TikToker spends $400 at three-star Michelin restaurant and gives advice: “It’s like going to a museum”
Popular food TikToker Arturo Lemmen visited chef Martin Berasategui’s Michelin restaurant in Spain and compared his tasting menu to an art exhibition.
There was once a certain mystique, an enigmatic factor that, while still alive in the highest-end restaurants, has gradually faded into the mix of videos from content creators visiting restaurants to do reviews. One might never actually enter DiverXO, Dabiz Muñoz’s restaurant, but you can still see countless influencers on various platforms offering reviews, showing their dishes, and giving their opinions. Almost no one is immune to this trend.
TikTok influencer visits 3-star Michelin restaurant in Spain
One of the most recent viral visits was made by Arturo Lemmen, the face behind ‘Soyelarturito,’ who has over two million followers on TikTok. Lemmen went to Martín Berasategui’s restaurant in Lasarte-Oria in San Sebastián, Spain, which boasts a staggering three Michelin stars. Arturo sits down, says he feels like he’s in the movie “The Menu”, and orders the 395-euro tasting menu.
The first dish to arrive at Lemmen’s table is seaweed and caviar, which sparks an unexpected pleasure in him - similar to the sensation he feels again when trying the “fake marinated olive”. These culinary creations, designed so that guests can try “everything” in one visit, become a parade of curious dishes, such as the caramelized eel millefeuille with foie, spring onion, and green apple, which, without realizing it, gradually fills him up.
“These places aren’t for everyone”
Next came a gilda (a classic Basque pintxo) with tuna tartare, a creamy anchovy Balfegó, and a crustacean cannelloni with sweet cucumber, salmon, and herb juice. Each dish was a new burst of culinary excitement - pure “high cuisine” in Lemmen’s words - that ended in a slight disappointment when the brioche with Iberian bacon arrived: “Although it was delicious, I expected much more. It tasted like airplane bread.”
There was still room for dessert, and rounding off the unique menu, Lemmen showered praise on the cold and hot gin ice cream with strawberries and lime. He gave the same reverence to the fake lemon with basil juice, green beans, and almonds. From his point of view, it was during the final part of the meal that he could truly appreciate the meticulous preparation of the chefs.
When the bill arrived, his conclusions flowed. “These places aren’t for everyone, and it’s not about the money. Going to a restaurant like this is like going to a museum where you can eat everything, but it’s about appreciating the art of high cuisine,” he reflected, emphasizing that while money isn’t the focus of the experience, perhaps the most surprising - and the spark for his reflection - was that a Coca-Cola costs eight euros.
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