Martina Puigvert, together with her sisters Carlota and Clara, have become the present and future of Les Cols. They are the legacy of this family restaurant created by their parents, Fina and Manel, who have instilled in them a passion for cooking and respect for nature.
Martina Puigvert (Olot, 1994) is part of a new generation of chefs who look to the land to imagine the cuisine of tomorrow. In 2024, she was named Best Young Chef in Spain by the Michelin Guide. She trained in Gastronomy and Culinary Arts at the renowned Basque Culinary Centre in San Sebastián, and after completing internships at various restaurants, including Lua (Madrid), Koy Shunka (Barcelona), Blue Hill at Stone Barns (New York) and Gustu (La Paz, Bolivia), in 2016 she joined the family restaurant Les Cols, which has two Michelin stars, two Repsol suns, and a Green Star for its commitment to sustainability.
Magazine Horse meets Martina at Les Cols restaurant, where she is currently head chef and in charge of R&D, allowing her to maintain her identity of ‘local cuisine’ but always with a refreshing twist.
At Les Cols, you have been pioneers in sustainability with your own vegetable garden, chicken coop, renewable energy… How do you integrate this philosophy into the day-to-day running of the restaurant?
We try to apply sustainability as a philosophy of life and with small things. For example, in the restaurant we make compost from vegetable and fruit waste, so that we return all this waste to the vegetable garden, which is a way of closing the circle. We also give dry bread to the lambs, or soaked bread to the chickens, and we make preserves in vinegar, oil, sugar and liqueurs, which help to avoid food waste. These are small actions that I believe contribute to this circular gastronomy and help reduce waste.
The menus at Les Cols seek to reflect the landscape of La Garrotxa and the seasonality of the produce. How do you construct that narrative in each menu?
Our cuisine is born from the environment that surrounds us. The landscape and nature are not just a backdrop, but our main source of inspiration. Each menu seeks to reflect the season, what the land offers at each moment. Thus, humble ingredients such as the first peas of the season or purple cabbages take centre stage, transforming simplicity into a celebration of the land.
Each menu reflects the season and what nature gives us.
Have you recovered any local ingredients for your kitchen?
Yes, we have recovered products such as buckwheat, which is one of the most native crops in our region, La Garrotxa. Fina, my mother, together with Carme, a farmer from the mountains, recovered it by planting it in the gardens. It’s a wonderful thing because it has revived a tradition that is part of our village’s culture. We also grow a variety of corn in our garden, and with the two flours, buckwheat and corn, we offer the last appetiser that customers have in the kitchen. They are two very humble products, but with history and tradition, and we have recovered them because we really like being able to offer them in the restaurant. We offer buckwheat as a grain, as flour, and we also make beer with it.
Given that there is increasing drought, fewer harvests and a loss of local products, how do you see the future of gastronomy?
I am positive because in La Garrotxa there are more and more young people who are committed to the agricultural world. I have a friend who has started growing Santa Pau beans, which are a local product, and we serve them in the restaurant calling them ‘our caviar’ because of their local, intimate and protected nature. It’s important for the younger generations to listen to nature and the legacy they have received, but also to bring a fresh and innovative perspective. At the restaurant, we are committed to supporting small producers so that they can continue their work.
It’s essential for the younger generations to listen to nature and the legacy they have received, but also to bring a fresh and innovative perspective.
Do you have local or ultra-local produce?
Yes, at Les Cols, the garden is much more than a pantry because it provides fruit and vegetables, but not everything that reaches the table comes from there. We also rely on local producers and farmers, as this collaboration and synergy with the people around us is very important. We are not seeking to be self-sufficient, but rather it is a space for research and an extension of our philosophy. The vegetable garden is worked with the support of different disciplines (biologists, naturalists, geographers) that allow us to understand it as an ecosystem full of life. It is also an open space, as visitors can walk around it and discover how the products they will later taste on the menu are grown. I believe that there is increasing awareness and interest in knowing what is behind each product and how the land has been treated.
The garden is an ecosystem full of life, worked with the support of biologists, naturalists and geographers.
What does success in haute cuisine mean to you?
I think success for us is being able to recover varieties, have contact with farmers… This is really exciting, and our success is having a team that considers itself part of the project, that wants to contribute and continue evolving together. Also, obviously, it is very important to receive recognition that helps people learn about this project.
Our success is having a team that considers itself part of the project, that wants to contribute and continue evolving together.
Do you think the Michelin Green Star should prioritise traditional Michelin stars?
It is very important that guides recognise these sustainable practices in order to promote and encourage everyone to join in and work in a way that is more consistent with the environment. They have been pioneers and are doing a good job.
How do you see yourself in the future? What are your dreams? Do you see yourself continuing in the family restaurant, striving to achieve a third Michelin star, or are you not obsessed with awards?
Well, we try not to obsess over awards, but ultimately, they are a source of motivation and joy. We always try to go a little further, but we’re happy with what we have, with the people who are part of the project, and grateful because they help us grow and evolve. In the future, I see myself here, growing the project alongside my sisters, my parents and the whole team.
Three chefs you admire for their work?
In Catalonia we have chefs, both men and women, whom I admire greatly, and also outside Catalonia. We are lucky that this profession has allowed us to meet wonderful people from other countries, who then come here to learn about the project. It’s difficult to single out anyone, so I’ll go with my mother and my grandmother.
In the future, I see myself here, growing the project alongside my sisters, my parents and the whole team.
Personal questions:
What is a normal day like in your life outside the kitchen?
Normally, on days when I’m not working, I like to go for walks, visit the vegetable garden, or listen to music on my record player. When I travel, I usually buy vinyl records, and depending on the moment, I like to listen to everything from cumbia, which reminds me of my time in Chile or Bolivia, to Catalan artists such as Lluís LLach or Silvia Pérez Cruz, as well as classical music.
What is your ideal holiday plan?
The truth is that I like to divide my time between relaxing, doing nothing, which fills me with energy, and also reading, going for walks, listening to music, and spending time with friends. On the other hand, I also like to travel and be on the go all day. I need to do both because otherwise I feel like something is missing.
A place in the world where you always like to return.
Home. Also to Donosti, because, for me, it’s like being at home.
Any trips you have pending…
Many. I would say Japan, but I was just there in January, although it was very quick and I would like to go back because I found its culture and cuisine very interesting. Rather than discovering new places, I like to revisit and get to know other parts of countries I’ve already been to.
What excites you?
I love the changing seasons, when the first fruits arrive or the first leaves fall.
A smell that transports you to a special memory.
Caramel and sugar, because they remind me of my childhood, when we used to make flans.
Who are your role models outside of gastronomy?
Many people. For example, the singer Silvia Pérez Cruz, or the film director Isabel Coixet, who has been here many times and is a friend of my mother’s.
What quality do you most appreciate in a person?
Honesty.
What would make you happiest in life?
A fulfilling life.
A book, a film, a series…?
As a book, Els fruits saborosos, by Josep Carner; as a film, La vida secreta de las palabras, by Isabel Coixet; and as a series, Foodie Love, also by Isabel, which I really liked.
