the "Gourmet" prompt...
40. Elena Arzak- Elena is almost as lauded as her very famous New Basque chef dad, Juan Mari Arzak. She’s the top of Spain’s tree.Elena was born into Spain's "premier food family" in San Sebastián, Spain. She was raised in the kitchen doing the thing most all chef's start out with - "the dirty work". Arzak was built as a house in 1897 by Elena's great grandparents. They turned it into a wine inn and tavern. Her grandparents turned it into a restaurant when they took over. Her father, Chef Juan Mari then Arzak (a founder of Basque nouvelle cuisine) grabbed the reigns next. At the age of 17, Elena couldn't think of anything better to do with her life than become a chef. So with the support of her father, she went abroard to study for a number of years and took time to study the roots of Basque cuisine. She now runs the Arzak kitchen with her father. She is known for being exciting and innovative. Like her father, she likes to fuse modern with traditional. And she is highly successful in that endeavor.
