The World's 50 Best Restaurants reveals today that the winner of the Icon Award is Andoni Luis Aduriz, chef of the Mugaritz restaurant in San Sebastián (Spain). The Icon Award is given to an individual who has made an outstanding contribution to the world of gastronomy, worthy of international recognition, and who has used its platform to raise awareness and drive positive change in the sector.
Aduriz has focused not only on culinary evolution, but on a creative, innovative and interdisciplinary approach to gastronomy. Aduriz began his career in a pizzeria and went on to work at the prestigious El Bulli before setting out on his own to open Mugaritz. The restaurant has been listed on The World's 50 Best Restaurants every year since 2005.
Aduriz has received the Icon Award this year for his tireless work in favor of a gastronomic industry committed to society and the environment. He, too, has been fearless in challenging age-old culinary customs, eschewing industry dogmas in favor of exploration and experimentation through food.
William Drew , Content Director of The World's 50 Best Restaurants, states: "For 25 years, Andoni has pushed the boundaries of creative gastronomy at Mugaritz, consistently presenting a menu that is sometimes dark, exciting and unexpected, but always exquisitely innovative. He is also one of the most influential and beloved chefs of the 21st century to date. It is an honor to name him this year's Icon Award winner."
Says Aduriz: "Being recognized with such a referential term as 'icon' overwhelms and surprises, but it does not hide the illusion of knowing that, deep down, what is being rewarded is a career, an effort to open new paths. I believe that this award is shared with all the people who dream that things can be different, who are in this sea of doubts, and who need references from people who have also ventured down a different path without being sure that they are going to turn out well. I am forever grateful, not only for myself and my team, but also for the message we are sending to the younger generations."
