It appears in the logo of his restaurant, in the two L’s written backwards: dyslexia has marked the life of chef Javier Muñoz-Calero, and therefore, that of Ovillo. Not as a weakness but as a difference that can be carried with pride. He believes that the best things in life often come from what appears to be problematic or imperfect. It shows in his restaurant: the majority of the staff comes from the Cocina Conciencia project of the Raíces Foundation. Javier knows that the menas (unaccompanied foreign minors) are, apart from manipulative political discourses, people with a great desire to learn and work, aspiring to a normal life, without fear.
Ovillo (Calle Pantoja, Madrid) has the magic that its excited staff brings, excellent cuisine in an exquisite space.
Did you play tag as a child?
The truth is no, but I did like helping my mother in the kitchen, because I loved to eat and to escape from my homework. I also had fun with the whole staging, putting the glasses, opening the bottle of wine… I have always been very helpful. My mother set some very beautiful tables, to the nines, she took great care of the aesthetics. Both my sister and I have inherited that touch.
– Cooking was a woman’s thing?
It was seen as something feminine because they were the ones who did it at home. Raising children is a job that we have taken a long time to value… There were few examples of male cooks, yes. But I didn’t miss a program of Elena Santoja’s Con las manos en la masa. I have the song burned into my head.
– When did you know you wanted to be a chef?
I was enrolled in a business school in order to dedicate myself to the family business, but three days before starting I realized that I couldn’t fool myself: what I wanted was to dedicate myself to cooking. I made the decision and my family supported me. I studied Hotel Business Management with Living Room and Kitchen in Switzerland at César Ritz, then I did the Grand Diplome in Pastry and Cooking in Paris at Le Cordon Bleu and finished my studies in Thailand at the Royal Thai School of Culinary Arts.
Do you remember the first time a flavor moved you?
Yes, as a child I was surprised by the taste of ling roe with almonds in Águilas (Murcia), where part of my family is from.
Águilas has given us very well-known people…
Yes, for example Alfonso Escámez, who started out as a bellboy at the Central Bank and ended up being its president. My paternal grandfather, Armando Muñoz-Calero, a surgeon, was also very well known there, in fact there is a street and a football stadium named after him. I think my sister and I have been the only people whose two grandparents have named football stadiums. Because my other grandfather was Vicente Calderón.
Incredible… And returning to Águilas, the Rabals were also there.
Yes, Francisco Rabal was another who started very low. He was an electrician before becoming the great actor that he was. I also have anecdotes with them because my father was Teresa Rabal’s boyfriend so when we went to the circus, as children, we had an outlet and they almost always chose us to go out…
– Have you liked the stage since you were a child?
Not the stage, but I do like the camera. I like to work without a script and live as I have done when I have participated on television. Having a program is a dream to fulfill. I’m shy but I stop being shy in front of the camera.
– How did the link between Fundación Raíces and Ovillo come about?
I wanted to help, do something for others, but not by far, I don’t like sponsoring and then taking a trip a year. I learned about the Raíces Foundation through journalist Cristina Jolonch from La Vanguardia, and when she told me about the project I realized that the time had come to collaborate as I wanted: truly, closely, day by day. I opened Ovillo linked to this project. On the one hand, I provide work to men who have turned 18 years old and on the other, I provide training to many others who will go to work in other restaurants that are also linked to the Cocina Conciencia project. The first guy I worked with left an impression on me. His name is Madi, and he had arrived fleeing a very difficult situation from Guinea Conakry. He arrived alone, not knowing if his family was still alive. Today he is a businessman, he speaks Norwegian and lives in Norway, he is married and has a son… In addition, he has helped his family in Africa. He was the first, someone very special to me, he still calls me dad. But many others have been part of Ovillo.
– Does anyone develop a true vocation for the hospitality industry?
Yes, many fall in love with her. There is more than one who is working right now as the right hand of a Michelin star. But there are also others who use this school as a springboard to later dedicate themselves to another profession. Spain is even a place of passage many times. What is rare is having girls, I have had very few and that is because the majority come as victims of trafficking. A very serious issue and one that is not talked about enough.
– How important is this collaboration in the restaurant?
More than 70% of Ovillo’s staff comes from the Cocina Conciencia program. This has a definitive effect: they are young people without adult references in Spain who bring diversity, joy, languages, humility and desire to work. I am very lucky.
– Ovillo is a very personal restaurant. In what details do those who know him well perceive Javier?
It is true that Ovillo is extremely personal. I fell in love with the place, which was a leather goods factory where luxury bags were made, and I was present throughout the architectural project, in the remodeling, because I knew very well what I wanted and what I needed. I also wanted to introduce my dyslexia into the logo, with the two L’s backwards. And I decided to have an open kitchen, without tricks or cardboard… I like to know who comes to eat at my house and pay attention to all the details.
– How would you define yourself as a chef?
More than a chef I like to say that I am a cook. I make very honest cuisine, with pure flavors, little manipulation, simple. I try to recover flavors from my childhood and my travels. We do not have invariable recipes nor are we strict when it comes to weights and measures… There are sweeter days and saltier others. I like to compare our work to that done in a play: the text does not change, but every day it comes out different. Of course, always rich.
– How important is aesthetics in the gastronomic experience?
Every experience is made up of several factors and I like to take care of all of them. I am behind the decorative details, the selection of candles… We have also commissioned music playlists from a professional who works for films and series. We have a different list for rainy, windy or sunny days…. We have also thought about the restaurant’s smells: I like that Ovillo has its own, very natural, generated by the mix of the wood of the furniture and the plants. We take great care of the lighting, which during the day is natural and changing and at night it comes through candles and a wall lamp. I try to create a magical atmosphere. Another thing I like is being on a street where there is nothing else, small and far from the center. When you see the place from the outside it looks ugly, but when you enter you find yourself in a magical place. I would say that Ovillo is a place of flavors, beauty, where a unique team works, a place that must be discovered.
– I imagine there will be no shortage of a vegan menu…
We are precisely incorporating it now. I don’t want to pigeonhole myself, but I am clear that I only use suppliers that act ethically. At Ovillo, sustainability and social commitment are very important.
