Spilling the beans

With a finger in many pies, one of the best known faces in gastronomy is Juan Manuel Garmendia. He is the President of FECOGA (Federation of Gastronomic Guilds), an association that transcends borders, although he is also a member of other important culinary associations such as the prestigious Basque Academy of Gastronomy or more ethereal bodies such as the “Pintxo Institute”. Our protagonist considers himself to be a “militant Beasaindarra from the ’66 vintage, a happy child of the mid-60s”. Educated at the La Salle school in Beasain, he completed his studies at ESTE (DEUSTO business school in San Sebastian). From 1990 to 2004 he worked in the commercial department of AMPO, S.COOP and since then on the Board of Directors of Jaso.

Honorary Member of eleven gastronomic guilds which he coordinates, he is particularly “honoured” to have been involved in the branding of an Asturcón horse in the Sueves mountain range in Asturias, at the request of ACAS (Association for the conservation of the Asturcon horses of Sueve).

– Apart from computing and gastronomy, what are your hobbies?


I dedicate time and affection to preserving and improving the four languages I speak: Basque, Spanish, French and English.

As I am very gregarious in all aspects of my life, I love choral music and I sing in the Easo Veterans Choir and in the “Orfeón de la Castaña” of Gaztelubide (a gastronomic society).

– Your favourite place in Donostia? 

I have many places that I love, but I would highlight Urgull mountain: for its history, for its incredible views of Euskal Herria on both sides of the muga (border), of the coast; for having been the playground of many generations of Donostiarras (natives of Donostia), … It is very close to the centre, but in a few minutes it takes you away from the hustle and bustle of the city.

– And in Gipuzkoa? 

 As a good Beasaindarra (native of Beasain), I would choose Usurbe and its 703 metres (views of the Aralar and Aitzgorri mountain ranges and the villages of Goierri).

– And in the rest of the Basque Country? 

San Juan de Gaztelugatxe, because of the abruptness of this part of the Biscayan coast.

– And in the rest of the world? 

The Colorado Canyon, an ideal place to enjoy the grandeur of nature, the fruit of the constant work of the Colorado River and our “insignificance” as human beings.

– What has been your best trip? 

I would say two. A three-week trip I did with my parents in 2002, touring Canada from coast to coast. The second, the one my partner and I did, between December 2017 and January 2018, to Australia and New Zealand.

– And the trip you still have to do?

Fortunately there are many more to do and we are still young (although not that young anymore). A river cruise on the Rhine or a sea cruise in the Norwegian fjords, Peru, southern Italy, …

– What do you value most in a person?


The perfect combination of sincerity, proximity and generosity.

– And what do you hate?


The ability of some lazy people to appropriate other people’s work and sell/show it as their own.

– Where have you had your best gastronomic experience?


I’ll mention two experiences that are at polar opposites of each other; the first, a trip with the International Academy of Gastronomy to Baiersbroon, a town in the German Black Forest with 15,826 inhabitants, full of 3, 2 and one Michelin star restaurants, and the second, a visit with lunch, accompanying the Idiazabal Cheese Guild of Ordizia, to the “borda” (=hut) that Ricardo Remiro has in Urbasa.

– What is the product or gastronomic custom that you value most in the Basque Country?

I have enjoyed our cider since I was very young. Fortunately we can say that it has evolved a lot: in production, in formats, … For me, cider goes perfectly with almost all dishes, and it is also a good long drink.

As a custom, I value the social life of gastronomic societies and their relationship with their settings. 

– And the product or custom that has surprised you the most outside of here? 


Thanks to my friends from the “Cofradía Gastronómica del Cocido con pelotas” (The Gastronomic Guild of Stew with Balls), I was introduced to mojama, a salted fish made with tuna steaks  and also with the meat of different fish such as mullet, bonito, sardines, anchovies and other lesser-known fish such as ling or sea bass. Possibly one of the oldest specialities on the Iberian Peninsula.

– What is your favourite dish to eat?


As a starter, a Donostian-style fish soup; as a main course, hake in green sauce and for dessert, some cheese.

– And your favourite dish to prepare?

When I cook for friends, I love to prepare a garbure, following a recipe by Juan José Lapitz. It’s a dish from the southwest of France, not very well known in our country. As a good casserole for the gastronomic society , it is prepared before the guests arrive, so that the cook enjoys the meal with everyone. As the recipe includes vegetables and duck meat, it is ideal as a main course.

– Is there any dish or product that you are reluctant to eat or prepare?

I could say that I’ll try anything, although I have my own preferences. I eat everything that flies, except planes; and everything that has four legs, except tables and chairs.

As to cooking, I recognise my limitations in baking, as it requires precision in quantities, temperatures and times. Besides, as a foodie, I am more of a first and second course kind of person.

– Suggest two restaurants in Donostia and two in Gipuzkoa.

It’s hard to have to limit yourself to just two restaurants, with the very rich offer we have in Gipuzkoa. I would choose the Zuberoa of the Arbelaitz brothers, for its perfect balance between modernity and tradition. They have a service that makes you feel at home. And also the Landa from Mendaro. As for Donostia, I would highlight Sukaldean, Aratz… and many more.

– And two others in the Basque Country or in the rest of the world?

I loved the restaurant “Chez Kathy”. Located in Ciboure, half an hour from Donostia, its speciality is Ttoro (a hearty soup made with different fish from the coast of Labrador). Frankly speaking, it’s a great dish and justifies the trip. It is surprising that Ttoro is so unknown south of the Bidasoa.

I’d also mention Atelier Amaro by chef Wojciech Modest. I visited it in September 2015, during a trip with the Basque Academy of Gastronomy to Poland, at the invitation of the Polish Academy of Gastronomy. 

This restaurant, located in Warsaw, had one Michelin star at the time. It was the only one of the Slow Food movement in Poland that is located in the capital (this association had two restaurants in the country at the time).

If we arrived with high expectations, what we experienced at dinner was certainly unique for the richness of the menu we enjoyed (long, narrow and very diverse), surprising for the combination of flavours, entirely based on Polish products and recipes, but offered with an updated vision. A perfect modern Slow Food restaurant.

– A chef who has surprised you?

Martín Berasategui, in addition to the quality of his cuisine, I can confirm from a couple of events that my family has organised in his restaurant in Lasarte, that he has shown me with facts that he prioritises customer satisfaction over short-term profit. He is a man of his word.

– Goierritarra by birth… What should we not miss if we go from Tolosa downwards?

The monuments of Igartza, Aralar, Aitzgorri, the markets (Tolosa, Ordiza, Beasain, …), the old town of Segura, … a lot to see and many occasions to enjoy. 

– COVID-19… How have you experienced it?

With resignation, but always focused on doing everything that was possible to do at all times, looking to the future with hope.

From the Board of Directors of FECOGA, we suggested to our member guilds that they take advantage of this fallow time to grow internally, to “put the house in order”. During this time I have promoted the translation into French and Portuguese of the memories of Juan José Lapitz published in 2017 by Fernando Sánchez from Malaga, I have participated in the recipes that the SENC (Spanish Society of Community Nutrition) has published in the magazine commemorating its 25th anniversary, as well as in the re-publication in Hondarribia of the book by Petra Laborda (La Cocina Práctica, 1929). 

– And what consequences do you think it will have for gastronomy and the world in general?

I am not an expert in geopolitics or global economics, but I believe that the inflation we are currently suffering is the result of the excessive monetary liquidity that helped us overcome the worst of the pandemic and the shortage of raw materials (gas, oil, …) caused by the war in Ukraine. Difficult years lie ahead of us in which the United Nations Organisation (UN) will have to prove that its name is much more than just a name. 

– As president of FECOGA… Do you miss any guild in Gipuzkoa? Is there any product that is clearly an orphan without its guild?

The guilds are associations that bring together people from different sectors, with different educational and work profiles, who work to promote a specific product. We have good examples. 

I would like to see a Basque cider guild (cider is not only made in Gipuzkoa) and a Basque Txakolí guild (for the same reason). If any reader would like to promote one of these two projects or a similar one, the Board of FECOGA will always be at their disposal.

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