If you don't know Eneko Atxa, you'd never guess, given his demeanour, that the man is one of Spain's most celebrated chefs. He seems genuinely touched when he acknowledges the praise of his guests with a deep bow and folded hands - as if he felt that the recognition of his counterpart was the greatest honour he had ever received. And the 46-year-old really doesn't lack for prizes: Since 2012, his restaurant "Azurmendi" has been awarded three stars, and it has twice been voted the most sustainable on the "World's 50 Best Restaurants" list. And all the other restaurant guides were not stingy with trophies either. Whereby it almost resembles a distortion of competition to classify the "Azurmendi" as a mere eatery - culinary think tank would be much more accurate.

Completely new standards

"In the restaurant business, we rack our brains over what the perfect ingredients are for a dish. But we care far too little about the planet to which we owe all these treasures," Atxa explains in conversation. His guild in particular, he believes, has a particularly great duty to protect the environment.

We need to realise that our main source of inspiration, nature, is in danger of collapsing. And if we don't change anything, it will be too late.

With this conviction, the top chef combines gourmandise and ecology in a way that is unparalleled. His sustainability drive is evident in seemingly small contributions such as organising a centralised delivery system for his goods, thanks to which he reduces CO2 emissions by reducing the number of vehicles, and extends to research projects with NASA and Stanford University on the future of food.

Azurmendi" is located less than 20 minutes by car from Bilbao, on a hill just above the highway, practically in the middle of nowhere, in any case not in a place you would drive to by chance or where you would ever expect to find a three-star restaurant. The wood and metal that make up the building are almost entirely recycled. Thanks to solar panels, a geothermal heat pump and a rainwater harvesting system, the restaurant is virtually self-sufficient in energy. And those who arrive by e-car can charge it for free during their stay at the "Azurmendi".

The upper floor of the building is formed by a greenhouse with herb beds and a seed bank, where more than 400 rare varieties of vegetables are preserved. Even when you enter the futuristic building there is nothing to remind you of a conventional restaurant except for the reception counter. With its dense plant cover and trees reaching to the ceiling, the hall-like reception area has something of a tropical house about it.

Culinary theater

Whoever is a guest at the "Azurmendi" will become the participant of a menu choreography which rather resembles an art performance and from receiving the amuse-bouche through to the dessert takes a demanding four hours, during which one  experiences different chambers where each of the dishes is offered in a different setting - like the different scenes of an interactive play.

Accompanied by a glass of txakoli, the mild and slightly sparkling white wine typical of the Basque Country, one is served one of the celebrity chef's signature dishes in the foyer, a woven picnic basket containing the Basque national dish pintxos. From there, it's off to the kitchen, where the truffle egg, another Atxa evergreen, awaits at its own station. For this, boiling hot truffle stock is injected into a raw egg yolk; individualistic and intense in taste. We continue to the flower room, the last stop before then being led to the table. Here for example, there is a sweet with a liquid core of rose water, artfully arranged on a flower.

A Formula For Joy

Atxa has always wanted to be a chef. Raised as the scion of a renowned family of winemakers, he completed his training at the best addresses in the Basque Country. To this day respect for local traditions is a top priority for Atxa. In 2005, at the age of only 28, he opened his first restaurant on the family winery. In 2007 he received the first star. The second followed after three years, and the third came just two years later.

When he opened his second restaurant, "Eneko," in 2017, it received its first star that same year. He now runs another Michelin-starred restaurant in Lisbon, as well as locations in Tokyo, Seville and Madrid. Last year, "NKO" opened in the "Radisson Collection Hotel" in Bilbao, where he creates a culinary link between his native Basque cuisine and the culinary arts of Japan, which he has studied for many years, in an amazing way.

Atxa's sustainable concept also includes a modern working time model: "It is very important to me that my team comes to work relaxed, happy and motivated." Because only happy people are able to work at his level. That is why the "Azurmendi" has Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday open for lunch only, only Fridays and Saturdays additionally in the evening, but shortly after 10 p.m. is the end. Working hours that make Atxa's 70-person team arguably one of the most satisfied in the entire industry.

At "Azurmendi," by the way, guests are even given the sustainability message to take home with them. From the used fat they make fragrant bars of soap, which each guest receives. And the maestro says goodbye with the words, "Thank you for being part of our community."