The heat is on as Malaga chef competes in prestigious competition to find the 'best in Spain'

"It would be amazing" says Malaga-born chef Daniel García Peinado who has the national title of Chef of the Year within his grasp. He has reached the semi-finals of the competition and is competing alongside just five challengers from all over Spain in the next round.

In the heat which is taking place on 13 November in Alicante, he will be competing against Paula Gutiérrez (Víctor Gutiérrez, one Michelin star, Salamanca), Juanma Salgado (Dromo, Badajoz), Roger Julián (Simposio, San Antonio de Benagéber, Valencia), Borja Moncalvillo (Origen, Castro Urdiales, Cantabria) and Pedro Montolio (Dagma, Barcelona).

"For me it is one of the most powerful national competitions, similar to the Bocuse d'Or", Daniel says. He recently came third in the latter competition and this time he has to prepare six portions of a complete menu with a starter, main course and dessert. "It forces you to be an all-rounder because you have to prepare every last component of the dish", points out García Peinado, aware that winning the title or even qualifying for the final would have "a lot of repercussions, it's a showcase that helps a lot".

Known as the EVOO (extra virgin olive oil) chef, Daniel has become a benchmark in the research and dissemination of EVOO applied to haute cuisine and health. Trained at La Cónsula, he has been executive chef of Gourmet de la Roja and national delegate of the Spanish national professional cooking team. In addition to representing Spain in international competitions like Bocuse d'Or, he has given lectures at universities such as Harvard and Yale. He is the founder of the Gastrolive Lab and currently runs the Bien Frito restaurant in Fuengirola and the Brownie & Olive patisserie in the centre of Malaga, always with EVOO as the main ingredient.

Now he is facing this new challenge in Alicante in a competition organised by the Caterdata Group. The first competition took place in 2006 and was won by Jordi Cruz, who now has three Michelin stars at his restaurant Abac (Barcelona). Last year's competition was won by Toño Rodríguez, from La Era de Los Nogales (Sardas, Huesca), who obtained his first Michelin star at the gala held last year in Murcia.

In addition to the chefs, this competition also runs Waiter of the Year. Since 2012, it has been held with the aim of highlighting the work of waiters. In each semi-final, six participants take part in a circuit of waiter tests to demonstrate their skills and showcase their professionalism. The grand final will be held in March 2026 as part of Alimentaria & Hostelco, a fair that takes place in Barcelona every two years.