WHO’S IN THE KITCHEN?
Chef Xosé Torres Cannas has helped put traditional Galician cuisine on the map with his bold, modern, go-big-or-dine-at-home approach. His emotional and artistic cuisine, developed with anthropologist Rafael Quintía Pereira, adds a dash of nostalgia to hyper-local ingredients — many grown on-site at the gloriously green grounds of Hotel Pepe Vieira.
WHAT’S COOKING?
A theatrical journey — quite literally — as you move through various spaces, from kitchen garden to dining room. This ‘gastronomic avant garde’ is a holy trinity of tasting menus dubbed Romasanta, the Lord of Andrade and the Holy Election. Over many courses, expect gatherings from the restaurant’s two vegetable gardens and farm, ancestral recipes and a taste of the sea.
RECIPE FOR SUCCESS
Cannas digs deep into the roots of Galician cuisine, and for his efforts has received the Mellor Award for promoting it, shared his expertise as a cookery teacher at the Galician Higher Hospitality Center, and created the chef collective Nove Group to further its influence.
After filtering this cuisine through his slightly surreal, sustainability-minded imagination, his approach has earned him two Michelin Stars and one Green Michelin Star. Cannas also appeared on National Geographic’s TV series Uncharted, schooling Gordon Ramsey in native eats.
You call Galician gastronomy ‘the farthest cuisine of the world’. Can you explain what that means?
‘The farthest cuisine of the world’ is how we’ve decided to baptise our way of cooking. Galician food is based on quality products and simplicity. It’s about maintaining the integrity of the ingredients above all else.
You globe-trotted your way through diverse culinary landscapes before returning to Galicia. How did these travels influence your cuisine?
My work is a synthesis of all my experiences: the books I read, the museums I visit…all of which is transmitted to the vision for my cuisine. Dinner at Pepe Vieira is a similar journey of discovery: guests start with appetisers in the vegetable garden, before mains in the dining room, with stops in the kitchen and wine cellar along the way.
Can you talk about the immersive aspect of the dining experience, and why that’s important to you?
I believe that the dining experience in my restaurant has to immerse you in our world. That’s why I think that above all it should be fun, which is why we work to ensure that the diner is always in a state of anticipation.
Is there a favourite dish of yours that you keep constant on the menu?
No, there isn’t, [but] our style is a constant. The dishes change, but we keep the body of the menu the same; always three tasting menus, including three seafood, fish or vegetable dishes, and up to three desserts, which vary according to season.
What’s your favourite season for ingredients?
Autumn, when hunting season starts and the mushrooms come out in the mountains, and it’s a good time for quality seafood.
With such a wealth of produce available in the Pepe Vieira gardens, which plant-based dishes do you have planned?
We always work with produce from our own garden. Our plant-based dishes contain the freshest, just-picked produce from our land. My favourite on the menu is the ‘Camiño da Serpe’s garden’, which has water infused with fermented tomatoes, wild leaves and flowers, beetroot, sage, and chervil and tarragon dressing.
Which one ingredient could you not live without?
Olive oil, which as you can imagine is used for practically everything.
Where’s your favourite food destination?
Hanoi, in Vietnam. I am passionate about street food.
You’ve achieved many accolades in your career. When did you feel like you’d really ‘made it’ in the industry?
I usually say that ‘everything is still to be done.’ The most important award has been our two Michelin stars; and the next challenge is to get the third star for my restaurant.
When you’re taking time off from cooking, where’s your favourite place to unwind in Hotel Pepe Vieira?
Resting on the terrace, watching the sunset.
What do you think makes the place feel so special?
The savage feel of nature here, and the sensation of being hidden away in the forest.
ANSWERS À LA MINUTE
You can hop to three different countries for breakfast, lunch and dinner – where are you going?
Spain for all three, but different regions. For breakfast, an incredibly charming place, La Duquesita in Madrid; for lunch, Elkano restaurant in Getaria in Basque Country; and for dinner, El Molino de Urdániz in Navarra.
How would you make plane food more exciting?
I would make it more of a picnic with my family; we love having them together.
What’s your favourite dish on the Pepe Vieira menu?
I could not decide on one, because all of them are uniquely created, and all have something in common: the love and passion we put into cooking them.
You’ve snuck some minis onto the plane – what cocktail are you making?
A margarita.
Room service – what are you ordering?
Juice, fresh fruit and good pastries.
Which dish instantly transports you home?
Caldo gallego, a typical Galician soup with turnips, beans, ham and sausage.
Which dish from your travels do you wish you’d created?
Anything from Vietnamese cuisine.
What’s your guilty-pleasure holiday treat?
Sleep.
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