What Grupo Lezama does

Grupo Lezama is a privately held Spanish hospitality group founded in 1974 in Madrid by Luis de Lezama and controlled by Fundación Iruaritz Lezama. It operates an integrated portfolio spanning restaurants, hospitality education, catering, rural accommodation, and a Christian school, employing more than 500 people. Its restaurant operations include Taberna del Alabardero (with locations in Madrid, Seville, and Washington DC), Café de Oriente, La Botillería, AMMO, and Alabardero Beach Club. The group monetizes primarily through direct consumer transactions (dine-in sales, catering contracts, accommodation bookings) and tuition across its educational programs.

Its core products are physical hospitality experiences and vocational training, not technology platforms. The educational arm—ESHS in Sevilla, ESAH online, and HI Campus Innova hybrid programs—has trained more than 35,000 students and has been recognized by EURHODIP as a top European hospitality school on three occasions. Fundación IDEHS, created in 2004, formalizes research activity in hospitality. Alabardero Catering & Experiences extends the restaurant brands into event services across multiple Spanish venues. There is no disclosed proprietary technology stack, no software product, and no AI or data platform underpinning the offering.

The business model combines per-cover restaurant revenue, per-student tuition, per-event catering fees, and lodging income, all operated under a social-enterprise governance structure via Fundación Iruaritz Lezama. Geographic concentration is Spanish (Madrid and Seville primarily) with a single US restaurant and a US academic partnership with Central Washington University. The group is family-controlled and has not pursued external funding rounds; founder Luis de Lezama died in 2025 and was succeeded by Jon Urrutia as chairman.

Name

Grupo Lezama

Legal name

TABERNA DEL ALABARDERO SA

Website

https://grupolezama.es

Company type

Private

Founded year

1974

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

Grupo Lezama is a privately held Spanish hospitality group operating restaurants (Taberna del Alabardero, Café de Oriente, and others), hospitality schools (ESHS, ESAH), catering services, and rural accommodation across Spain and Washington DC. It serves diners, hospitality students, event clients, and lodging guests under a social-enterprise structure.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Hospitality Services

NAICS

Restaurants and Other Eating Places (72251), Caterers (722320), Traveler Accommodation (7211)

SIC

Retail-Eating & Drinking Places (5810), Hotels, Rooming Houses, Camps & Other Lodging Places (7000), Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

Hotel & Resort Restaurants (THAFACAH)

akta.pro secondary industry

VIP, Executive Dining & Hospitality Suites Catering (THAHAKAI)

Keywords

• Hospitality services
• Restaurant operations
• Culinary education
• Event catering
• Hospitality training

Headquarters

HQ city

Madrid

HQ country

Spain

HQ region

Europe

Offices10 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Restaurant Operations: Revenue from operating owned restaurant establishments including Taberna del Alabardero, Café de Oriente, La Botillería, Ammo beach club, and Alabardero Beach Club across Spain and Washington DC.
2. Events and Catering: Revenue from Alabardero Catering & Experiences providing event catering services at exclusive and certified venues across Spain.
3. Educational Services: Revenue from ESHS (Escuela Superior de Hostelería de Sevilla) on-campus training and ESAH (Estudios Superiores Abiertos de Hostelería) online courses, offering over 50 courses and masters in hospitality, tourism, cuisine, pastry, oenology, management, and event organization.
4. Accommodation Services: Revenue from Caserío Iruaritz rural accommodation facility in País Vasco, offering rooms and event spaces.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Grupo Lezama operates a hospitality portfolio comprising more than 10 owned restaurants (Taberna del Alabardero locations in Madrid, Washington DC, Marbella, Pozuelo and Sevilla; Café de Oriente; La Botillería; AMMO Beach Club; Alabardero Beach Club), in-person and online hospitality education (Escuela Superior de Hostelería de Sevilla, ESAH, Hi Campus Innova), event catering services (Alabardero Catering & Experiences) at exclusive venues across Spain, rural accommodation (Caserío Iruaritz) and a Christian school (Colegio Santa María La Blanca). The group is anchored by a social mission of training and integrating underprivileged populations into the workforce, executed through the controlling Fundación Iruaritz Lezama.

Product overview

Grupo Lezama is a social enterprise group operating a portfolio of 10+ restaurants (Taberna del Alabardero locations in Madrid, Washington DC, Marbella, and Pozuelo; Café de Oriente; La Botillería; Alabardero Beach Club; AMMO), hospitality education institutions (Escuela Superior de Hostelería de Sevilla, ESAH online training, HI Campus Innova), event catering (Alabardero Catering & Experiences), rural accommodation (Caserío Iruaritz), research foundation (Fundación IDEHS), and a private school (Colegio Santa María La Blanca). The group operates across Spain (Madrid, Sevilla, Marbella, Málaga, Basque Country) and Washington D.C., with a focus on human capital development and social responsibility.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Taberna del Alabardero Madrid
• Taberna del Alabardero Washington DC
• Taberna del Alabardero Marbella
• Taberna del Alabardero Pozuelo
• Café de Oriente
• La Botillería
• Alabardero Beach Club Marbella
• AMMO Beach Club Marbella
• Escuela Superior de Hostelería de Sevilla (ESHS)
• ESAH - Estudios Superiores Abiertos de Hostelería
• Hi Campus Innova
• Alabardero Catering & Experiences
• Caserío Iruaritz
• Finca Botania
• Colegio Santa María La Blanca
• Fundación IDEHS

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 35,000 students trained through ESAH online programs
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Partnerships

24 partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Agencia de Empleo del Ayuntamiento de MadridminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration in professional training and socio-labor insertion for employment seekers
• Fundación IntegraminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration in professional training and socio-labor insertion
• Fundación TomillominorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration in professional training and socio-labor insertion
• Fundación Obra Social La CaixaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration in professional training and socio-labor insertion
• Cámara de comercio de MadridminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration in professional training and business development
• Cruz Roja españolaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration in professional training and socio-labor insertion for vulnerable populations
• Universidad Pablo de OlavidecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint programs for university-level hospitality education. Collaborates on design and execution of university-level programs including Master's in Hospitality Management and Direction.
• Universidad Alfonso X El SabiominorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration in professional training and academic programs
• Universidad Rey Juan CarlosminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration in professional training and academic programs
• Salesianos AtochaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration in professional training and socio-labor insertion
• IES Escuela Superior de Hostelería y Turismo de MadridminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration in hospitality education and professional training
• Escuela de Hostelería de Alcalá de HenaresminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration in hospitality education and professional training
• Grupo Empleo NorteminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration in employment and professional insertion services
• Opción 3 Iniciativa SocialminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration in social and professional insertion programs
• Colegio Internacional JH NewmanminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration in educational programs
• Lycee Polyvalent de Hostellerie et de tourisme de Gascogne (France)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational collaboration in hospitality education with French institution
• CáritasminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration in food handler training for people at risk of social exclusion
• Don BoscominorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration in professional training and social insertion
• Fundación SeurminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration in professional training and logistics sector programs
• Culinary Institute of AmericacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDevelopment of Cátedra de Gastronomía Española at CIA New York. International collaboration for gastronomy education and cultural exchange.
• Central Washington University (Seattle)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint development of degrees in Kitchen Direction and Nutrition and Hotel Direction, to be offered in both Seattle and Seville.
• Fundación Princesa de GironaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerParticipated in Expediciones Pedagógicas program for educational excellence
• Junta de AndalucíaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration in creating evaluation tools for school cafeterias and sensory analysis training for inspectors
• Fundación TheodoraminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration for children's charity during Christmas at Café de Oriente. Theodora Foundation brings joy to hospitalized children.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• NH Hotel Group: Major Spanish-headquartered hotel group operating 350+ hotels across Europe, the Americas, and Africa; broad Spanish hospitality positioning with finer-dining and event-catering operations inside hotel properties comparable to Grupo Lezama's hospitality/event span.
• Iberostar Hotels & Resorts: Major Spanish hospitality group with 100+ hotels in 17 countries plus a foundation focus on education and sustainability. Comparable broad Spanish-hospitality positioning with tourism/hospitality education outreach—parallel to ESHS and Grupo Lezama's social-mission orientation.
• Meliá Hotels International: Spain's largest hotel group with global operations across more than 40 countries. Provides the broad Spanish hospitality incumbent comparison given overlapping geography and overlapping fine-dining and event-catering components.

Direct peers

• Les Roches: Globally ranked Swiss hospitality management school with campuses in Switzerland, Spain (Marbella), China, and the US. Comparable to ESHS in higher-education hospitality training and brand positioning, but at materially larger international scale and reputation.
• Paradores de Turismo de España: Spain's state-run network of heritage hotels including restored historic buildings and rural estates—directly comparable to Caserío Iruaritz's 15th-century rural estate—with on-site fine-dining and event-catering operations across all Spanish regions.
• Grupo Sagardi: Barcelona-based multi-concept Spanish/Basque restaurant group operating more than a dozen venues across Spain, the Americas, and the UK. Directly comparable to Grupo Lezama in focus on traditional Basque-Spanish cuisine across multiple brand concepts and similar international expansion thesis.
• Grupo Larrumba: Madrid restaurant group operating multiple high-end concepts in the city (Mercado de la Reina, Picalagartos, Ten Con Ten, Arzábal). Comparable multi-brand Madrid operations competing for the same premium Spanish-cuisine diner segment as Taberna del Alabardero, Café de Oriente, and La Botillería.
• ThinkFoodGroup: Chef José Andrés's multi-concept restaurant company behind Jaleo, é by José Andrés, and other Spanish-cuisine concepts across the US. Comparable international footprint and multi-format Spanish-cuisine focus to Taberna del Alabardero DC, which has operated since 1989.
• Basque Culinary Center: San Sebastián-based higher education and research institution for gastronomy and hospitality with Spain's leading culinary degree programs—directly comparable to ESHS in scope, prestige, and Spanish/regional positioning, and to Fundación IDEHS's research mission.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/LezamaG_
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/ESAHtv
• Facebookfacebook.com/grupolezama
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/grupo-lezama
• Instagraminstagram.com/grupolezama

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Subsidiaries16 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Grupo Lezama