Mar Soler and Alberto Alonso, chefs and owners of the Ruzafa establishment, welcomed a dozen farmers, artisans and traders with whom they work on a daily basis to their home. During the dinner, the attendees enjoyed a unique menu, based on ingredients they had prepared themselves.   They also received the recently published ‘Producers’ Book’, where all their stories appear. The event included a group discussion, moderated by Marta Pascual (À Punt) and Ana Climent (Ca Climent), about the current agri-food sector, the sustainability of the trades and the need to preserve ‘the hope’.

“The aim of this dinner is to highlight the value of your daily work, because without it, none of this would be possible”, were the words with which Alberto Alonso and Mar Soler, chefs and owners of ‘2 Estaciones’, kicked off a unique and unusual evening in restaurants. This week, the diners at the Ruzafa establishment were not the usual diners, but the people whose daily work makes the house menus possible. It was a tribute to a dozen farmers, artisans and traders with whom Mar and Alberto work on a daily basis, in order to highlight “their essential work”, but also to help ‘maintain the hope’, so necessary in these trades. All of this, surrounded by a group discussion, moderated by the journalists Marta Pascual (À Punt) and Ana Climent (Ca Climent), in relation to the situation of the agri-food sector and the progressive loss of trades.

‘2 Estaciones’ is a unique project, which is committed to seasonal, zero-kilometre cuisine, a philosophy which in its day earned it the Big Gourmand distinction from the Michelin Guide. “We have in common with you the artisan and small character, we do things from the heart”, Mar Soler began the discussion. But as words are one thing and deeds are quite another, Alberto and Mar wanted to show that they truly care for and value those people who accompany them along the way and feed their cupboard season after season. For all of them they wanted to serve a tribute as they know best: behind closed doors, with a long table in the centre of the restaurant and with dishes made from the ingredients that their guests produce. From fruit, vegetables, oil, fish, meat, sprouts, pickles, wine and vermouth, to the pottery itself on the plates. Everything is arranged to give them back a small part of what they do every day. Because without their work, the gastronomy we know would not exist.

As Marta Pascual pointed out while moderating the colloquium: “We often see how the spotlight is on the chefs, but not on the producers and suppliers”. However, we are talking about trades that have been sustaining the kitchen for thousands of years and that, in most cases, as in the case of the Domènech family, are passed down from generation to generation. All the jobs are adapted to the new times, but at the same time, they honour tradition and rituals, such as giving names and surnames to the people they work with, taking an interest in their state of mind or showing the goods before buying. “We think it is also important that, from time to time, we look at each other’s faces and listen to our own stories, especially in this day and age, where everything happens through a screen”, commented Ana Climent.

Report by ‘24/7 Valencia team’

Article copyright ‘24/7 Valencia’

‘DOS ESTACIONES’