A meal at DiverXO is a journey into the wildly creative mind of the chef Dabiz Munoz. It’s a long – 17 courses long to be exact – experience of non-stop amazement. By the end, the exceptional becomes mundane.
I was confused and had never seen the word “hedonistic” used to describe a meal before, but I fully understood what it meant walking out of the restaurant. The flavors are consistently heavy, sampling unabashedly from exotic luxuries like tomalley or brain, and can be queasy at times. There are no refreshing or light courses nor familiarities like bread or palate cleansers; it’s all about intense flavors, and ultimately, fat.
In addition to *hedonistic*, the cuisine of Chef Munoz can perhaps be described as fantastical, incorporating pan-Asian inspirations with mostly Spanish ingredients. The Chef is a master at taking an original concept and creatively augmenting it so much that it changes personalities. Take the soup dumpling at DiverXO: the Chef preserves the iconically bursting and porky qualities of the dumpling by using Iberian pork, yet adds peppermint for a subtle refreshing flavor. He then adds chewy pil-pil squid noodles and rockfish flakes to introduce creaminess and crunchiness to the bite. The end result looks nothing like a soup dumpling especially with the edible flowers atop, but at the same time the thesis remains unchanged.
Dining at DiverXO is the experience to end all fine-dining experiences; every course is wonderfully stimulating and often with multiple parts. Overstimulating, in fact, that I wished it would end already by the second last savory course. In a vacuum, each dish would be excellent, hedonistically rich with masterful technique, but all together it became overbearing. I felt like I had hit my quota for fine dining for the next year after my 5-hour long meal.
This really looks special, it’s no wonder it’s regarded as one of the very best in Spain. Seems it has enough ideas and flavours for two tasting menus…though I take your point about it being overwhelming after a while.
mehnotsure on
I found just the opposite. Was pretty sloppy and contrived when I dined.
G0pherholes on
The pig statue makes it feel like an eyes wide shut party. I’m in
fkdkshufidsgdsk on
I feel full just reading all this lol
I_PM_Duck_Pics on
Bondage crabs! Why!?
camhtes on
Did you have drink pairing?
Othersideofthemirror on
Sounds amazing. Wish i went to his London outpost before it shut.
PassRevolutionary254 on
Sounds awexome, thanks for all the details!
JTrue14 on
Went last year in November, the flavors and food were great. Quality of the ingredient and wine pairing is top notch. The layout was a bit over the top for me but I understand it’s supposed to be whimsical to put more attn to the food.
FCYChen on
Thanks a lot for the detailed review. You really make me wanna fly to Madrid right now!
vinoyvaca on
Thanks for the detailed review! I visited in March and I can fully understand how you felt overwhelmed by the lobster course. I remembered pausing the meal and climbed up and down the stairs half a dozen times before resuming.
Choice-Flan2449 on
I recognize the mastery at work here of course but this meal sounds like my nightmare 🥴
secretreddname on
I’m not gonna read all your comments but I loved it when I went. However I think StreetXO is even better.
Seeing staple Asian dishes with Spanish ingredients made in amazing ways blew my mind and my taste buds. Only thing I regret was not having enough room to try everything.
smarthobo on
When can we finally move past this “evoking memories” phase of fine dining
15 Comments
A meal at DiverXO is a journey into the wildly creative mind of the chef Dabiz Munoz. It’s a long – 17 courses long to be exact – experience of non-stop amazement. By the end, the exceptional becomes mundane.
I was confused and had never seen the word “hedonistic” used to describe a meal before, but I fully understood what it meant walking out of the restaurant. The flavors are consistently heavy, sampling unabashedly from exotic luxuries like tomalley or brain, and can be queasy at times. There are no refreshing or light courses nor familiarities like bread or palate cleansers; it’s all about intense flavors, and ultimately, fat.
In addition to *hedonistic*, the cuisine of Chef Munoz can perhaps be described as fantastical, incorporating pan-Asian inspirations with mostly Spanish ingredients. The Chef is a master at taking an original concept and creatively augmenting it so much that it changes personalities. Take the soup dumpling at DiverXO: the Chef preserves the iconically bursting and porky qualities of the dumpling by using Iberian pork, yet adds peppermint for a subtle refreshing flavor. He then adds chewy pil-pil squid noodles and rockfish flakes to introduce creaminess and crunchiness to the bite. The end result looks nothing like a soup dumpling especially with the edible flowers atop, but at the same time the thesis remains unchanged.
Dining at DiverXO is the experience to end all fine-dining experiences; every course is wonderfully stimulating and often with multiple parts. Overstimulating, in fact, that I wished it would end already by the second last savory course. In a vacuum, each dish would be excellent, hedonistically rich with masterful technique, but all together it became overbearing. I felt like I had hit my quota for fine dining for the next year after my 5-hour long meal.
*review of each course below*
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This really looks special, it’s no wonder it’s regarded as one of the very best in Spain. Seems it has enough ideas and flavours for two tasting menus…though I take your point about it being overwhelming after a while.
I found just the opposite. Was pretty sloppy and contrived when I dined.
The pig statue makes it feel like an eyes wide shut party. I’m in
I feel full just reading all this lol
Bondage crabs! Why!?
Did you have drink pairing?
Sounds amazing. Wish i went to his London outpost before it shut.
Sounds awexome, thanks for all the details!
Went last year in November, the flavors and food were great. Quality of the ingredient and wine pairing is top notch. The layout was a bit over the top for me but I understand it’s supposed to be whimsical to put more attn to the food.
Thanks a lot for the detailed review. You really make me wanna fly to Madrid right now!
Thanks for the detailed review! I visited in March and I can fully understand how you felt overwhelmed by the lobster course. I remembered pausing the meal and climbed up and down the stairs half a dozen times before resuming.
I recognize the mastery at work here of course but this meal sounds like my nightmare 🥴
I’m not gonna read all your comments but I loved it when I went. However I think StreetXO is even better.
Seeing staple Asian dishes with Spanish ingredients made in amazing ways blew my mind and my taste buds. Only thing I regret was not having enough room to try everything.
When can we finally move past this “evoking memories” phase of fine dining