Every word, every recipe, every paragraph, every protagonist... Everything that makes up Apicius 26 – the new edition of this Haute Cuisine Journal by Montagud Editores – revolves around excellence. Its aim is clearly expressed by the very cover of this publication, which shows "Textures of lobster" by Azurmendi (Larrabetzu, Biscay, Basque Country, three Michelin stars). The 224 pages of this twenty-sixth issue of Apicius also demonstrate how Spanish haute cuisine has surpassed all the precepts set by the revolution brought about by elBulli. The emotions that Eneko Atxa (Azurmendi) and Josep Roca (head of the cellar and dining room of El Celler de Can Roca, Girona, Cataluña, three Michelin stars) are able to arouse in diners is one of these. Another is flavour, spearheaded by Ricard Camarena (Ricard Camarena Restaurant, Valencia, Valencian Community, one Michelin star) and Fernando Arellano (Zaranda, Es Capdellà, Balearic Islands, two Michelin stars). The cutting-edge position within the culinary arts enjoyed by a number of Spanish restaurants is demonstrated by Ángel León (Aponiente, El Puerto de Santa María, Andalusia, three Michelin stars), Diego Gallegos (Sollo, Benalmádena, Andalusia, one Michelin star) and Javi Arroyo (sommelier at DiverXO, Madrid, three Michelin stars); while others have made a difference by creating a setting around their food as exemplified by Diego Guerrero (DSTAgE, Madrid, one Michelin star), Paco Morales (NOOR, Córdoba, Andalusia), and Andreu Genestra (Restaurante Andreu Genestra, Capdepera, Balearic Islands). Location and concept, also hallmarks of the before and after of elBulli, have been surpassed by restaurants in Spain as well. Apicius 26 shows that this has been the case with the locations of Jesús Segura (Trivio, Cuenca, Castile-La Mancha), Luis Alberto Lera (Lera, Castroverde de Campos, Zamora, Castile and León), Iván Cerdeño (El Carmen de Montesión, Toledo, Castile-La Mancha, one Michelin star) and Rubén Arnanz (Villena, Segovia, Castile and León, one Michelin star). Lastly, Apicius 26 unravels the figure of Javi Estévez (La Tasquería, Madrid) as an example of how a concept can be created and sustained. Apicius galvanises over a million words over a total of 5,824 pages to return to its origins in this edition, number 26. "From our point of view, passion, roots and being on the cutting edge are the elements that will ensure that our restaurants continue to pave the way for one of the most important tools that a country has to promote itself," says Jãvi Antoja de la Rosa, editor of the journal. "The passion with which our chefs defend their ideas is something rare. I would love to see more small and medium-sized businesses benefit from having leaders who push their teams to strive further every day, motivating and leading those who work with them to push the envelope and to achieve things never before dreamed of." ~ APICIUS is published by Montagud Editores, Spanish National Gastronomy Award 2008. The Journal of Haute Cuisine has also been awarded the Best of Gastronomy Prize 2004, the Alimara Prize 2005, the National Gastronomy Prize 2012 in the category of Best Publication, and Best Publication in the Gourmand World Cookbook Awards 2014.