The Atlantic Connection

Nai means mother in Galician. It's not just a pretty name chosen at random — it's biographical. Every recipe that comes out of this kitchen comes from hers.

"My mother taught me to cook with
seasoning and heart — cooking her
recipes is a reminder that without her,
I wouldn't be here." — Álvaro Fuentes

The Encounter

Atlantic Connection isn't a fusion — it's Galicia and Yucatán looking at each other across the same ocean. Chef Álvaro Fuentes brings his cooking from San Vicente do Mar, by way of Solla, of Coya in London, of his own stages at Lasarte with Paolo Casagrande, all the way to Taberna Meloxeira, which he opened back home. Before NAI opened, he ran two tasting menus at Delfina to see how Mérida would respond to his cooking — it wasn't a blind bet, it was months of conversation before the final menu was set.

"Our cooking is built on the essential — on letting the product express itself, on limiting ourselves to accompanying it, caressing it, wrapping it, so it can reach its full potential. No rushing, no artifice, no shortcuts."
— Álvaro Fuentes

Chef Álvaro Fuentes