stagiaire

“I remember when we were doing lunch and dinner,” says former stagiaire Roberto Gónzalez.

The Sorcerer’s Apprentices Lisa Abend 2011

Oriol and Eduard were also relaxed, even managing to smile at each other even when a stagiaire did a particularly stupid thing.

The Sorcerer’s Apprentices Lisa Abend 2011

“Humility,” Oriol Castro answers when asked what makes a good stagiaire, and it takes only a glance at the center table to see what he means: you have to be willing to be a cog in the machine and take your lessons where they come.

The Sorcerer’s Apprentices Lisa Abend 2011

At one point Eugeni physically pushes Sergi out of the way because the stagiaire is taking up too much space gawking as nine of his companions try to plate.

The Sorcerer’s Apprentices Lisa Abend 2011

And they neatly overlap because a stagiaire, on his first full day of work at elBulli, placed them there.

The Sorcerer’s Apprentices Lisa Abend 2011

They have been taught to move around the plates in an orderly, clockwise fashion, carefully putting “their” element on the dish before stepping aside to allow the next stagiaire through with the following item.

The Sorcerer’s Apprentices Lisa Abend 2011

For the rest of the season, each stagiaire will be required to sit in the same seat during family meal.

The Sorcerer’s Apprentices Lisa Abend 2011

There are two chefs named Antonio as well as a stagiaire, though neither goes precisely by that name—one calls himself Anthony, the other Toni.

The Sorcerer’s Apprentices Lisa Abend 2011

Every single one of the permanent staff, Marc tells the group, started as a stagiaire.

The Sorcerer’s Apprentices Lisa Abend 2011

In a kitchen that is always humming with purposeful movement, these moments of action seem nearly frenetic, as each stagiaire rushes to do the task she has been assigned and the chorus of quemos reaches a fever pitch.

The Sorcerer’s Apprentices Lisa Abend 2011