Pizarro
Twenty-five years ago Jose Pizarro arrived in London and brought his old home to his new home. He is credited with introduction real, authentic Spanish cuisine to the UK, recipes and ingredients as he had them in his Talavn village in Cacere, Extremadura in southwest Spain, near Seville.
The ‘godfather of Spanish cooking’ has since established 6 restaurants, and his original, Pizarro, on Bermondsey Street offers signature dishes such as croquetas and spicy prawn fritters, as well as timeless Spanish staples like cuttlefish a la plancha and Ox cheek rice. Here diners can also order the 100% Presa Iberica; a dish the British public did not eat until Jose convinced them of its unsurpassed delectation.
Pizarro Interior
Pizarro’s approach to restaurant culture is communal conviviality, and since 2011 he has welcomed London into his ‘restaurant-home,’ with animated anecdotes and bottomless food and drink. One such neighbour has been the artworld; the restaurant is next to White Cube Gallery, which meant the chef befriended, fed, and collected several of their artists through the years, even doing the catering for openings and even creating dishes inspired by the artists he met. As he says, art helped him “see the world in different ways. It’s like good food, it makes your stomach move.”
