Meet our Chefs

Erwan Poudoulec was born in the French region of Brittany. In 1997 he obtained the certificates C.A.P  in Cuisine and B.E.P in hospitality and travelled through different regions of France to complement his training and to gain professional experience.

In January 2005 he arrived in Spain, where he began working in the 5-star Hyatt Regency La Manga Club. Among his activities as a sous-chef was the supervision of different jobs in the kitchens, coordination of the room-service and of two operations centres.

He then travelled to Ireland to take over as sous-chef at the gourmet restaurant "The Hall Door" at Castle Dargan Hotel. There he composed, supervised and executed the menu, based on local and seasonal produce. In 2007, he began working as chef at the exclusive Royal Island resort in the Bahamas, where he led the team of cooks and was responsible for the composition and execution of the menus.

Between 2009 and 2011 he developed his career being the chief executive at the Montpelier Plantation & Beach hotel on the island of Nevis, a member of Relais & Châteaux with four diamonds in the American hotel classification "AAA Diamonds". In 2012 returned to Spain to become a chef cooking instructor at Le Cordon Bleu Madrid and, soon after, assumed the technical direction of the school.

David Millet began his training in the culinary world at the age of fifteen in the kitchens of Liceo Hotelero Yzeure, France. His career has led him to work in some of the most important kitchens of France: Restaurant La Divellec, Hotel Rosalp and the famous restaurant of the Eiffel Tower, Jules Verne.

In Spain the chef has captained kitchens in the Hotel Villa Magna, where he worked between 1998 and 2006, in the Hotel Osuna and the Ada Palace Hotel, all in Madrid.

More than five years ago this great chef has decided to pass on the knowledge acquired from his experience and career through the Cuisine programme at Le Cordon Bleu Madrid. He is outstanding in his passion, discipline, and commitment to work well done, and thus David Millet has become loved by students and respected by his fellow teachers.

Chef Yann Barraud was born in the French region of Vendée in Luçon, and grew up in a family of cooks. Sticking with the family tradition, he studied cooking at the prestigious "Ecole d 'Arts Culinaire" of Saumur in France. After graduating in 1988, he acquired considerable experience in hotels and restaurants, including the two Michelin star restaurant "Laurent" in Paris, where he worked as a Station Chef. In 1992 he moved to London. He worked as sous chef at "Le Souffle" restaurant located in the Hotel Inter-Continental, holder of a Michelin star. After this position he joined the team of "La Belle Epoque", as head of production at its three restaurants.

He continued his brilliant career as Executive Chef at the "House of Albert Roux" London, being responsible for both of the cuisine and pastry teams, as well as the consultancy of Albert Roux (the first French chef who earned three Michelin stars in England) where he was responsible for researching new projects.

Chef Yann Barraud has also represented England in various culinary competitions.

In 2000 he joined Le Cordon Bleu London as chef professor and was appointed in 2004 as Head Technical Chef. At Le Cordon Bleu, Chef Yann Barraud has taught at the headquarters in London and Paris, and has collaborated with Regent Seven Seas Cruises; there he formed the cuisine teams of different cruise-liners of the company and also offered cooking classes to passengers during their voyages. He has also been a judge in cooking competitions and has participated in various exhibitions around the world. Since becoming part of the team of chefs at Le Cordon Bleu, he has represented the institution in places like Mexico, Santiago, Kuala Lumpur, India and Indonesia. He has also worked as a consulting professor at Chicago (Illinois), Austin (Texas) and San Jose (Costa Rica).

Trained in the School of Hospitality El Cenador of Salvador (Madrid), chef Diego Muñoz has a broad experience after his journey through some of the most important restaurants of the country such as the Restaurant Echaurren in the Rioja, Atrio in Caceres, La Broche in Madrid, or, outside our borders, such as the restaurant Patrick Guilbaud, in Dublin.

The chef came to the School in 2016 to be part of the teaching team for the Spanish Cooking Diploma, endorsed, in addition to his professional career, by his teaching vocation, having previously taught at several Cookery Schools.

Chef Benjamin Estienne has received professional training as a pastry chef at different pastry Institutes in Orleans, France, while he obtained work experience in this location, specializing in French Artisan Pastry (“Au petit duc”or “Chocolaterie Royal”, among others).

In 2022, he took a leap in his professional career working as pastry chef at “Le Palais Royal”, in Martinique Island, and later at “Maison Blanc”, in London. Moreover, he worked at the patisserie “Perfecta” from New Caledonia, as head pastry chef, position that he repeated at “Le Pain des Hautes-Alpes”, again in France. In his personal quest to improve his training and experience, he continued his journey around the world in places as diverse as Doha, Catar, working at “La Cigale”5 star hotel, or in Baku, Azerbayán, as local executive pastry chef at “Ladurée”, luxury very well knowed pastry shop, position he maintained at the Nion site, Switzerland.

Benjamin collects more than 20 years of experience, not only as pastry chef, but also as team manager, advisor, and instructor in multiple hospitality companies. Between the years of 2010 and 2013, he joined the Lenótre School team as a chef professor, beginning his career in the teaching field.

He outstands as a pastry chef for his taste for excellence through traditional techniques and his application in restaurants, shops, and large events, all this without ever forgeting the essence of French haute patisserie.

Chef Carlos Fernandes was born in Lisbon, Portugal. After earning a Professional Certificate in Culinary and Pastry from Escola de Hotelaria e Turismo de Lisboa in 2009, he began his career with various stages at prestigious hotels and restaurants, including Le Meridien Park Atlantic Lisboa, Alejandro Del Toro, Rio’s, and Olissippo Lapa Palace. He also had the opportunity to work alongside renowned chefs and pastry chefs such as Paco Torreblanca (Pastelería Totel) and Martín Berasategui (MB at Ritz Carlton Abama Resort) as a Pastry Chef de Partie.

In 2015, he joined LOCO Restaurant, a groundbreaking establishment in the Portuguese culinary scene. There, he played a key role in the development and execution of fine dining desserts and artisanal breads. Throughout his career in Portugal, he gained experience as a Pastry Chef in various restaurants, adapting to different environments and refining his skill set across multiple disciplines.

At Bela Vista Hotel & SPA in 2018, Carlos focused on enhancing the Michelin-starred Vista Restaurant, overseeing the hotel's pastry selection. He later joined Octant Ponta Delgada, where he was part of the management team responsible for rebranding the project, redefining its identity, and revamping the pastry offerings across the entire hotel.

In 2022, he became Pastry Sous Chef at Four Seasons Hotel Madrid, contributing to the creation and execution of a refined selection of high-quality desserts for hotel guests.A hardworking, detail-oriented, and proactive chef, Carlos was recognized as Pastry Chef of the Year 2021 by Mesa Marcada. He has also served as a judge for the Jovem Talento da

Natalia Vázquez, from La Coruña, was born in a region surrounded by ocean and famous for its quality products. Her contact with the culinary world started very early at her family´s fish shop. She began, first by studying at graduate level through the public system, and shortly after, then specialised in Culinary Management and Skills techniques at the Hospitality Management Centre, Galicia.

After having spent time in restaurants and luxury hotels throughout Spain, she continued to develop her experience at the restaurant, Guggenheim Bilbao (1 Michelin star). From there, she joined the team at Manolo de la Osa in Las Rejas, which also boasts a Michelin star. After that, she moved on to spend a long period at the restaurant in the Hotel Villamagna, Madrid, under the guidance of Eneko Atxa, current holder of 3 Michelin stars.

In 2012, chef joined the production team at Le Cordon Bleu Madrid and became part of the chef instructor´s team in the Spanish Cuisine programme, sharing her vision for fine dining marked by simplicity and delicacy.

After a period in which she decided to dedicate more time to other personal projects, chef returned to the Spanish Cuisine's chef instructors team in 2019.

This young chef, David Vela, started working in the world of hospitality in the dining room, however, bit by bit, he fell in love with life amongst the hobs. After some years of learning in the kitchens of various restaurants in his birthplace Almería, he decided to bank on his passion and get trained up by studying cuisine and pastry at IES Almeraya. Given his relationship with the sea, fishing and the land of the greenhouse you can understand his sensitivity with the product and his great respect for raw materials.

In 2015 he joined the team at Le Cordon Bleu Madrid as part of the production brigade. He continued training and growing within the institute and at the beginning of 2019 was named head of production. From the end 2020 and until September 2021 he combined these duties with those of chef instructor within the Spanish Cuisine faculty, where he has now become a key element amongst the teaching staff.

Manuel Lucas López, borned and raised in Madrid, is diplomaed in Labor Relations. He begins his professional career as a chef in Tenerife restaurant, El Drago, with a Michelin star. A year later, he joins the La Broche team, with two Michelin stars, where he continues to grow in the profession. This experience is followed by Sant Celoni and, is from then on, where he develops a very enriching stage of his career, as head chef in some of the most important restaurants in the country: Martin Berasategui, Concilio, Arola, La Broche, Sergi Arola catering and Silk & Soda, among others.

In 2014 he starts his own project, the Taberna Cocinarte, where he delves into a more personal style of cuisine. After this successful period, which ends in 2020, he becomes executive chef of the restaurants Blue Moon and La Sagrada Fábrica, from where he combines his performance with the work as head chef at the NGO Cesal. In early 2022, with a new concern, he joins the companies Kitchen Club and Electrolux as a trainer. Since then, he decides to bet on teaching and, a few months later, he joins the team of Le Cordon Bleu Madrid as an instructor chef of the Spanish Cuisine programs.