Álvaro Garrido wins the Basque Country prize for best cook

This prize, awarded by the Basque government on the recommendation of the Basque Academy of Gastronomy, is for quality, excellence in cooking and the contribution made to Basque cuisine. This year the cook that met these requirements was Álvaro Garrido Ramírez, who runs the Mina restaurant together with Lara Martín. The Basque Country prizes also showcased the book “Comer con Hemingway” (“Eating with Hemingway”), awarding it the prize for Best Gastronomic Publication. Written by the journalist Javier Muñoz, it is a cultural-sightseeing-gastronomic tour of Navarra, the Basque Country, La Rioja, Aragón and the French Basque Country, guiding the visitor through Hemingway's photographic and literary legacy. People and associations from other spheres have also been chosen, like Trujal Mendia, winner of the “Jose María Busca Isusi” prize; the Villa Lucía wine centre; and the Cooking and Hospitality School in Gipuzkoa, which won the “Luis Irizar” prize for teaching. This time the “Extraordinario” prize went to El Diario Vasco.