Franki Almodovar, Head Chef of El Patio

1 Photo

by
on Friday, July 08, 2011 12:00 AM

There are lots of Spanish restaurants in Shanghai. What makes yours special?

This place is very authentic. The head positions are filled by people who are originally from Spain, like myself and the owner. Our collection is from Seville. I think every restaurant has different things and here we will make gastronomy food, not like typical tapas. In Spain we have a lot of restaurants with three Michelin stars, we have very good gastronomy.

What do you recommend from the menu, maestro?

There are many special things. For example, roasted lamb with smoked cheese and rosemary, and poached egg with black truffle and potato cream - special, very popular and famous dishes.

Have you always wanted to be a chef?

When I was 14 years old it was like a necessity because my family had a problem: they needed money. I started to cook because it was easy. One day, I liked it. I remember a chef said, "Oh, you are good in a kitchen", and that was the first time anyone said I was good at anything. Now I love it, it's my life. When a customer has enjoyed their dinner a lot and comes back, it's amazing.

Describe to us a typical day in the life of the head chef at El Patio.

I start work more or less at 9am, make some papers, mails, contact suppliers and get filled in. I start to cook around 11am or 12pm, and finish at midnight. It's around 14 to 15 hours a day. I like it, because it's not like a job. It's totally different, more like a hobby and my passion.

When you're not thinking flavors, what do you do to enjoy Shanghai?

I like sport and cycling, exploring the city, going to museums and seeing different areas. I try to taste different restaurants, new flavors like Chinese or Thai. I like a lot of different food. If I have two or three days off, I go to Hangzhou or some other place in China.