Two prominent figures in contemporary gastronomy, two distinct styles, and a shared fascination with the boundaries between pâtisserie and cuisine. On 25 October, Albert Adrià will visit CODA in Berlin to create a unique menu with René Frank as part of the restaurant’s anniversary celebrations. This will be a one-off collaboration between two culinary visionaries whose work is helping to transform the way we think about dessert and modern gastronomy.
ALBERT ADRIÀ × CODA
Date: 25 October 2026
Venue: CODA, Berlin
Format: Gala dinner / set menu
Guest: Albert Adrià
Restaurant: Enigma, Barcelona – 2 Michelin stars
Host: René Frank, CODA
Programme: Dinner only
Two culinary philosophies. One exceptional menu.
Berlin’s CODA is continuing its anniversary year in style. Following a summer residency at Copenhagen’s Tivoli Gardens, which featured a series of inspiring encounters and unforgettable lunches and dinners, another extraordinary moment is on the horizon. On 25 October, Albert Adrià, one of today’s most influential chefs, will be taking the helm in René Frank’s kitchen.
For CODA, this will not be a conventional guest-chef dinner. The meeting of these two distinctive personalities is rooted in long-standing mutual respect and, above all, in the shared foundations of their gastronomic philosophies. René Frank even admits that Adrià is one of his greatest culinary inspirations.
“Albert Adrià has been one of my greatest culinary inspirations for many years. What fascinates me about him is not only his background in pastry-making, but above all his tireless creativity and his ability to constantly push the boundaries of what we already know. He doesn’t think in terms of categories, but in terms of possibilities—and it is precisely this approach that has shaped our work at CODA from the very beginning,” says René Frank.
Pâtisserie meets haute cuisine
Albert Adrià made his mark on the history of modern gastronomy while working at the legendary elBulli. He was one of the pioneers of a new gastronomic language and played a significant role in ensuring that techniques, methods, and ways of thinking originally associated primarily with the world of desserts began to find their way naturally into savoury cuisine as well.
He took an equally radical approach to the very end of the menu. For him, dessert was not merely the final course that rounds off a meal, but another fully fledged part of the gastronomic experience—a space for new ideas, surprises, and emotions. His work has influenced an entire generation of chefs and helped to change perceptions of what modern pâtisserie and gastronomy have to offer.
Today, Albert Adrià continues to develop his expertise and creative approach at the Barcelona restaurant Enigma, which holds two Michelin stars. And it is precisely his world that is now set to meet, for the first time, the philosophy of CODA and its head chef, René Frank. The result will be a specially created menu on which both teams will collaborate. It will combine the approaches of Albert Adrià and René Frank while continuing the dialogue between cuisine and pastry-making—an area that is fundamental to both chefs.
Albert Adrià × CODA will take place on 25 October 2026 in Berlin. The dinner will be the only event of the day and will mark another highlight of CODA’s anniversary programme.
For lovers of contemporary gastronomy, this is, above all, a rare opportunity to witness what emerges when two chefs—who refuse to view gastronomy as a set of rigid categories—come together at a single table and in a single kitchen. Instead, they seek out new possibilities.
It is precisely this collaboration that could give rise to an evening that will not only celebrate CODA’s anniversary but also serve as a reminder of why it makes sense to continually push the boundaries between cuisine, pâtisserie, and creativity.
