07 Season synopsis

Three chapters, one journey

Mario Sandoval is not just a "two Michelin star" chef. Mario and his brothers are heirs to a family saga that began with their grandparents running a roadside bar in Humanes (Madrid). Their parents, of silent sacrifice, took bold decisions until Coque became a regional and national reference. Mario, Rafa and Diego took another leap, moving their kitchen to central Madrid, where they have become the most authentic international ambassadors of Spanish and Madrilenian cuisine.

But Mario is not at ease, he has not yet reached the summit. At this moment of maximum professional exposure, he asks himself what he can ultimately contribute. His mind is working on the project that will define him: leaving a legacy, building a new concept of restaurant that looks to the future from its origins, from its essence.

Mario and his brothers have found a refuge in the Sierra de Guadarrama, and are transforming a farm at Jaral de la Mira. Now their flagship project — Coque — has a direct line to nature. Marqués de Riscal street in Chamberí draws from the Madrid sierra: a special connection has been born.

With the help of a coach, Mario revisits key moments of the road travelled: the move from Humanes to Madrid, the 2008 crisis and the pandemic that nearly destroyed the business, the death of his parents, the pressure of filling tables every night… and above all, the responsibility of passing on a family empire to the next generation. All of it builds a genuine emotional portrait of a culinary genius, a privileged man who from the outside seems to have reached everything, but who still has one step to take: the definitive one.

Our series explores tensions: tradition versus innovation, family as engine with little time to devote, Madrid as local identity and global platform. We will accompany Mario and his people on the road to balance, from the honesty of a desire to endure through regeneration. Will they make it? Have they found at El Jaral the solution to their quest for excellence?

Chapter 01

The Root

Origin and sacrifice

The Sandoval family recalls how they evolved from a roadside bar to their current business. We trace the origin: Mario's childhood, the personal relationship with his grandparents, parents and siblings. Together they analyse how their lives have been shaped by the business, how the mix of professional and personal life has built their values. They will remember the 2008 crisis, which nearly ended the business, and the crucial steps they took in moving to central Madrid and, later, betting on an entirely different model at the Jaral de la Mira estate, in the Sierra de Guadarrama. Here, Mario rediscovers that his roots are not only emotional — they are territorial. Mario decides to ask a coach for help because he has lost motivation. Everyone around him applauds his decision while we observe how public exposure has given him a very full life that fails to fulfil him. After his first visit to his adviser, Mario begins to face his fear. He is about to take a step. But not alone.

Chapter 02

Fire

Strategy and competition

Two Michelin stars put pressure on a business model, and Coque adds a host of projects that Mario links together. Great chefs like Ferran Adrià, Karlos Arguiñano, Martín Berasategui or Rafael Asua in Spain confirm it. They show us how hard it is to combine gastronomic businesses and keep creating at such a level. We travel to France and ask Régis Marcon and Paul Marcon, two long-standing French chefs, how they see Mario's evolution from the outside, exchanging knowledge about French and Spanish culinary tradition and legacy. Mario's family rallies under his leadership. Mario is enthusiastic about the CSIC — he is not only a chef, not only cooking — there are more fronts open. And tension emerges: how to maintain simultaneous excellence in so many demanding arenas? Mario lives a sweet moment around the international attention he generates, yet holding onto the two stars is no easy task, and amid it all… a step forward. But with the first steps come the first problems: how far does this revolution reach? Will his guests, his investors understand it? Will they get the permits needed to open the new path?

Chapter 03

Summit

Battle and Legacy

Coque radiates fulfilment. It chains successful menus — Menú Chamberí, Menú Madrid — carrying its banner and origins around the world. But the step forward could make everything wobble. Mario faces the emptiness of the summit: he is getting where he wanted, but will Coque keep evolving as a family business? Will the legacy he wants to leave materialise? Will he finally leave his definitive mark, his signature in a new culinary project? Will he reach excellence through it? The chapter accompanies Mario and his family before the greatest challenge of their lives: to leave a place better than the one they inherited. Turning El Jaral into their summit and reaching excellence through a return to origins leads them to see that there is only one way: regeneration. Will they achieve their aims?