The Congress Technical committee is presenting the Asturian chef, José Andrés, with the 2020 Tribute Award “for his humanitarian work”. The owner and sommelier of the Rekondo restaurant (San Sebastián), Txomin Rekondo, will receive the Golden Gueridón, and Ignacio Medina, the “Pau Albornà i Torras”Gastronomic Journalism award.

Although the congress will revolve around more than forty virtual presentations with live cooking, San Sebastian Gastronomika – Euskadi Basque Country isn’t neglecting its programme of awards and competitions, all of which will be broadcast live, as will its exhibition space, which will be launched this year over the Internet.

The III San Miguel National Potato Salad Championship and the IX National Grill Competition will be held at the event, and their winners will be announced live during the congress. The presentation of three Gastronomika awards, which were decided on after the Technical Committee meeting in February this year will also take place. The Tribute Award will be crossing the Atlantic on this occasion but is going to be presented to someone who is also Spanish. The Asturian chef based in Washington, José Andrés, will receive the major Gastronomika award for his humanitarian work and his permanent commitment to solidarity, boosted this year by the fact that his organization (World Central Kitchen) has come to Spain to help in the fight against the Covid-19 crisis.

The Golden Gueridón, the congress wine and dining award, will go to the maestro Txomin Rekondo (85 years of age), who is still ready for whatever may come at his restaurant in San Sebastián (Rekondo), which is internationally recognised as one of the best wine cellars in the world, and the “Pau Albornà i Torras” gastronomic journalism award goes to the journalist, Ignacio Medina, “for his contribution to gastronomic journalism in Latin America in the last ten years”.

San Sebastian Gastronomika – Euskadi Basque Country will be rounded off by tasting sessions and gastronomic workshops where it will be possible to appreciate the enormous riches, variety of options and trends that Spanish cuisine offers, through its autonomous communities and food companies. These companies will also be present, together with others, in the virtual exhibition space this year, yet another of the important innovations at the congress.

The platform will have a digital area where companies and sponsors will be able to display their products and get in touch with visitors just as if they were in the same physical space. Thanks to digital stands and online communication, interaction and commercial networking are not going to disappear.

List of past San Sebastian Gastronomika award winners

Tribute award

2010 Karlos Arguiñano
2011 Luis Irizar
2012 Nouvelle Cuisine
2013 Francisco López Canís
2014 Pedro Arregui
2015 Basque Culinary Center
2016 Gastón Acurio
2017 Michel Bras
2018 Juan Mari Arzak
2019 Carme Ruscalleda
2020 José Andrés

Golden Gueridón

2009 Josep Monje
2010 Giorgio Pinchiorri
2011 Juli Soler
2012 Eusebio Arbelaitz
2013 Josep Roca
2014 Didier Fertilati
2015 Abel Valverde
2016 Gérard Basset
2017 Louis Villeneuve
2018 Lluís García & Lluís Biosca
2019 Denis Courtiade
2020 Txomin Rekondo

Gastronomic journalism “Pau Albornà i Torras”

2013 Óscar Caballero
2014 Pau Arenós
2015 Michel Ezquiaga
2016 Xavier Agulló
2017 Nick Lander
2018 Anthony Bourdain
2019 Cristina Jolonch
2020 Ignacio Medina