Who are you ?
My name is Belén Barnechea, I am 28 years old, I was born in Peru and grew up there for the first twelve years of my life. Since then, I have not stopped moving from place to place. Five years ago I moved to Madrid.
What do you do for a living ?
I have a bakery called Casa Manjar , which was born during the lockdown.
What was your professional background?
I studied marketing and public relations in Boston. I then moved to New York to work in advertising, within the HAVAS group, then to Madrid to work at ATREVIA, a corporate communication agency. After several years in the agency, I decided to create my own company.
How was Casa Manjar born?
Casa Manjar was born from the illusion of having Peruvian desserts in Madrid. She was born out of a dream, I would say. The dream came true during the pandemic. Moira, my co-founder, and I spent the entire lockdown testing family recipes that we both had, we tried, mixed and changed recipes until we had the perfect recipes to sell.
What makes Casa Manjar so special?
For me, everything is special. It's something that has a lot of dedication, love and family history behind it.
What inspires your recipes the most?
My grandmother, my grandmother was the matriarch of my family and it was all about her house. It is his recipes that inspire me, because they are desserts that I have eaten since I was a child.
Your three favorite spots in Madrid?
My favorite place in Madrid to eat is La Parra, the bar I would say Le Coq (although I don't party as much anymore). I really like shopping but I have to say that I don't do much in Madrid. If I had to choose a few stores, I think it would be NAC , Misia , Pez and Es Fascinante.
Your best kept beauty secret?
Retinol, sunscreen and my beauty sleep for 8 hours every day. Now that I've met QUINQUE, I could say the detox mask haha.