Blanca Valencia

Blanca Valencia is a writer, and event curator specializing in the intersection of food, culture, and storytelling. Born in Spain and raised in Central America, she has lived across the globe—including Chicago, Dalian, Paris, Madrid, Buenos Aires, and London—before settling in Dublin.

She co-hosted the award-winning podcast Spice Bags about international food in Ireland from 2019 to 2023 with writers Mei Chin and Dee Laffan and author Blasta Books Soup, nominated for Best Irish Cookbook in 2023.

She has helmed the kitchens at Madrid’s El Alambique and London’s Books for Cooks, lectured at the Cervantes Institute (Chicago & Dublin), and staged at the elbulli hotel in Seville.

Blanca explores Spanish food culture in her new substack The Gazpacho Chronicles with essays such as why film director Almodóvar's flans are overcooked or how to create a template to eat and drink in any Spanish city.