Nieves Barragán Mohacho on Sabor and Spanish cooking

On Heddon Street in London’s Mayfair, Sabor has become one of the capital’s most recognisable Spanish restaurants.

Opened by chef director Nieves Barragán Mohacho in 2018, the Michelin-starred restaurant is designed to take diners on a journey through Spain’s regional cooking - from the tapas bars of Andalucía to the asadors of Castile and the seafood traditions of Galicia.

Spread across several spaces including the ground-floor bar and counter, communal dining at La Mesa and the upstairs grill restaurant El Asador, Sabor offers different ways to experience Spanish food and hospitality under one roof.

For Nieves, however, one principle runs through every part of the restaurant: openness.

“I’ve been doing that for the last 23 years. I have not been hiding in the kitchen since I opened my restaurants,” she said.

The open kitchen format is something she has carried throughout her career.

“At Fino, Barrafina, Sabor, and Legado, the best feeling is to have an open kitchen and to interact with the customers. That interaction with the guests is the best part. That is hospitality.

“Here we have nothing to hide. Everything is open plan. The customers can see absolutely everything. They can talk with us, they can see it, they can smell it, they can feel it.”

It’s an approach that defines the atmosphere at Sabor. Guests sit at the counter just metres from the chefs, watching fish being grilled, tapas assembled and plates passed across the pass.

But despite the theatre of cooking in full view, Nieves insists the visibility doesn’t change how the team works.

“No, because we have so much respect for the food that there is nothing to hide.”

From Bilbao to London

Nieves grew up in Bilbao in Spain’s Basque Country, where food and cooking were central to everyday life.

She recalled: “My mum was a cook, so from very young I had a knife in my hand, trying to help with my mum in the kitchen.”

When she moved to London in the late 1990s, the experience was both exciting and challenging.

“The difference is huge. When I came to London, I could hardly speak English,” she said.

“I was working in French restaurants and learning so much.”

Those early kitchens became the foundation of a career that would eventually see her lead some of London’s most influential Spanish restaurants. After years working within the Hart brothers’ restaurant group - including Fino and Barrafina - Nieves opened Sabor in Mayfair, bringing her own vision of Spanish cooking to the capital.

A restaurant built around Spain

From the beginning, Sabor was designed to showcase the breadth of Spanish cuisine.

The Counter on the ground floor channels the atmosphere of traditional tapas bars, with chefs preparing dishes in front of diners and a daily selection of seafood prepared by the restaurant’s in-house fishmonger.

Upstairs, El Asador focuses on cooking over fire, with dishes inspired by the grill traditions of Galicia and Castile.

The restaurant’s signature dishes reflect that regional diversity, from grilled seafood and tortilla to the famous Segovian suckling pig cooked in the wood-fired oven.

For Nieves, however, the aim goes beyond simply serving Spanish dishes.

“Even today, I’m still learning,” she insisted.

“The difference now is that I have the confidence to open a Spanish restaurant, but I keep travelling to Spain and around the world to bring

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the very best ideas back to Sabor.

“It’s super important to transport the people who come to Sabor, to Spain. That’s what we want. That’s what we’re looking for.”

Food at Sabor

The rhythm of the kitchen

Service at Sabor is built around a daily rhythm that begins long before the first guests arrive.

Nieves said: “At 10 o'clock we have breakfast with the whole team - kitchen and front of house. It's very important for us to sit down together and have breakfast.”

That moment together sets the tone for the day ahead.

Later, as service approaches, the team prepare one of the restaurant’s most visual rituals.

Fifteen minutes before opening, chefs assemble a seafood display featuring the fresh fish delivered that day - a reminder of the produce at the heart of the menu.

The ingredients then dictate the dishes that follow.

“I always have artichokes on my menu, when they are available,” said Nieves.

“We clean them, put them in water with lemon and serve with black garlic aioli, confit egg yolk and ham.”

The menu also reflects the chef’s curiosity and willingness to explore ingredients she encountered after arriving in the UK.

“When I first came to London, many years ago, I had never tried rhubarb,” she said.

“We cut them in lengths, marinate in sugar overnight to lose all the juices. Then we're going to put it in the fridge. We poach it in brandy, blood orange and a lot of spices, to make it into a tartaleta, with whisky mascarpone.”

Alongside the smaller dishes and tapas, the kitchen is also known for its larger sharing plates, particularly the roast suckling pigs that have become one of the restaurant’s most recognisable dishes.

Creating a sense of home

Despite the scale of the restaurant and the Michelin star it earned within a year of opening, the aim has always been to create a space that feels welcoming and familiar.

One detail that captures this idea is the distinctive Spanish tiles behind the counter where diners often sit.

“When I opened Sabor, I wanted to make sure that when guests sit next to us, they feel like they are at home,” said Nieves.

“Tiles is very Spanish. When you sit down here, it should feel like you are in someone’s home. We are cooking in front of you, like you are in my house.”

The atmosphere reflects the way food is shared across Spain - lively, informal and centred around people coming together at the table.

Nieves Barragán Mohacho and Sabor's exterior

After service

For chefs, however, the working day rarely ends when the last guests leave the restaurant.

The quiet moments after a long shift are often when the real reflection happens.

“Every day is different, because every day is a different day,” said Nieves.

“Most of the time we have an incredible time, but sometimes you still go home thinking about things.

“When I go home, I need about an hour to reflect on the day - what happened, what went well, and how we can improve for the next day.”

It’s a habit that has shaped Nieves’ career - a continuous cycle of learning, refining and improving.

And whether she is cooking at Sabor or developing new ideas for Legado, which also won a Michelin star this year, the philosophy remains the same: respect the ingredients, celebrate Spanish culture and keep the kitchen open to the people who come to experience it.