Chef
Paolo Casagrande
Head Chef, Lasarte
- Discipline
- Chef
- Based in
- Barcelona, Spain
- Venue
- Lasarte · Restaurant
Known for
- Head Chef at three-Michelin-starred Lasarte in Barcelona
- Combining Martín Berasategui’s classics with innovative dishes using seasonal Mediterranean products
- Overseeing Monument Hotel's gastronomic project including Lasarte and Oria
i. Biography
Between Catalonia, the Basque Country, and Italy, the cooking associated with Paolo Casagrande works from geography without turning it into a postcard. Mediterranean brightness, the colder register of the Cantabrian sea, and an Italian sense of balance are treated as working references: salinity, acidity, depth, and restraint, with product clarity kept ahead of finish. At Restaurante Lasarte in Barcelona, Spain, that language is product-driven and controlled. The plate work moves through contrast — richness and acidity, softness and crispness, sea and land — with technique used to sharpen flavour rather than cover it. In Casagrande’s cooking, fine dining is a matter of intervention: knowing what to refine, what to leave direct, and how to hold memory, origin, and discipline in the same frame.
The Path
Formal hospitality training at Alfredo Beltrame Hospitality School gave Paolo Casagrande the foundation before professional kitchens supplied the working grammar. Apprenticeship at Local restaurants meant the basic formation of a cook: heat, repetition, timing, mise en place, and the service rhythm that comes before titles. A move in 2003 to Restaurante Martín Berasategui in Lasarte-Oria, Spain, placed the work inside a highly exacting fine-dining environment. For Casagrande, the team role deepened exposure to technical precision and the discipline required in kitchens where consistency is not negotiable. The next stage was Tenerife, Spain, where he served as lead chef at M.B. At the Ritz-Carlton Abama from 2005–2012. The Tenerife, Spain years added island context and leadership pressure to the craft: produce, oceanic freshness, and the responsibility of running an ambitious kitchen. By the time the work moved to Barcelona, Spain, the formation had passed through school, apprenticeship, demanding brigades, and a sustained lead chef role. Since 2012, the Head Chef role there has placed Paolo Casagrande inside a dining room where finesse has to carry feeling without losing structure. The cooking depends on clarity, elegance, and purpose, with technique serving flavour rather than display.
The Current Work
In his current kitchen, the cooking is shaped by Catalonia, the Basque Country, and Italy, and by the meeting of Mediterranean and Cantabrian references. These are not handled as separate labels. They work as layered currents: warmth and brightness from one coast, colder intensity from another, and an Italian instinct for balance within a contemporary fine-dining frame. The stated aim — "Fresh and elegant, respecting the products, and always looking to find interesting flavours that make a lasting impression" — sets the terms of the work. Freshness is treated as definition, not plainness. Elegance is control, not ornament. Product respect is the starting point for flavour that remains legible after technique has done its work. That product-led method appears in named works such as Milhojas de anguila, foie y manzana verde, shown by Lasarte as a dish in its gastronomic experience materials. The construction itself indicates the register: eel, foie, and green apple held through layers, richness, acidity, and structure. "At the same time, I always enjoy cooking with Mediterranean products." The line fits the broader kitchen vocabulary.
Signature
Signature dishes include Milhojas de anguila and Mochi de carabinero y kalamanci. The pair shows two modes in Paolo Casagrande’s repertoire: layered construction and compact precision, marine depth and bright lift, familiar references handled through technique without losing their core identity. Milhojas de anguila carries its structure in the name: strata, contrast, and control. Mochi de carabinero y kalamanci works in another register, bringing shellfish depth into contact with a vivid citrus note. In both dishes, the signature is restraint — flavour made clear through balance.
Credentials
Paolo Casagrande has received Michelin Guide — Three Michelin stars for Restaurante Lasarte (2017). Three Michelin stars for Restaurante Lasarte (2017) are part of the restaurant’s record and part of the evidence around Paolo Casagrande’s work there. The recognition points to consistency, refinement, and discipline: product-led cooking sharpened by technique and informed by Catalonia, the Basque Country, and Italy.
Profile updated July 2026
FAQ
Asked of Paolo
What is Paolo Casagrande's present role?
Paolo Casagrande is Head Chef at Restaurante Lasarte.
Where did Paolo Casagrande train or study?
Paolo Casagrande trained at Alfredo Beltrame Hospitality School.
What recognition has Paolo Casagrande received?
Three Michelin stars for Restaurante Lasarte (2017).
