Marcos Castillo is the co-founder, along with his brother, of the Arya restaurant in Úbeda. In his restaurant Arya, Marcos Castillo creates recipes from around the world, with a particular focus on Asian cuisine. Throughout his extensive career, Castillo has worked in renowned gastronomic establishments such as Hacienda Benazuza with chef Ferran Adrià and Manzanilla Málaga with chef Dani García.

The recipe that has earned him a spot in the final is the Seafood Ramen. A ramen where the velvety texture achieved with egg yolks takes center stage.

Javier Manceras is a very young chef hailing from Málaga. He studied culinary management, and since completing his training, he has worked as a chef in 5-star hotels in Málaga, such as the Gran Hotel Miramar. Currently, he is a chef at the Only You Hotel in Málaga.

His recipe for the Asian Culinary Awards final is the Malaga Ramen, where the traditional dashi broth and katsuobushi are replaced by strips of “pintarrojas,” dried using the sun-drying technique employed by ancient fishermen from Málaga.

Carlos Hernández studied the Higher Degree in Kitchen Management at the CETT hospitality and tourism school in Barcelona. He completed professional internships in restaurants such as Peppe Zullo’s in southern Italy, Jesús Sánchez’s Cenador de Amós (three Michelin stars), and undertook a stage at one of the world’s best restaurants, El Celler de Can Roca (three Michelin stars) by Joan, Josep, and Jordi Roca. Currently, he is the second chef at ABAC (three Michelin stars) under the command of Chef Jordi Cruz.

His finalist recipe is a Thai Fusion Chicken Ramen, featuring a broth with Thai romesco noodles accompanied by a Japanese ninoyaki fritter filled with Thai chicken and mirin mayonnaise.