Becoming A Chef: How Pop-Ups Shaped Iñaki Bolumburu’s Career
Description
🎙️ EP154 — Basque fire, Bangkok chaos: From Mugaritz to Noma and now the streets of Thailand, Chef Iñaki Bolumburu turns a 35-seat speakeasy into a traveling txoko where the market writes the menu, charcoal does the talking, and “waste” gets a second life.
🎧 Topics Covered in This Episode:
🏡 Basque Roots – Farmhouse life, family kitchens, and early sparks
🎓 Bilbao School Days – Bad student, good instincts
🔥 Mugaritz Breakthrough – “Everything is possible”
🌍 Learning English in the Kitchen – Cooking abroad without words
👨🍳 Noma & Azurmendi – Creativity and foraging on another level
🏛️ Nerua Lessons – Mentorship, travel, and purpose
✈️ First Pop-Up – Grief turned into motion
❄️ Force Creativity – From waste to byproduct to dish
🌪️ Pop-Up Snowball – 40 countries, countless ideas
🇵🇹 Portugal Collab – Cooking with Vasco Coelho Santos
🇹🇭 Bangkok Chaos – The accidental Amalur
🔥 Fire Language – 80% of the menu on charcoal
💡 Txoko Philosophy – Basque hospitality abroad
🥩 Product Over Prestige – Local fish, honest salt
🥢 Basque vs Thai – Minimal meets maximal
🧪 Locavore Lessons – Sustainability done right
🎒 Nomad Tour – Europe, foraging, and family
🏠 Inside Amalur – 35 seats, one chef, full heart
🍷 Natural Wine & Firewater – No frills, just flavor
🧁 Simple Desserts – Olive oil cakes and pickled fruit
🧘♂️ Health Reset – Quitting tobacco, finding balance
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