Entertainment

It was Tezka Zona Rosa restaurant, founded by Juan Mari Arzak in Mexico City in 1994 that brought Bruno Oteiza and Mikel Alonso together. And it is Juan Mari Arzak himself, among other famous names (Luis Irizar, Pedro Subijana, Jean Paul Clave...) that both men name as one of the major reasons why they opted for the world of cuisine.

Mikel Alonso quit his Chemical Engineering studies in order to become a chef in Donostia-San Sebastian. He started out in Luis Irizar''s school and later went on to the Basque Center in Mexico and Tezka Zona Rosa. Oteiza, on the other hand, had always wanted to be a chef. He worked in Akelarre, Kokotxa, Xamarri, London Hotel, and when he was in Mexico at Faro de Belgrado, La Barandilla and Tezka Zona Rosa.

Basque and Mexican cuisine converge in ''Biko''. Both Basque chefs use ideas and products from the Mexican cuisine and apply techniques from Basque cooking.

''Biko'' is a brooding, post-modern hunk of metal rising out of a well-to-do suburb of Mexico City. The inside is strictly light or dark, all the colour is left to the dishes. The food is creative, Basque and made using up-to-the-minute techniques. Two menus are offered, comprising creative and traditional dishes; Foie 100% Cotton Candy (foie gras mixed with yoghurt, wrapped in lettuce and topped with a small cloud of cotton candy and sherry vinegar) is creative, while a rib-eye steak served with baby corn and pig''s ears is traditional.

Open well into the night, this is an achingly hip place where Mexico City high-rollers go to be seen.

Restaurant magazine placed ''Biko'' restaurant at number 46 in their annual list of world''s 50 best restaurants in their latest edition, released this year. After making the 89th and 81st positions in 2008 and 2009, they finally entered the top 50 in 2010.