Alejandro Serrano: the youngest chef to win the Michelin star with an ode to the sea in Miranda de Ebro

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In his high school years, Alejandro Serrano, 24 years old, was already clear that he wanted to continue with the family business that his parents had in Miranda de Ebro (35,528 inhabitants). "I was halfway done," he muses aloud. In the family restaurant he cut his teeth in the basics. "There I was very happy preparing the menus of the day". And there he realized that he could "

", he says, sitting in the dining room of his restaurant in the town of Burgos, which has just achieved its first Michelin star a year after it opened.

His desire to learn led him to great kitchens such as Azurmendi (Eneko Atxa), DiverXo (Dabiz Muñoz) and Coque (Mario Sandoval).

"With them I learned how to create experiences,

, how to have a perfect service... When you know this, you don't know how to work any other way".

It was always clear in his mind that the place to start his project was at home.

The kitchen of gastronomic Alejandro Serrano.

It's Wednesday and the cold doesn't let up outside.

The room team attends to the diners already seated, "

", Alejandro clarifies.

There are tables of friends, some work meetings and a couple of colleagues from the union who have gone to see his kitchen, the one that has put Miranda on the map.

Six years ago, the family bought the premises that have taken them to the Olympus of the kitchen.

In 2019, the journey of that first gastronomic sketch began.

"The pandemic forced us to close", but far from returning to the starting point, he decided

.

"In those months I launched a delivery that was changing with kitchens from different countries around the world."

He also launched with a brunch.

"Miranda's first" he says sarcastically.

In the midst of all this, he redefined what his restaurant was going to be when he reopened it, with the sea and the fish as the only protagonists.

It was 'The Sea of ​​Castile'.

"My father sometimes told me: son, you are in Miranda, you have to think about the clients in the area."

He was very clear about it.

"Now my father tells me: if you had listened to me, you wouldn't have the star."

Her creative inspiration was found in the trade routes that historically passed through the region.

"I want the local product to stand out, but not only.

, from various ports and markets," explains the chef.

Castilian ramen with pig trotters.

At the moment they have two tasting menus -before there were 3-:

is the longest. The feast is presented with some starters including an oyster flavored with rosemary, a crispy Delta rice with codium and caviar and some clams with beurre blanc sauce and air of thyme. The

dish in three passes

('Pradera Bloody Mary', the pass is called) is one of the best of this first part. The

is one of the most pleasant surprises on the menu, made with miso marinade with white asparagus juice; the garlic shrimp in ravioli captures memories of his childhood. "It was one of the first dishes I made with my grandmother." Aesthetics is a fundamental part of the bet. the

Castilian with pig's trotters, bean broth, black pudding from Burgos and anchovy cream, sea bass with creamy smoked leek and red tuna loin with Asian barbecue sauce complete the menu prepared by this team, because Alejandro takes the opportunity to put in value to its people.

Of the desserts, not to mention the sweet part, the Quiquirrulín morsels (burnt milk from the `Basque Country) deserve special mention.

Miso marinade with white asparagus juice

With a very personal style full of sensitivity and a well-executed staging by a team in which no one is over 30 years old, he recognizes that the Michelin star has placed them on the map.

"

".

Being in this league provides economic stability that usually takes longer to arrive.

"I still can't believe what we've achieved in a year."

I knew I was on the guide's radar;

he has proof that they were there at least a couple of times.

"One day we had a reservation for two and in the end only a man came who didn't seem to be from the area," he explains with a half smile.

He was also not very expressive when asked.

"We deduced that it was an inspector."

From there to the call to invite them to the gala in Valencia.

Taste and sensitivity are a fundamental part of the experience.

It does not lose detail of what happens in the room.

"I like to plate, take it out and explain it. It's a way of bringing the kitchen closer to the diner," he says.

Now he wants to mess with lighting "to create a sensory experience."

The head does not stop working.

-Where do you see yourself in five years?

-In the mountains, with another restaurant.

I would leave this place for a more informal concept.

Alejandro Serrano: Alfonso VI 49. Miranda de Ebro (Burgos).

Tel.: 947312687. It has two menus: El Mar de Castilla (70 euros) and El Bosque del Mar (90 euros).

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