Five minutes with… Dani García

The acclaimed Spanish chef on opening in London, his love of tomatoes and why this is the busiest year of his life

Food and Drink 20 Sep 2022

The beautiful interior of Bibo Shoreditch
Bibo Shoreditch will serve a mixture of Spanish and international classics

What can diners expect from Bibo Shoreditch?

I think that the Bibo brand is very similar to the vibe of Shoreditch. Bibo is a brand born in Marbella, in the south of Spain that is a very fun city and the name of Bibo in Spanish means “life”, these are the ideas we want to transmit. I think that Shoreditch has very incredible vibes and is really alive as an area. Of course, I’m Spanish and Bibo serves Spanish food, but as I said we were born in Marbella and it is a very international city, like London there are a lot of people from around the world. So Bibo has 80 per cent Spanish views and Spanish flavours but then you can find international dishes like an incredible burger, and a great tribute to fish and chips.

Is there a signature dish at Bibo Shoreditch? 

For me, it has to be the paella. It is really special because it’s a very authentic flavour of paella that will be exactly the same as if you were eating it in Marbella, Ibiza or Madrid – it is truly Spanish.

Chef Dani García
Chef Dani García

What do you wish people in London knew about Andalusian cuisine?

When you think of Andalusia, you have to think of the Mediterranean. We were born there, in the entrance of the Mediterranean where on clear days I can see Gibraltar and where the Atlantic Ocean finishes and the Mediterranean starts. Our culture is olive oil, very good tomatoes, croquettes, Iberico ham, Russian salad – which is very Spanish despite the name. If I had to choose only one word to define Andalusia, it would be Mediterranean, that’s what you need to bear in mind. 

Why did you want to open a restaurant in London? 

I would like to have three or four restaurants in London! But taking my first steps with Bibo is exciting, and I’m very happy. I have a house in London and my daughter is studying here, the city is really important to me. I feel very comfortable in this city, it’s very special to me.

What do you think of the restaurant scene in London?

Asian food here is great, especially Indian and Chinese food, much better than Spain. London is a very open city and I love that in terms of gastronomy: I love that here you can choose a very good Italian restaurant, or you can choose a great Chinese or incredible Japanese, you have a wonderful selection. I love Sunday roasts too – when my family is here, we always have a Sunday roast.

Bibo Shoreditch has been inspired by the vibrancy of the area
Bibo Shoreditch has been inspired by the vibrancy of the area

What is your favourite restaurant in the world and why?

The world is very big but if I have to choose, I would say Asador Etxebarri, a very special restaurant in the north of Spain, or Los Marinos José in Fuengirola, a town near where I live in Marbella, which serves what is probably the best seafood and fish in the world. I go to Los Marinos four or five times a year. 

The past two years have been really hard for anyone in the restaurant industry. What have you learned?

Well, finally, I can say that we are happy and it’s not too hard for us now. But at the beginning, in the first week when we had to stay at home with the quarantine, I was thinking that I’d just had the best five, six years of my life in the industry. I was at a very incredible place and it went in a moment. It wasn’t easy but I thought, OK, while we are at home we can do something, so we created a delivery company. And we had the chance to rest, to think and reflect and plan what we were going to do in the future. 

The inviting courtyard at Bibo Shoreditch
The inviting courtyard at Bibo Shoreditch

What’s next for you?

The pandemic stopped a lot of openings. So now we finally have all the openings happening – it’s probably going to be the craziest 12 months. We have opened three new brands in Marbella, where we have our headquarters. Normally we open all the branches there first before we take them to another city. We are going to open in Paris, Amsterdam, Miami and Dubai this year and another restaurant in Madrid too. It is a lot of openings, but we are really happy and really excited. And I hope there will be another new one in London soon too – hopefully next year.

What ingredient can you not live without?

I think olive oil; it is impossible for me to cook without olive oil. And I would say you cannot deny that salt is the essence of a dish, too. Nobody talks about salt but if I don’t have salt, I don’t have life. I love to have salt, I love to have pepper, I love to have different spices. But if I had to choose just one ingredient, I would have to say tomatoes. When you have a very good tomato in your mouth, you have everything: a little bit sweet, a little bit acid, it’s great.

Finally, if you could cook for anyone living or dead, famous or not, who would it be? 

I want to cook for everybody who wants to taste our food. It makes no difference if they are famous or not. Being a chef is an incredible opportunity to make people happy with what you make.

Bibo Shoreditch is open now in the Mondrian London Shoreditch Hotel; sbe.com/restaurants/bibo/shoreditch