What were your favorite foods growing up?
Fried eggs, French fries, boiled artichokes with Hollandaise

When did you decide you wanted to be a chef?
Age 15

Where and when did your career in food begin?
Spain in the 70's

If you didn't become a chef, what would you be?
A professional soccer player

Who/what has shaped your cooking the most over the years?
The wants and dining knowledge of the customer

What are your favorite culinary weapons in the kitchen?
Truffle mandoline and 10" chef's knife

What influences your cooking style and particularly your menu?
Mediterranean ingredients

What is your favorite secret ingredient?
I could tell you, but then I would have to kill you.

What is the one rule or value you try to instill in all of your staff?
Quality

If I'm trying to watch my weight and I'm eating at your restaurant, what am I ordering to eat?
We have a vegetarian menu ...

What was the most challenging meal you had to make? Why?
Napa Valley Wine Auction, cooking Paella for 1800 people

What was your worst restaurant disaster?
When I was younger, the restaurant I was working at flooded from a pipe that burst, at about 8 pm; we had to close.

What is your least favorite food?
Spicy, picante food, or foods with heavy garlic or onions

What is your beverage of choice?
1961 Chateau Petrus

What are some recent dining and culinary trends you have been observing?
People want more dining choices, from the amount of food served, time spent in the restaurant, and money concerns because of the economy.
A tapas restaurant meets all of these options/criteria for the diner.

When you are not eating at your own restaurant, you are eating at?
Home

Which foreign country inspires your style most?
Spain and France

What was the most spectacular meal you have ever had?
I have had several amazing experiences with many different cuisines all over the world; I couldn't single out one.

What is your best cooking tip for a home enthusiast?
If you are entertaining, do something that you are familiar and comfortable with from a cooking standpoint. If you are using a recipe from a book, let the final outcome of the dish be influenced by your own palate. Many home cooks get caught up in following recipes exactly and don't trust their own taste. When people dine out, they know what tastes good to them, they need to let that dining knowledge carry over to the home and trust in their own ability to taste and make things taste good.

What do you eat when you are home?
Healthy food: roasted chicken, salads, simple fish dishes
(I am a health enthusiast)