A buffet prepared by the chefs to get right to the heart of the matter
The tone is set immediately on Sunday afternoon. Even before the first conversations begin, the chefs put on their white coats and get to work. Each member brings 60 pieces of their own creation, inspired by a carefully chosen theme: Gaudí and Catalan Modernism. The result is remarkable: a table of honour that brings together, at a glance, the diversity of regions, techniques and sensibilities that constitute the richness of our association. Sweet and savoury bite-sized treats, confectionery, and personal interpretations of an artistic movement which has itself always crossed borders. Before the opening to the public, the guard of honour formed by the pastry chefs reveals the collective pride that such special moments generate.
Exchanges between colleagues: the heart of the seminar
Monday morning continues in a meeting room, focusing on the association’s latest news. This recurring moment in the life of Relais Desserts is also one of the most important. It is a time to discuss the trade, management, transfer of knowledge and trends. We compare, we ask questions, we draw inspiration. Following this, on Tuesday afternoon, is a series of small round-table discussions. This is an opportunity to go into more detail on the issues that are part of everyday life for these business leaders, who have become the pastry chefs of today.
The partners’ showroom, which is located at the Seasea Club, is a different type of experience: it presents the expertise and tools that, behind the scenes, contribute to the excellence of the establishments. This is the perfect place for new discoveries, interesting conversations, and sometimes new collaborations.
In the workshops of Oriol Balaguer and Eric Ortuno
Tuesday morning is definitely the highlight of the week for many. The members visit the shops and laboratories of their Spanish hosts. First step: Eric Ortuno’s workshop (L’Atelier), Carrer de Viladomat. The display case makes an immediate impression thanks to its precision and coherence: pearly velvety desserts, tartlets with bright red raspberries, croissant cornets filled with pistachio, caramel, chocolate or mascarpone. A know-how that blends traditional baking techniques with contemporary pastry-making with equal ease.
Second step: Oriol Balaguer’s pastry shop, Travessera de les Corts. There, accompanied by his team, the Barcelonian chocolatier welcomes his peers into his world. There are discussions around the marble worktops, exchanges about techniques, and observations. Often in these situations, the details are the most meaningful: a gesture, a tool, a way of working that nourishes everyone’s thinking once back home.
Barcelona as a source of inspiration
Between two work sessions, exploring the city is a real source of enrichment. The guided tour of the Sagrada Familia, in small groups, is truly memorable. Looking at Gaudí’s unfinished work, it is impossible not to think of pastry-making: that way of pushing materials to their limits, of bringing together the organic and the rigour, nature and geometry. It is a vocabulary that many in the group are familiar with.
The dinner on the terrace at the Miramar restaurant, overlooking the sea, under the lights of Barcelona, adds a different touch to these days. The tricolour collar of a Best Craftsman of France (MOF), the chef’s white toques that stand out in the ceremony hall, the arms around each other’s shoulders for the group photo with the palm trees in the background: all these images form the portrait of an association that, for many decades, has made quality a common language.
Memories of Barcelona
After Wednesday morning and the final breakfasts at the hotel, each member of the group leaves carrying suitcases that are a little heavier than before, filled with recipes discussed, contact information exchanged, and ideas scribbled in a notebook between two visits. Once again, the Meetings in Barcelona have been much more than just a professional seminar. A time when we remember, together, what unites these establishments located in different parts of the world: the passion for beauty, the love of fine food, and that rare pleasure of meeting people who understand, without having to explain everything.
Article et crédit photos @Anne Fashauer