El Bulli
El Bulli
El Bulli
1.
Introduction
The
Spanish
restaurant
ElBulli
and
head
chef,
Ferran
Adria
are
known
for
there
enormous
success
in
the
past
two
decades,
as
highlighted
in
the
media;
as
Amanda
Hesser
reports
for
The
New
York
Times
(1999),
creativity
and
risk
taking
is
what
defines
Mr.
Adrias
style.
ElBulli
received
the
top
restaurant
in
the
world
on
three
occasions,
2002,
2006
and
2007,
the
only
restaurant
to
do
so
(Norton
et
al.
2009:
p.1).
Creativity
is,
according
to
Oxford
Dictionary
(no
date),
the
use
of
imagination
or
original
ideas
to
create
something;
inventiveness,
this
is
a
direct
reflection
of
Ferran
Adrias
philosophy
to
create,
not
to
copy.
However,
financially
ElBulli
is
not
as
successful
as
its
demand
would
suggest,
as
the
restaurant
is
struggling
to
breakeven,
generating
a
debate
to
the
link
between
business
success
and
creativity,
and
the
relation
between
fortune
and
survival
(Norton
et
al.
2009:
p.10).
1.
1.
History
of
elBulli
ElBulli
originally
opened
in
1961,
as
a
golf
course
restaurant.
The
owner
Dr.
Schilling
enjoyed
fine
dining
in
Europe;
in
the
next
decade
he
transformed
his
golf
course
restaurant
into
a
sophisticated
dining
experience.
The
contributing
factor
of
ElBullis
first
Michelin
star
was
the
introduction
of
chef
Neichel.
The
drop
in
tourism
over
the
winter
period
left
ElBulli
no
choice
but
to
close
from
fall
to
spring.
Over
the
next
few
years
a
change
in
head
chefs
caused
ElBulli
to
loose
and
gain
Michelin
stars
causing
an
uncertain
future.
In
1983,
Ferran
Adria
became
apart
of
the
ElBulli
team;
by
1984
himself
and
chef
Lutaud
became
head
chefs
of
the
ElBulli
restaurant.
ElBulli
was
now
down
to
one
Michelin
star,
after
one
year
Adria
was
the
only
head
chef
with
an
aim
to
change
the
uncertain
future
of
ElBulli
(Norton
et
al.
2009:
p.1).
2.
4.
Climate
of
Innovation
The
opening
of
the
R&D
laboratory
called
ElTaller,
allowed
the
time
during
the
closure
of
the
ElBulli
restaurant
to
be
devoted
to
creating
new
recipes.
Jelinek
and
Schoonhoven
(1990)
as
cited
by
Henry
(2001:
p.
14)
believe
a
climate
which
allows
development
and
innovation
with
no
punishment
for
3.
2.
Leadership
Characteristics
According
to
Kanter
(1991)
cited
by
Henry
(2001:
p.18)
creative
leaders
should
posses
characteristics
such
as,
vision,
charismatic
qualities,
perceptual
abilities,
questioning
attitude,
team-building
skills,
persistence,
good
communicators,
and
persuasive
powers.
Ferran
Adria
represents
all
of
these
as
he
remains
committed
to
creating,
not
copying,
inspires
many;
as
seen
by
his
book
sales,
devoted
himself
to
ElBulli
for
many
years,
created
a
unique
dining
experience
and
is
dedicated
to
transforming
the
menu
every
year.
Adria
is
a
creator
in
Westley
and
Mintzbergs
(1991)
cited
by
Henry
(2001:
p.19)
five
styles
of
visionary
leadership
model;
as
he
uses
his
creativity
to
inspire
that
of
the
customer
and
employee
with
a
product
focus,
taking
deliberate
time
out
of
kitchen
for
all
the
ElBulli
team
to
work
toward
inventions,
and
tangible
products
aimed
at
individual
consumers
all
with
a
passion
for
food.
In
comparison
to
Semler,
Maverick
(1991)
cited
by
Henry
(2001:
p.19)
who
suggests
visionary
leaders
abolish
rules,
norms
and
procedures,
which
Adria
uses
as
the
basic
structure
of
ElBulli;
a
14
hour
shift
includes
the
cleaning
of
the
3,770
square
foot
kitchen,
in
half
an
hour
by
forty
chefs
by
good
organisation
(Adria
et
al.
2010:
p.477).
The
ElBulli
team
demonstrates
a
great
creative
team
as
creative
sessions
include
all
team
members
to
help
adapt
and
create
dishes,
concepts
that
come
out
of
the
creative
sessions
are
not
secrets.
Each
one
has
been
documented
and
published,
as
a
method
to
ensure
all
dishes
are
creative
and
unique,
whilst
allowing
other
team
members
to
work
on
previous
dishes
and
adapt
them
further;
also
exhibiting
climate
for
innovation
within
ElBulli.
4.
2.
Situated
Knowledge
Situated
knowledge;
the
intuitive
know-how
if
often
vey
firmly
tied
to
the
situation
which
it
was
first
learnt
(Henry
2001:
p.34)
is
an
aspect
that
ElBulli
contest
against,
as
Adria
encourages
employees
to
use
methods
used
in
different
aspect
of
life
to
adapt
the
dining
experience.
An
example
of
this
is
the
importance
of
the
front
of
house
staff;
giving
customers
an
opportunity
to
learn
about
each
dish
as
if
in
a
classroom
lesson
instead
of
a
restaurant,
and
give
feedback
for
the
development
of
dishes
(Norton
et
al.
2009:
p.8).
Another
example
of
Adrias
contest
against
situated
knowledge
is
his
development
of
a
hotel
and
many
successful
books.
4. 3. Intuition
Whilst
the
restaurant
is
closed
during
the
winter
months
intuitions
were
developed
methodically,
until
samples
could
be
prepared
for
analysis
and
reflection,
this
allowed
critical
time
for
incubation
where
the
mind
could
reassemble
and
consider
through
the
conscious
mind
to
allow
creativity
and
intuitive
thinking
(Norton
et
al.
2009:
p.7)
(Claxton
1997:
Henry
2001:
p35).
This
technique
displays
formal
planning
of
time
and
informal
managing
to
allow
the
creativity
of
employees
representing
Adria
as
an
intuitive
manager
according
to
Mintzberg
(1991,
1994)
as
cited
by
Henry
(2001:
p.37).
Mintzbergs
(1997)
cited
by
Henry
(2001:
p.37)
model
of
modes
of
thinking
related
to
planning
and
managing
suggests,
Ferran
Adria
manages
more
than
plans;
the
experiential
skills
he
has
previously
acquired
are
used
as
a
guide
for
employees,
he
takes
action
with
the
development
of
dishes,
the
lack
of
clarity
with
dish
development
allows
Adria
to
explore
ambiguous
options
for
dishes,
which
in
turn
permits
uncertainty
for
the
future
of
the
dishes
and
the
ElBulli
enterprise,
finally
Adria
encourages
novel
ideas
as
the
bases
of
the
creativity
but
these
are
all
taken
in
simple
steps
of
planning.
Intuition
is
the
direct
by-product
of
training
and
experience
that
have
been
stored
as
knowledge,
proposes
Simon
(1988)
cited
by
Henry
(2001:
p.
39).
The
development
of
the
menu
throughout
ElBullis
opening
six
months
changes
continuously
due
to
Ferran
Adria
intuition
and
product
development
as
seen
in
Figure
1
Adria
(2010)
cited
by
(Norton
et
al.
2009:
p.7).
Agor
(1991)
cited
by
Henry
(2001:
p.39)
suggests
uncertainty
is
the
best
function
best
served
by
intuition;
Adria
utilises
uncertainty
amongst
the
ElBulli
dining
experience
as
customers
are
unsure
what
dishes
will
be
served
from
one
evening
to
the
next.
October 2007
Figure 1: Timeline of Creativity for the 2008 Recipes (Source: Norton et al. 2009: p.7)
4.
4.
Judgement
Intuitive
judgement
is
a
method
based
on
hunches
and
rules
of
thumbs,
a
database
of
knowledge
in
the
conscious
memory
used
to
determine
an
action
(Kruglanski
&
Gigernzer
2011:
p.97).
Ferran
Adria
(2010:
p.72)
describes
judgement
as
a
mental
palate
database,
which
proves
short
cuts
that
help
make
the
experiments
[dish
development]
more
efficient;
making
this
process
more
efficient
safeguards
the
experiential
testing
from
being
interminable.
There
is
much
more
information
around
us
than
our
limited
senses
can
hope
to
attend
to.
[We]
find
ways
of
constructing
the
world
that
create
the
image
of
reality
that
we
have
But
it
does
mean
that
our
understanding
of
the
world
is
partial
(Henry
2001:
p.42).
The
construction
is
made
as
a
cooping
mechanism
for
people
to
create
meanings
for
everything.
The
mental
palate
database
holds
much
judgement
as
it
contains
years
of
Ferran
Adrias
successful
and
unsuccessful
techniques
(Adria
et
al.
2010:
p.72).
Reframing
is
a
method
used
to
overcome
mind-sets
by
taking
all
situations,
negative
or
positive
as
opportunities
(Henry
2001:
p.
47).
An
example
of
transforming
negative
connations
of
dishes
into
constructive
sellable
and
desirable
dishes,
is
the
use
of
transforming
usual
foods
such
as
the
common
Spanish
omelette
to
an
up
market
unusual
food;
transforming
classic
dishes
offers
a
glimpse
into
the
process
of
innovating
with
a
traditional,
boring
dish
(Norton
et
al.
2009:
p.
5).
4.
5.
Barriers
to
Creativity
Kaufman
and
Jones
(1988,
1984)
cited
by
Henry
(2001:
p.
45-46)
suggest
creative
barriers
are
formed
by
a
tendency
to
over
rely
on
previous
responses;
according
to
Cyert
and
March
(1963)
cited
by
Henry
(2001:
p.45)
creativity
barriers
are
overcome
by
recycling
solutions
used
in
previous
issues.
Kaufman
suggests
the
way
to
overcome
these
barriers
is
to
separate
idea
generation
and
evaluation.
As
seen
by
the
laboratory,
ElTaller,
ideas
are
experimented
and
evaluated
at
a
later
occasion,
the
method
and
aspects
of
the
food
are
then
judged
if
suitable
for
the
restaurant.
Ferran
Adria
also
uses
high
motivation
and
performance
separately
to
the
creative
thought;
he
does
not
consent
to
barriers
5.
2.
Paradigm
To
create,
not
to
copy
is
Ferran
Adrias
paradigm,
in
turn
making
it
ElBullis.
A
paradigm
is
best
described
as
a
fixed
theory
that
tends
not
to
be
questioned
until
provided
otherwise
(Dervitsiotis
2000:
p.641).
The
ElBulli
team
use
this
as
a
objective
on
a
daily
bases,
the
public
success
of
ElBulli
has
not
seen
it
fit
for
scrutiny,
however,
in
order
to
for
ElBulli
to
succeed
financially
this
paradigm
may
need
to
be
examined;
resulting
in
this
paradigm
described
as
a
functionalist
paradigm
according
to
Morgan
(1991)
cited
by
Henry
(2001:
p.65).
As
discussed
previously
ElBulli
uses
both
control
and
freedom
in
harmony;
the
planning
and
clockwork
execution
results
in
Whittingtons
classical
paradigm,
however,
the
experimental
creative
laboratory
uses
the
evolutionary
organisational
paradigm
(Henry
2001:
pp.65-66).
6.
Cognitive
Style
6.
1.
Personality
Inventories:
LSI
Personality
style
inventories
were
designed
to
help
highlight
the
ways
in
which
people
differ
in
their
approaches
to
perception,
creative
style,
problem
solving
and
decision
making,
and
to
emphasize
the
extent
to
which
such
differences
can
affect
cognition,
strategy
and
behaviour
(Henry
2001:
p.91).
According
to
Kolb
and
Belbins
learning
style
inventory
there
are
two
continuums,
processing
and
perception;
approaches
to
tasks
and
emotional
responses.
Ferran
Adria
utilises
the
concept
of
observing
and
participating
emotionally
and
physically
amongst
his
staff
for
the
best
results
of
unique
dishes,
Chefs
should
be
better
at
tasting
than
they
are
at
cooking
(Adria
et
al.
2010:
p.72).
7.
2.
Innovation
Stages
Henry
(2001:
p.94)
describes
three
stages
to
a
successful
innovation
role,
invention,
innovation
and
entrepreneurship.
The
ElBulli
team
work
to
invent
on
a
daily
bases
through
the
use
of
new
techniques,
methods
and
dishes
to
create
the
ultimate
dining
experience,
theses
inventions
are
documented
and
then
produced
into
tangible
products
or
methods
of
service,
the
innovator
stage.
Adrias
qualities
of
risk-taking,
dedication
to
work,
intuition
and
independent
thinking
are
all
characteristics
of
Shapiros
(1966)
cited
by
Henry
(2001:
p.96)
inventor
qualities.
Adrias
paradigm
to
create
not
to
copy,
is
a
vision
and
a
single-minded
obsession,
a
quality
that
Davis
(1991)
cited
by
Henry
(2001:
p.96)
is
a
quality
of
an
innovator.
Ferran
Adria
has
successfully
illustrated
entrepreneur
qualities
of
persistence,
opportunistic
and
risk-taking
as
suggested
by
Collins
et
al.
(1964)
as
cited
by
Henry
(2001:
p.97);
by
introducing
these
products
or
methods
into
the
market,
by
entering
the
book
market,
opening
a
hotel
and
a
chain
of
fast
food
restaurants
and
working
as
a
consultant
(Norton
et
al.
2009:
p.1).
8. 2. Sustainability
ElBulli
is
a
niche
restaurant
hence
its
demand,
the
need
for
creativity
means
grade
scale
innovating
must
remain
in
order
to
continue
as
a
niche,
unique
restaurant;
there
is
no
simple
solution
to
generate
profit
without
ElBulli
losing
some
respect
of
its
original
and
unique
dinning
experience,
the
choice
to
generate
profit
will
be
a
risk
to
whatever
the
solution
may
be.
9. Conclusion
Comparing
Ferran
Adria
and
the
ElBulli
enterprise
to
the
theories
of
successful
creative
problem
solving,
conclude
that
ElBulli
is
a
successful
business
with
creativity
at
the
heart
of
the
business.
However,
the
debate
between
fortune
and
survival
is
still
that
of
substance,
in
2010
Adria
announced
in
closure
of
ElBulli
due
to
loss
of
money
and
pressure
from
dinners
was
so
great
that
at
the
bestial
pace,
it
would
be
impossible
to
continue
(Alexander
2010).
Ferran
Adria
and
the
ElBulli
brand
will
never
be
tested
of
it
survival
without
each
other
due
to
the
closure,
suggesting
they
were
inseparable.
Ferran
Adrias
ability
to
evaluate
situations
has
enabled
his
success,
and
his
decision
to
close
ElBulli
illustrates
his
method
to
solve
problems.
However,
the
classic
saying
you
cant
be
good
at
everything
reveals
although
Adria
showed
tremendous
skills
in
creativity
and
organisation,
the
financial
aspect
of
the
business
failed
and
there
was
no
creative
way
to
solve
that
problem
on
this
occasion.
10
Reference
List
Adria,
F.
Soler,
J.
and
Adria,
A.
(2010)
A
Day
at
elBulli
An
insight
into
the
ideas,
methods
and
creativity
of
Ferran
Adria.
2nd
Edition.
London,
UK,
Phaidon
Press
Limited.
Dervitisiotis,
K.
N.
(2000)
Benchmarking
and
business
paradigm
shifts.
Total
Quality
Management.
[Online]
11
(5)
641-646.
Available
from:
Business
Source
Premier
[Accessed
26th
November
2012].
Dictonary.com
(no
date)
Commercialisation.
[Online]
Available
from:
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/commercialisation
[Accessed
26th
November
2012].
Henry,
J.
(2001)
Creativity,
Cognition
&
Development.
London,
UK,
SAGE
Publications.
Hesser,
A.
(15th
September
1999)
In
Spain,
A
Chef
To
Rival
Dali.
The
New
York
Times.
[Online]
Available
from:
http://www.nytimes.com/1999/09/15/dining/in-spain-a-chef-to-rival-
dali.html?pagewanted=all&src=pm
[Accessed
24th
November
2012].
HM
Government
(May
2010)
The
Coalition:
our
programme
for
government.
Cabinet
Office.
London,
UK.
Available
from:
http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/sites/default/files/resources/coalition_
programme_for_government.pdf
[Accessed
27th
November
2012].
Kruglanski,
A.
W.
&
Gigernzer,
G.
(2011)
Intuitive
and
deliberate
judgments
are
based
on
common
principles.
Psychological
Review.
[Online]
118
(1)
97-
109.
Available
from:
PsycARTICLES
[Accessed
27th
November
2012].
Norton,
M,
Villanueva,
J
and
Wathieu,
L
(2009)
elBulli:
A
Taste
of
Innovation.
Harvard
Business
School.
[Online]
[Accessed
24th
November
2012].
Oxford
Dictionary
(no
date)
Definition
Creativity.
[Online]
Available
from:
http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/creativity?q=creativity
[Accessed
24th
November
2012].
Reber,
A.
S.
(1989)
Implicit
Learning
and
Tacit
Knowledge.
Journal
of
Experimental
Psychology:
General.
[Online]
118
(3)
219-234.
Available
from:
PsycARTICLES
[Accessed
24th
November
2012].
Sawyer,
R.
(2012)
Explaining
Creativity:
The
Science
of
Human
Innovation.
New
York,
USA,
Oxford
University
Press.
11