Under 35 years old, this new batch of chefs and owners is already transforming the gastronomic landscape. They are not limited to technique and product, but also bring key issues such as work-life balance and diner responsibility to the table. They don't want toxic kitchens or rigid structures: they seek innovation, creativity, and a business model that is not only profitable but also humane.
How do young people who will lead gastronomy in the next decade see the sector? What would they change if they had absolute power? And what are they already transforming from their own restaurants? We speak with some of the names that are helping to define current cuisine in Barcelona.
Fewer Google comments, more empathy at the table
More and more young restaurateurs are calling for a rethinking of the customer's role. "That idea of the customer is always right no longer works, not everything goes," points out Vicky Maccarone, front-of-house manager and co-owner with Jaume Marambio of Alapar (Lleida, 5). "Diners must respect our work, our hours, and understand everything that maintaining a restaurant entails."
An opinion also shared by Marc Pérez, chef and owner with Tania Doblas of La Sosenga (Amargós, 1), who argues that the customer should "think about the effort involved in opening the doors every day, finding the right balance between quality and price, and guaranteeing decent working conditions in a very hard-hit sector." He adds: "There's too much effort behind it all for us to just be a number on Google or TripAdvisor in the end."
For his part, Jordi Tarré, chef and owner of Prodigi (Girona, 145), who has just won his first Michelin star, emphasizes that it is the customers who determine a venue's possibilities to improve its conditions: "The customer must understand that, when they have a beer at a place, they are not only paying for the drink, but also for the facilities, the tableware, and the service... And they must value the person serving them, who, like them in their job, deserves decent conditions."
Cook well, live better
No one doubts that work-life balance is one of the great challenges of current and future restoration. Marta Minoves, awarded as Best Young Chef of Europe 2024 at the European Young Chef Award, considers it essential to improve it "so that workers can have more time for their personal lives." In addition, she advocates for a model "in which restaurants work directly with local producers, avoiding intermediaries, to strengthen the local economy."
Along the same lines, Martina Puigvert Puigdevall, chef at Les Cols and with some of her own dishes on the menu at The Barcelona Edition (Av. de Francesc Cambó, 14), argues that more value should be given to producers. "Chefs have the responsibility to highlight these people and the work they do," she states. Furthermore, she points out the importance of considering the team as part of the family and fostering more horizontal communications, "where listening prevails and shared creativity is promoted, making everyone feel part of the project."
Returning to work-life balance, some chefs, like Víctor Ródenas, from Maleducat (Manso, 54), propose solutions to improve it, again with the client as a key piece.
"If I could, I would change the times we go out to eat or dine, adopting a more Anglo-Saxon model and moving meal times forward," Ródenas defends: "This would allow for a reduction in the working day and an improvement in the living conditions of workers."
May bureaucracy not extinguish the stoves
Opening and maintaining a restaurant is not just a matter of good cooking, but also of navigating a labyrinth of procedures and permits that hinder entrepreneurship. Julià Castelló, from Insolent (Plaça del Sol, 23), points out that "aid should be established for both hospitality and entrepreneurs. If we found a formula that benefited everyone, the performance of workers would be much higher and more people would want to work in this beautiful profession."
Mauro Darder, from Tramendu Braseria (Parcerisa, 11), also highlights the importance of supporting small businesses: "I would like there to be more quality establishments, with qualified people and a passion for doing things well. But for that to happen, more support for small business owners is needed. Right now, few people dare to open a business."
For his part, Michael Pérez, from El Forat (Salamanca, 23), advocates for "more radical approaches, more unique offers and more personal projects," as well as for "less design, less repetition and less business." Furthermore, he points out that there are many repetitive and common establishments, but few with a truly conscious direction. "It's tough, but I think there's merit in the unrepeatable," he adds.
A kind future, if we work for it
Looking ahead, there are two possible visions: the one that recalls a chapter of Black Mirror and the one that sees hope if things are done well. In this second group are Lena María Grané and Ricky Smith, from Baló (Déu i Mata, 141), who believe that establishments will become more community-oriented spaces, "becoming meeting points where people can gather and share meals." In addition, they predict an evolution in kitchen equipment and technology, "with an increase in smart kitchens and the adoption of more efficient equipment."
For his part, Octavi Torres, from Péndulo Beach Club (Ribera de Sant Pere, 1, Castelldefels), sees artificial intelligence as a tool for change: "I believe that AI will play a big role in the dining room, in waiter training, in cost optimization, in recipes and in purchasing management. It will reduce the margin of error and benefit the business." In addition, he expects a change in cooking schools, which in many cases focus on haute cuisine and Michelin stars. "There is much more to restoration and other formulas," he points out.
Along these lines, Marc Pérez (La Sosenga) also believes that "we come from a boom in which being a chef was like being a great rock star, and that needs to be normalized and relativized, understanding that cooking is a trade that we must take care of and make last." And he formulates a wish for the next decade: "I hope we have realized that small and medium-sized businesses must be the basic gear of our society."
Gastronomic dystopias
At the other extreme, Julià Castelló (Insolent) foresees that the hospitality industry could "strongly enter the fifth range, already present in many restaurants, where you only have to heat to serve the customer." He also imagines smaller teams due to the lack of labor and restaurants with a lower level of fresh product and manipulation. Jordi Tarré (Prodigi) admits that the evolution of the economy and, especially, of the average interprofessional salary, can greatly change the panorama of restoration. However, he believes that the business model that currently triumphs in Barcelona, the gastroinformal, will end up disappearing.
Vicky Maccarone (Alapar) highlights a more sustainable and technological restoration, with local products, but with less traditional cuisine. "The increasingly demanding regulations, which suffocate small entrepreneurs, could force restaurants to be smaller, with less staff or almost none, where the owners do everything. They will be self-employment businesses." Víctor Ródenas (Maleducat) also foresees a diversification between "small restaurants, run by a single person or a couple, and larger, more professionalized groups, against which it will be difficult to compete."
Similarly, Michael Pérez (El Forat) points out that the city center could become even more crowded with franchises and large groups, making it difficult to open independent restaurants. In addition, he adds a key economic factor: "Speculation and the difficulty of paying transfers will hinder the personal ventures I would like to see." However, he also believes that independent gastronomy could develop within the center itself, as is the case with projects such as Otra Cosa, Lanto or L'Home dels Nassos.
Although we cannot predict the future, what does seem clear is that this new generation will fight against gastronomic dystopias in search of a fairer, more personal, and soulful model.