. If you're making a cake, a chocolate cake, don't let water touch it. You got a Michelin star not too long ago.
SPEAKER_01Yes. And how long after you opened the restaurant did you get it? It was um uh 11 months. 11 months, so not even a year after you started the restaurant, you got a Michelin star. Um, congratulations. Thank you so much. Um I've always wanted to know what is that evaluation process like? Do you know when they're coming? Is it like in the movies where they leave a fork on the floor so they to see if you're if the people that work here are are on top of things and they pick it up? Are they like what what is the assessment process of becoming a Michelin star man restaurant? You're not gonna like my answer, but I'm gonna I'm gonna give it to you anyways. Um Don't condition my answer.
SPEAKER_00I'm gonna love your answer. I have no clue, man. Oh, you have no you have no clue. And that's the beauty of it. Because um, more or less, more or less, you know. Uh they come alone. Okay. Now that's one of the big giveaways. Facts. I'm gonna tell you the facts and then I'm gonna tell you why they're not right after this, okay? They come alone, they check everything, they're very suspicious about everything, no? They take notes on their phone on this specific app they have, no? Um sorry, do you know that they're coming that day or no or not? No, no, no, no. You have no clue. But if you have a reservation for one person, you can at least suspect, no, and you're saying, mmm, okay. And all these things happen, no. The Michelin guide for these last, let's say, five, six years has been working very hard to change all of this, which is excellent. And I really like that because now is very hard. Everything I told you is a lie, okay? Inspectors come in a group as well. So imagine you're going and it what they do a lot of times is like, hey, because not even their family can know their inspectors. No, this is the Oh, it's like that. Yeah, I I don't know if if they don't tell their wife, hey, listen, by the way. By the way, you know an inspector for the Michelin. Because they Michelin guide. This gives you a lot of points, no? Your wife's like, oh my god, you're an inspector. You're just like out here lying to your wife because you're a food, a food guy. Exactly. And it's like, okay, let's go to lunch to I don't know what restaurant, no, and we'll and we'll chill. And but you're taking notes. The the informe, no, the what they need to present to the guide is a couple pages long. So it's very very very simple. No, you take mental notes and so do you need to be on your phone? No. No. Of course not. Um do you know them because they're always the same people? No, absolutely no. And there's one interesting thing, which is my favorite, is that before in Spain, 90% of them were men. And now, in the last two, three years, the number of women has exploded. So nobody knows anymore. I got an email not too long ago because I was as very intelligent as I am. This is very ironic. Um, I was I was and I wrote an article or they asked me in an interview, I don't know what happened, uh, this same question. And I said, nah, it's fairly easy to identify them. No, this was the coco uh a couple of months ago. Yeah, and I got an email of mediam.gmail.com. It's like, hello. I heard you were talking shit. No, no, my name is Miriam. Um, I've been to your restaurant many times. Of course, this is not my real name. Um, I I really like what you do. Uh I'm a mission and guide inspector, an international mission and guide inspector, which is yeah, like as soon as the the next word, no, was making me smaller and smaller. Do you know what I mean? Like you're reading it's like you're checking your ears. Oh my god, you're so stupid, man. Like, oh my god. Next time you have to bring someone to see what you're saying. And she told me, We are not that easy to spot because I've been in your restaurant many times and you don't know why I am. And and maybe it's because I'm a woman and it's fairly she said something very interesting. It's strange when a man picks up a plate and turns it around to see the brand.
SPEAKER_01But if a woman does it, I mean, you know, it's you you allow that more because of society or why you're just like that.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, no, and and this that's an interesting point. This made me think about many things, no, and I think Michelin, the Michelin guide, ex especially when you pass one and you're going for two or three, which is the case, thank God. Um it goes international. And international everything changes because there's many more inspectors, the rules are much more strict and severe, which I think is good, and um and I think it's it's good for us for the restaurants, no? And no, we cannot know who's coming. They do not leave a fork on the floor. I I at least I haven't seen it. Sometimes they do uh present themselves after the meal. Say, we're from the mission and guide, and once once it's all been concluded. Yeah, when when everything is said and done, and you're saying, Oh no. How how did you feel when you found out you got it? But that was incredible, man. You find out when you're sitting on the chair of the gala. Dude know this. You don't know this.
SPEAKER_01I thought you just went and they're like, Oh, you won it, here's the gala, we're gonna present it, you the award here. You don't know. So you could feasibly you could just be on stage at the Michelin star gala and they go, Ah, Coco, it's not your year.
SPEAKER_00Bro, I went uh Repsol is different. You know, Guia Repsol. Yeah, Repsol, right? They call you a month before. What's what's the difference for people and me?
SPEAKER_01Let's be real, I don't really know.
SPEAKER_00Guia Repsol is a it's an amazing guy, you know, and and it's it's very national. Now it opened up to Portugal, and I think it's they're making them doing a great job. But the Michelin guide is the mission and guide. And we're talking about mission and guide is it's not it's not about prestige, it's about the years it has been. Right, you know, it's very trustworthy. Um, and they'd call you a month in advance and tell you, which is a very happy day, no? Because you're going to the gala and you already know, so you're these fruitans, you're enjoying everything. It was great. The mission and guide, no. And so it was in Murcia this year, and we went, we got on a train, and I went with my entire family. It's like, eh, it's all good, you know. Oh my god, that's and and my entire family, you know, they were saying like they they they set up a meeting in the hotel before leaving, like two hours before leaving to the gala. You can imagine how I was feeling, and they're like, Don't worry, typical family thing, no, it's already important enough that you're here. It doesn't matter if you get your star. And I said, Man, you stop lying to me. We we came here, man. We've been I've been suffering all these years, uh, dreaming about this. We've got this train to Murcia, which I love, but I've It's just random. Yeah, just Murcia. And and I told him, I'm here to bring it back with me. I need don't don't lie to me, and I'm not gonna lie to you. I want it. And and we're there, we you sit down, and they tell you, uh, for all those we're wearing a jacket, take it off, because we're gonna give you uh uh a chef's white, no, a chaquetilla, a chef's uh jacket. And I was wearing a jacket, and and the gala one, I was sitting next to my mother and she's like, take your jacket off. No, take your it's a little bit warm here, no? Take it off. No, and she convinced me and said, All right, I'll take it off. And she was already, this is what mothers have, and I think I don't know if you're already feeling this as a father, but you develop this no this way to to just be there for yours for your child, no?
SPEAKER_01And I think you try to protect them and prevent them so you like lower expectations in case.
SPEAKER_00But it was her way to to to teach me that it's okay, man. Like I'm here with you, don't worry, and we're here, but tomorrow we'll be in the restaurant working, like every day, whatever happens. And I went and they and they and they called the name, they they were going uh first of all, this is Murcia. They were like, bro, uh okay, go to the stars. I need to know, you know, I need to know. I'm dying. Yeah, and they go around, we're gonna start with Barcelona, and they don't know, and then the music is super uh they're like saying, Oh my god, you know, I couldn't even move, man. And and when they said the name of the restaurant, well, it was it's incredible, no? Everybody turns around, no, they they're looking at you, you're there, you don't know what to do. Uh I I stood up. Like you won an Oscar, yeah, no, yeah. I mean it's that level, and you're there, and then I brought my mom with me, of course, and and it's just a great, an incredible feeling, man. What can I tell you? How how long did that last? This feeling, yeah, but it's uh up to today. I'm wearing the nice the entrance to the gala.
SPEAKER_01That's good to hear, man, because I think I think there's like a problem. I mean, I'm gonna generalize a lot, of course, but there's kind of like a problem with this like uh almost like pathologically achieving and and being productive and being this and that mentality of like I won the award, cool, what's next? So it's so nice to hear that you that you still actively are very like gratitude towards it.
SPEAKER_00Of course. I I love the fact that that they they gave it to us and everything, and but everybody was telling me after the gala, now you have to now you have to keep it. It's like man, my interest is not keeping it. Is it I need two stars now? Now we're working, but the thing is everybody says, ah we're come on, man. It's been a year. It's like first of all, you don't know, no, neither do I, yeah, which is the beauty of it. Second of all, if we're working to two st for two stars, it means that we're trying our best to raise the quality of the restaurant every day, no, which is which I think is what they want. Which is okay, we don't get the two stars. It's by the way, it's in a month again. Oh shit. Yeah, by the way. Um if you're working for two stars, it means you're raising the quality already, which is fantastic. If you don't give it to us this year, don't worry, it's okay. But we're there, our mindset is on two stars. It's our mindset is there, and I think this is why Michelin the Michelin guide works so well, because it makes you want to be better. Well, this isn't amazing, no?
SPEAKER_01It's kind of like uh complacency is is the enemy, really.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, exactly. It's saying, hey, you you can two stars are right there.
SPEAKER_01I'm sure people are like, I got a Michelin star, cool, I'll coast off that for the rest of the life of the restaurant.
SPEAKER_00Can I speak for everyone? No. I mean, of course, there's people that are working for one star, and this one star, imagine you're in a village in the middle of and this one star really is incredible. For me, one star is amazing, you know, don't misunderstand. It's fantastic, but I want two stars. What what do the Michelin stars mean? Like what's one, two, and three? One star is um it's worth coming to the restaurant if you find it. No, if you find it, the cuisine is at a as a at an ex exceptional level, and it's worth it. So it's worth um and it doesn't matter how much you have to pay for it because it's worth it. Um two stars is it's worth a detour. No, and if you're it's worth a detour. Like, bro, I'm there, you the service is exceptional quality, the food is amazing, it's worth a detour. Three stars is it's worth a trip just for this. No, it's it's you can organize, which is which is something that you'd say, yeah, but it's never like that. But when when you're looking back, it's like it's really like that. Because for my mom's birthday a couple of months ago, I went, we organized a trip to Davitorio, it's a three mission stars in in Bergamo next to Milan. And we organized the entire trip around the restaurant. And don't don't you do this sometimes like three stars is is definitely that. Um, I was listening the other day to Aitor Zabala. Uh he opened Somni uh some years ago in Los Angeles. He used to work with Fernadria, he's from Barcelona, but born in in Basque Country. And he closed the rest, he found so many difficulties, man. He he ran out of money, everything went horrible. He had to close the restaurant for five years, man. Five years is a long time. You know, you give he was talking about it. It makes you it makes you lose your mind, man. Five years. He opened a year ago. He has the record three stars, bam, oh wow at once in the uh Los Angeles, Michigan guide. They were asking, What did you feel, man? It's like I cannot explain it to you. This is for for us, for a chef, this is it's something unexplainable. No, I'm not sure.
SPEAKER_01Dude, sorry, that just made me think of the other day when when I was eating here, you you came out and said, Hey, and you asked me how was the food?
SPEAKER_00Yeah.
SPEAKER_01And if you remember, I I kind of didn't know what to say because and I don't mean it like, oh my god, I didn't even know what to say, it was incredible, which it was, but I felt like the words that I was gonna choose were not gonna be accurate in terms of the experience that I had. Like I I don't think I know how to talk about food. Because like it's almost like my vocabulary is isn't where it needs to be to actually genuinely tell you how it made it feel. So I felt almost like an asshole when you were like, How was it? I'm like, I don't I can't explain it to you. Yeah, but it did something to me.
SPEAKER_00I know exactly what you mean, man. Uh it happens frequently in every d when I go out for dinner and it's and it's incredible or the experience, or at a hotel, man. I was I was at an incredible hotel in Paris, and the experience is just so incredible that how can I put it into words? No, I I what I feel immediately is I need to study more because I'm still not cultured enough to be able. I'm not saying you're not cultured. I'm not saying what the f brow is I'm not You're on my podcast. I'm not I'm not cultured enough to explain this. And this is good. I think this is extremely good. Artists, I like music a lot, of course, you know as well, and I like classical music very much. And and right now I'm studying Mozart. Um because I find them a very interesting man.
SPEAKER_01What do you mean by studying?
SPEAKER_00I'm trying to listen. I'm I'm listening to an audible of 60 hours by uh I don't know what professor, and and there's many, there's 60 hours about his life, 60 hours about his chamber music, 60 hours about his operas, 60 hours about, and now I'm in in the chamber music, but I went through the operas, and I like the magical magical flute. Um and what's interesting about this, and and I really feel that this is why he was an artist, it's it's hard to explain, it's hard to understand. What he tried to do is that his music was as good as you as the person listening to it was able to understand it. So if you go to the magic fluor, the magic flu you can either understand it technically, because technically it's incre what can I say? No, it's a masterpiece of oh my god, no, uh understanding it in its context is amazing. You can understand it like a masonry, uh, because he was a Mason. Oh, I didn't know that. Yeah, the super whole mason language behind it that you're saying, oh my god. You can understand it as a crazy story about men against women, and or you can understand it as a fairy tale, which is which is what I try to do because you say what a what a masterpiece that a thousand people can go to the theater and everybody can leave the theater happy. The technical guy is happy, the one that is looking for the conspira conspiracy the is happy. The little kid was ten and just saw an amazing story about a prince in love with a with a princess and with difficulty and a dragon is happy. And do you understand? This is something that I value a lot. When you say no, I listen to this piece of music, but man, that was very complicated to understand. It's a piece of art, but maybe I'm not ready for it. Um I think the audience needs to study a little bit to understand artists, but I think artists as well need to portray and communicate a little bit better. And if I'm able to make my clients and my guests understand my food for what it is and really make them say, Man, even if they're not able to describe it, this is not important. But if I was able to touch a little bit and and make you think and say, I never thought about this combination, but man, this worked, man. This was good, man. This is exactly how I felt when I went to Thanksgiving and my mother made uh the turkey, and it was so crispy and and good. But I felt the same thing, and this is incredible. If if you can make this, I think this is the artists, the musicians, everything that I that I value. And this is the way I understand art. When you're sitting in front of a painting and it can move you, and it can move everybody there, which is the great works, no?
SPEAKER_01This is this is incredible. One thing that happened when I came to eat here is that um I was upset that I was finishing. You know what I mean? Like when you don't want a book at the end, I I was having that feeling, but I even had the feeling like within the plate, like I would have a bite, and then I would want to have a drink of wine or something. Yeah, but I was kind of thinking that I I I'm not ready for the taste to be over in my mouth, so I didn't, so I wouldn't drink. And every time I would drink, I would get ready for that taste again because the tastes were so layered and stuff, and it was so different. I would and I would have a bite and it was papaya and pepper and sea urchin, and I'm like, dog, what what are we even doing? And and it's cool because like I'm usually kind of a picky eater, I have been most of my life, but it's nice to come to a place and just say, Hey, whatever you're gonna put in my mouth, whatever you're gonna serve, I'm gonna have it and just and just kind of just have whatever real I'm like not going in thinking, oh, this is gonna be incredible, though I knew that it would. Just I'm gonna have no expectations as a favor to my friend who cooked it. Like I just want it to be a blank slate.
SPEAKER_00This is the effort you're doing that. I think you should do with music as well, because you're you're really you're really making an effort. You see, and and I think, don't you find it sometimes hard to enjoy that it's better the way there than when you actually get there? No, that it's it's the irony of life, no? I think it happens like you're waiting for your first kiss, but then the kiss suck because you don't know what you're doing. It's like it was okay, but I mean it was much better yesterday when I was oh my god, saying, Oh, how nervous I am, and then you're there, it's like, okay, now what? No, and I think it happens in life as well, you know. It's like ah when we're gonna live together, and then you're there, you're like, it's great, but kind of don't have my own space. Yeah, exactly. And when you're in a great restaurant, I mean it happens to me as well, and you're there and you're saying, Man, I have four hours and and I really need to make the most of it. You're just too stressed about enjoying it so you don't enjoy it. Ah, and it happens to all of us, and I think uh we need to make an effort to really make an effort to enjoy the little moments when we were there. Right now, I remember this trip we made with Roger, you know, and then when we were there was horrible, man. Horrible.
SPEAKER_01Oh my god, we did we did like a four-hour trek with our bags, we slept in the worst condition. I should have prepared it was horrible. Yeah, but I thought it was so funny because you're not that outdoor guy. I remember when we met up, we were all there. You you practically had your tags on like your sleeping bag on everything. You're like, I just spent 200 bucks at this store to get ready for this. I have no idea what it is. Yo, I could talk to you all day, but let me let me let me finish with this. Of course. Um, your journey to where you are now, I think is really interesting because you you had a corporate job, and then it's like one day you decided to just kind of say, uh-uh, this isn't it, and really chase the whole thing with food and cooking and everything. Can you take me to that day?
SPEAKER_00Yeah. Um I had a corporate job, but this was uh I I was I'm a chef since I was born. So uh I really enjoyed food and cooking and everything, no? And I think I remember used to do barbecues when we were in high school. Yeah. And my my father sort of helped me into the corporate world because he said, This is a true job, no. I think it's a stability is good, of course. He was he was convinced, no? And uh and one day, man, I'll remember always I used to work at a very big uh company, and I had on a gray suit, okay? And I was there with my with my ex-girlfriend, and we were already planning. Um I was already planning a wedding, uh saying I want when I'm gonna ask ask her to marry me without really wanting to. And I was aware of this, eh? Oh wow, which is much full like pressure of like I don't want this, but I'm sure I'm sure I'm I'll want I'll be happy, no? Which which I think happens to many couples. I think.
SPEAKER_01Happens to people in life in general, I think.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, I had a gray car, which is which is an i it's incredible, right? I had a gray car, gray suit on, every day was more or less the same, same timetable, and I I had a house, and everything it's like I'm leaving I'm living uh a 50-year-old life because I want to and I I put myself in that position. I was le I I I wasn't having fun. Uh was the same old routine. I said, I I do not want this. I know it. I know it, man. You know, like I have to wake up. And this sounds like a movie, but thank God my family was there because I went to tell them I was very scared. And I told my father, listen, after these years that I've been able to maintain myself, you're gonna have to help me out again economically, because I want to go study cooking. And I went to him, you know, with all the speech ready. It's like, oh my god, what the hell? And I told him, he said, Okay, fine. Oh, go for it. And I was already with my, you know, getting ready for the that's beautiful. Yeah, and my mother as well, it's like go do it. Yeah, that makes sense. Yeah, you're took you long enough. Yeah, you've done it. You've you've showed me.
SPEAKER_01So now it's time to so there was an element of you allowing yourself to admit to yourself that that's what you wanted.
SPEAKER_00Exactly. And I was able to do it, and I left. I cannot explain to you when I when I left for Paris, and I arrived and and I was there in my house, and I was there. I was like, man, this can I describe this feeling? It was incredible, man. It was incredible.
SPEAKER_01Okay, last thing. You worked at a three-star Michelin restaurant for several years. Um, you told me a few horror stories of things that have happened. Could you just share one or two? And has anything similar or um anything drastic happened here at Bubble?
SPEAKER_00Can I just tell you a in for all the young people that want to become chefs? Super important. Be patient. Patience is the key. Okay. Um, and as well, I was the only thing I was I've worked in several three mission stars, and uh the importance of it, I didn't choose them to be able to then say uh look where I've worked, you know, which helps as well. I chose it because of the sacrifice this the level of sacrifice and of you you need to be like ready for what you're doing, um, is incredible. And I think for life, this is very important because most often than not, life doesn't go the way you want to. It's this is life, no, and you need to be able, first of all, to adapt, and second of all, to to sacrifice other things, no? And I have many stories and restaurants. One of the stories is uh once a week I I would have to clean the kitchen um with uh with a pressure, water pressure gun. Um, but the thing was that that made a huge mess, and we all came in at eight in the morning. So we need to do it, we needed to do it four hours before everybody came in. So this was for for three months, this was my responsibility. So I used to come in at four in the morning, leaving the night before at two in the morning, more or less. Not sleeping. Exactly. I have another very interesting fast story, and I cleaned the kitchen, and well, I had it took me two hours to clean it, then I had a breakfast, and I came in from eight to two in the morning again. This is one of the stories. Second story, in another restaurant, I was in charge of the flour um section of the meat section. Meat section.
SPEAKER_01Flour section of the meat section. So the specific flower section to the meat Jesus, man.
SPEAKER_00We had 20 different flowers, and they were all What are you doing, dude? They were all look at 20 from the from the fields surrounding us. Are there even 20 different things you can make flour from? Yeah, of course. No, no, flowers as in as in flower the flores. Flores.
SPEAKER_01I mean, you meant like arena. I was like, Jesus, dude, you guys are going overboard.
SPEAKER_00There are 20 flowers, different types of flowers, but no, flowers, man. Rosemary flowers, thyme flowers, arugula flowers. I don't know. Any anything you think of, there's a flower. Because flowers make fruit. Right. And and there was once that all my rosemary flowers died. And the chef de cuisine that took care of me went and said, Hey, bro, you have a service of 200 people tomorrow and you don't have rosemary flowers. I said, Yeah, I noticed.
SPEAKER_01I'm aware.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, and and if this was one in the morning, and we were leaving home. He's like, Come with me, come with me, and we're going to the mountains, which was a half an hour away. I'm not, I'm not lying, yeah. Half an hour away, this was in Bilbao, and we went half an hour. This was two in the morning, 2 30. We got there. I don't know if you know that rosemary plants are full of spiders. If you didn't know, let me tell you. Now I know they're full of spiders. And we were there for three three hours picking rosemary flowers until 5-ish, 6 30-ish. And again, I was in the kitchen at 8. And I was making zero euros. This is this is the silver lining that's hard to speak. So, how how much no? I have a dream. How much do you want it? I have a dream. Okay, and this is every time somebody young speaks to me or said, I have my dream is being a chef. How much do you want to become a chef? How much? Because you need to know.
SPEAKER_01Do you want it picking rosemary from one to five in the morning? Bad.
SPEAKER_00This is this is something that you don't realize, but I think it's super important. And young people need to know that sacrifice is important. Good things don't just come.
SPEAKER_01Sacrifice, I've learned, is is for you. Yeah. And discipline is for you. It's not like a moquetines que cumplir because these are the rules. It's it's for you. Exactly. Dude, I could talk to you all day. Let's let's let's cut it now. Thank you so much. I don't even want to edit this episode, so we'll have to do a part two one day because I think I covered like a third of the question that I had for you. No, no, this was great, dude. I appreciate it, guys. Um thank you. If you want to try Pabu, just come here. It's it's here in Madrid. Sorry, last thing, it just it just occurred to me. I think a lot of people think like, oh, I'm not gonna spend 150 euros on a menu or whatever. And then I think that's how much money you're spending on the ticket for one day at a festival to go get drunk, and maybe you spend more. And if you come to a restaurant and take four hours out of your day and spend your hard-earned money, it's totally an experience that is completely different and enriching and valid, and you're gonna think about it so much more than you think. And then seeing artists do their thing is gonna inspire you to do your thing.
SPEAKER_00Yeah. Can I tell you this is our fault? And we were talking about this before. I don't know if on the podcast or out of it. It's our fault. The chefs need to people spend 150 euros at a festival because you enjoy it a lot. And and people don't spend it at a restaurant, or the majority, the vast majority uh of them don't, because they don't think they're gonna be able to enjoy it because yeah, it's gonna be super uptight. Um, it's what we were speaking about, and it's our fault. We need to tell them come here and I'm gonna show you a good time. But what are you gonna no no a good time, and you're gonna learn and you're gonna enjoy, you're gonna be able to share it. And I think is it expensive or not? This is for everybody else to judge.
SPEAKER_01Um, did you know what I love about you? That I was gonna be late um to the restaurant the other day, and and I was gonna be like 45 minutes late. So I went on on Google, I looked for for Pabu, and I and I clicked on the number. I was like, I'm gonna call them and and let them know that I'm gonna be late. And it rang like half of a time, and you answered. Yeah. And I I was completely taken aback, and I remember saying to you, like, what are you doing answering the phone on Google to your restaurant, to your Michelin star restaurant? I think it's part of the of the I think that I think that says a lot about how you how you run things together.
SPEAKER_00They were telling me I had in in culinary school uh the whole the people that give the maximum rank to hotels in France, which are palace, on top of five stars and six stars, there's palace. And and they're saying we really measure how long you take to pick to pick up the phone. So this is something that I realized, and it said you have to act like you like you're the no dress for success. No, I dress for success. I dress my restaurant as a three-mission star. Say, okay, how fast can I pick up? No, they got me punk, and I have you on. And the I pick up because I have the answer. Because since I'm the owner and the chef, it's very easy for me. So can you adapt? Of course. He was like, Yes. Can I come? Of course. 45 minutes in, no problem. Everybody says, I'm super late. I'm not.
SPEAKER_01Bro, it's because I was so stressed and and I felt so taken care of because I was like, oh man, it was que la niñera tal the sitter, and you're like, hey, I don't care. Yeah, come in. And it rang literally, it rang half a time, and you went, Dane, what's up? What do you need? And I was like, uh uh But the experience made me feel so it made me feel taken care of, and the experience starts there when I'm calling you to that's awesome, dude. And I think it's important. Thanks for sitting down with me. Thanks so much. I appreciate it.
SPEAKER_00Thank you, man.