Mikel Población

The Climb

Escuela de Hostelería de Leioa gave Mikel Poblaci the sort of grounding that reads in the work later: discipline, repetition, and exactness. That kind of training leaves its mark in the kitchen through timing, balance, and attention to detail, where each decision is made with the next plate in mind.

Today

Sauces, combinations, and their relationship to the ingredients on the plate sit at the center of the work Poblaci describes today. That focus points to a kitchen built on precision, where the space between elements matters as much as the elements themselves. The plate is treated as a structured composition: sauces add direction, depth, and tension, while texture, contrast, and harmony are weighed carefully rather than quickly. The method is controlled, but it still leaves room for each component to register clearly.

Signature

Bokat, Anchovy lasagna in tomato sauce, and Signature Dish: lobster | cauliflower | avocado | vene cress map the range of Poblaci’s kitchen language. Bokat carries a compact, direct shape; Anchovy lasagna in tomato sauce suggests layered richness and savory depth; and Signature Dish: lobster | cauliflower | avocado | vene cress is built as a measured contrast of sweetness, earthiness, creaminess, and freshness. Together, the dishes show a cook interested not only in flavor, but in how flavor is organized, restrained, and sharpened.

In Their Words “Our value lies in the sauces. We know about sauces and the possible combinations that can go well with the ingredients.” That line reads as a working principle rather than a flourish. In this kitchen, sauces do the structural work: they lift ingredients, connect them, or bring them into sharper relief. The emphasis on combinations points to judgment as much as technique, with balance found through deciding what belongs together, what needs tempering, and where the plate can be tightened.