The Ejido chef of the La Costa restaurant, José Álvarez, delighted the more than 500 guests of the Spanish Embassy in London with his cuisine this Wednesday on the occasion of Hispanic Heritage Day, one of the most important dates on the calendar of the Spanish house in the British capital. Among the participants in the event, José Álvarez had the opportunity to offer his aperitifs to other ambassadors from different countries in London, as well as numerous Spaniards residing in the capital and other institutional representatives, during the cocktail that was held between the main rooms of the house of Spain and the gardens.
José Álvarez first of all wanted to thank Extenda for the trust placed in the La Costa team for the realization of this event and, in particular, the ambassador, José Pascual Marco, for the warm welcome at his home and the head chef of the Embassy, José Luis Iglesias, who took care of part of the menu and provided essential support for the meal to be a success.
The reception began with the service of drinks, ham and two of the appetizers prepared by José Álvarez. On the one hand, the participants were offered an almadraba bluefin tuna toast with payoyo cheese, truffle and basil caviar, an appetizer that was very popular among the participants. At the same time, José Álvarez served his live sardine in apple cider vinegar with white garlic and basil granita, two recipes that were a clear nod to the cuisines of Cadiz and Malaga.
José Álvarez, accompanied by the head chef de La Costa, Carlos Cervilla, the head chef of events, Carlos Álvarez, and the head of marketing and events, Africa Mateo, received praise from the ambassador at the beginning of the speeches garnering much praise when they bring out one of their favorite dishes: pota soup, fogueao squid, onion cream, dried and fragrant figs, which is one of the highlights of the current tasting menu served at La Costa.
Also very popular is the appetizer with which the chef of Ejido wanted to wink at British customs, showing a classic of Spanish cuisine: a deconstructed version of the potato omelette, composed of egg yolk, potato foam and bacon.
Finally, José Álvarez put the finishing touches on the menu with the Iberian acorn-fed pork in black crust, a dish that the chef de La Costa serves at his events and which is also found on the menu of his other more informal concept, ‘Barra by José Alvarez.
Finally, the chef from Ejido also wanted to thank the rest of the La Costa team, made up of almost 40 people, “the daily effort to pursue maximum excellence, which is what puts us on the map to look for us for these very special events” .
