photo courtesy of marco bahena

Sunday marked the last day of the II Sammic Scholars’ time in the kitchen of Martín Berasastegui‘s Lasarte restaurant. It was in incredible ride: Marco Bahena and Cameron Rolka arrived to San Sebastián for the first time ever, and were thrown straight into a Spanish (and Basque!) speaking three-Michelin-star restaurant kitchen.

With little to no time to adjust, they had to rely on their previous kitchen training, work ethic, and fearlessness to get them through the six-month stage. While their outside-of-work conditions were privileged, they were subjected to the same chain of command and the same grunt work as any other stage in one of Spain’s best kitchens.

They’ve learned so much, and they’ve kept a chronicle of all the wild experiences they’ve been through on each of their respective blogs.  Coming up later this week, we’ll be publishing some of their best and worst memories, as well as their advice to future BasqueStages (like Ruth and Elisha, who will be on their way to stage next month as the III Sammic Scholars for BasqueStage.

Stay tuned for the inside scoop on what it’s like to stage in one of the world’s best restaurants.