Eduard Xatruch from Disfrutar is Coming to Gastromasa 2026: How Creativity is Managed in Istanbul

A significant name from one of the most influential contemporary fine dining teams is being added to Istanbul's international gastronomy program in November.

According to Gastromasa's own announcement, Eduard Xatruch will participate in the 11th Gastromasa Istanbul International Gastronomy Conference & Fair, which will take place on November 26–27, 2026, at the Haliç Congress Center. This year's organization will be held under the theme "Culture & Interaction"; the program will include conferences, panels, stage presentations, workshops, and meetings of different gastronomy disciplines.

Xatruch's arrival in Istanbul should not be seen merely as an announcement of a high-profile international speaker.

Because the impact Disfrutar has created in the gastronomy world is related not just to a chef's creative identity but to a working system that shows how creativity can be organized within a team.

Disfrutar Became World Number One in 2024

Disfrutar in Barcelona is managed by Oriol Castro, Eduard Xatruch, and Mateu Casañas.

The three chefs worked together at ElBulli. After ElBulli closed in 2011, they opened Compartir in Cadaqués in 2012 and Disfrutar in Barcelona's Eixample district in December 2014. The restaurant's own corporate narrative also confirms that the three chefs met and trained professionally at ElBulli.

Disfrutar entered The World’s 50 Best Restaurants list in 2018 at 19th place; it became third in 2022, second in 2023, and was selected as the number one restaurant in the world on June 5, 2024.

Here, the date is important.

It is not correct to define Disfrutar as the "current number one of the World’s 50 Best" in 2026. According to the organization's rule, once a restaurant becomes first, it moves to the Best of the Best group and is not re-evaluated in the normal ranking in subsequent years. Disfrutar is also in this group as the 2024 champion.

Therefore, the correct definition is:

"Disfrutar, selected as The World’s Best Restaurant 2024."

Three Stars from Michelin Continues

Disfrutar's current Michelin status is also strong.

The current MICHELIN Guide listing for Barcelona awards the restaurant three Michelin stars and notes that the restaurant stands out with the creative approach of Castro, Xatruch, and Casañas. Michelin also particularly emphasizes the laboratory dedicated to developing new techniques in the kitchen and the two separate tasting menu approaches.

In the MICHELIN Guide Spain 2026 selection, Disfrutar continues to be among the three-starred restaurants.

Therefore, the main professional value of Xatruch's participation in Gastromasa does not come solely from his award history.

Disfrutar is one of the rare examples that has been able to transform high-level gastronomic creativity into a continuously producible business practice.

Creativity is Not About “Waiting for Inspiration”

In the fine dining narrative, creativity is often attributed to personal talent.

A chef comes up with a new idea, creates an extraordinary dish, and the restaurant develops around his signature.

In the Disfrutar model, however, the process is more systematic.

The restaurant's structure in Barcelona includes a separate creative workspace apart from daily service operations. It is stated on its own website that even the "Mesa Viva" experience is developed within the R&D kitchen in the restaurant's basement.

Michelin also emphasizes that new techniques and ideas continuously emerge from the restaurant, developed in the research area.

This approach raises an important question for chefs and restaurant operators in Istanbul:

Can creativity be transformed from being person-dependent to organizational competence?

Three Founders, Shared Leadership Instead of a Single “Celebrity Chef”

Another extraordinary aspect of Disfrutar is its leadership model.

The restaurant is not built on the name of a single chef.

Oriol Castro, Eduard Xatruch, and Mateu Casañas work together as the owners and managers of the restaurant. The World’s 50 Best also defines the restaurant as a joint project of the three chefs.

Considering that the celebrity chef model is strong in the gastronomy sector, this is an important counter-example.

When the shared leadership model is successful:

it can relieve the creative burden from a single person,

bring together different expertise,

enhance decision quality,

and reduce the brand's dependence on the continuous physical presence of a single person.

However, the same system is more challenging to manage.

For three strong creative characters to work together, the selection of ideas, sharing of responsibilities, and the final decision-making mechanism must also be clear.

Disfrutar's partnership of over ten years is a case study in this regard.

Why is the ElBulli Legacy Still Important?

The ElBulli background of Castro, Xatruch, and Casañas is a frequently repeated biographical detail in the gastronomy world.

However, the more important aspect from a business perspective is that all three were raised within the same research and creative methodology.

The World’s 50 Best states that all three chefs started working at ElBulli at a young age and stayed there until the restaurant's closure in 2011.

Thus, they brought not only technical recipes to Disfrutar but also a working culture:

experimentation,

documentation,

product research,

technical development,

idea elimination,

service applicability.

The last item is particularly important for the economic sustainability of creative gastronomy.

A technique that looks impressive in the laboratory cannot become a restaurant product if it cannot be applied flawlessly 30 times during service.

Why is He a Strong Speaker for Istanbul?

The Gastromasa 2026 program will take place on November 26–27 at the Haliç Congress Center, and the organization positions itself as an international platform that brings together gastronomy, tourism, and hospitality professionals. Ticketmaster registrations confirm the two-day event and the theme of "Culture & Interaction."

In this context, Xatruch is particularly noteworthy for three professional groups.

For chefs: systematizing idea generation.

For restaurant operators: balancing creative goals with daily operations.

For gastronomy students and young professionals: seeing that creative kitchens require not only a "signature dish" but also long-term work and technical training.

In this regard, reducing the speaker's value to just "coming from the world's best restaurant" diminishes the opportunity.

Disfrutar's Current Model is Also an Economic Business

In high gastronomy, the creative narrative can sometimes overshadow business reality.

On Disfrutar's current reservation page, both the Classic and Festival tasting menus are listed at 325 euros, with wine pairing at 180 euros.

A restaurant at this level carries;

a high employee density,

long preparation times,

R&D staff,

high-end products,

service duration,

and training costs.

Therefore, the sustainability of creative gastronomy is not only related to how innovative techniques are produced but also to how that technique is transformed into an experience that the customer is willing to pay for.

In terms of professional discussion at Gastromasa, one of the most instructive aspects of Xatruch's experience may lie precisely here.

The Value of International Events Should Not Be Measured by the Number of Speakers

In Turkey, gastronomy conferences are sometimes evaluated based on how many Michelin-starred or 50 Best chefs are brought in.

This is understandable in terms of visibility.

However, the real gain for the sector lies elsewhere.

An international speaker:

how openly do they convey their working methodology?

do they leave applicable techniques or management approaches for the participants?

is there contact established with local chefs?

is access provided for students and young professionals?

does the knowledge become permanent after the event?

When these questions are answered, the arrival of international names can shift from gastronomy PR to sectoral education investment.

Stafflink’s View

In our opinion, Eduard Xatruch's value in the Gastromasa 2026 program is broader than Disfrutar being selected as the number one restaurant in the world in 2024.

Disfrutar's strength lies in having established an organization where creativity is not coincidental.

The three founders manage the same project.

Separate space and time are allocated for research.

New techniques are tested within the reality of service.

And creative products only become part of the restaurant experience when they can be repeatedly applied by the operation.

Perhaps the most important lesson for the development of fine dining in Turkey is this:

To establish more creative restaurants, we need not only more creative chefs but also working systems that support creativity.

Xatruch's presence in Istanbul is a strong opportunity to discuss the practice behind this system with the right questions.