From The Straits Times    |

If you are a food groupie, the last two weeks of the World Gourmet Summit must have been a whirlwind of a gastronomical delight. There were just so many activities packed into every single day: tastings of wondrous wines, dinners prepared by celebrity chefs and culinary masterclasses held by Michelin-starred chefs.

But the biggest news this year is the guest appearance of El Bulli’s Ferran Adria, the world’s leading arbiter of molecular gastronomy. This is Ferran’s first official appearance as a professional chef.

There were also frenzy and fear when the volcanic ash nearly dashed all hopes of the magician chef being able to fly out of Europe to grace the WGS event. 

But thankfully, he made it. And nope, he did not cook, or even go near a single grain of salt or step half-a-toe in any kitchen. The mission of this big man is actually as a guest presenter of a film documentary of his El Bulli restaurant, A Day In El Bulli and also to talk about his plans for the cutting edge restaurant, which he will close in 2012 in order to garner fresher ideas for its re-opening (not as a restaurant, but as a foundation and a think-tank of new culinary ideas) in 2014. He was also in Asia as appointed ambassador of Spanish cuisine by the Spanish Tourism Board.

I attended two of his three official public appearances at WGS. Both times, Ferran was surprisingly personable and amiable for someone of his stature.

And yes, blame it on the fact that Ferran has scarcely been in Asia long enough to note its depth, for he also made a few cultural gaffes here and there.

For instance, during a question-and-answer session with the audience, a lady asked him where he would like to be during his two-year hiatus to get creative ideas for his think-tank. Noting her dark olive skin, distinct East Asian accent and her saris, he immediately said: "India, because I’ve never been there and  …"

He was abruptly cut off when the lady grabbed the microphone once more to say: "I’m actually from Pakistan" to whoops of stifled laughter and applause from the audience. Ferran, immediately apologised and also laughed it off in good humour.

He later admitted that even he himself cannot know everything, and with regards to all the tastes and foods in the world, he said he still has alot to learn.

"I would need 100 lives to experience everything," he said.