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The first Spanish food revolution came in the early 1980s with a group of enlightened Basque chefs who had the audacity to steal some of the stars and the limelight from their French counterparts. The second is happening now, this time with Catalonia as its powerhouse. Once again the catalyst for change has been a chef, this time Ferran Adrià and his legendary restaurant El Bulli on the Catalan coast.
While his kitchens have spawned many notable alumni, such as Carles Abellan at Comerç 24, the trickle-down effect of Adrià’s global success – in April 2006 El Bulli was voted ‘Best Restaurant in the World’ – has also had a huge impact on the gastronomy of the region. Not only is cookery the new rock ’n’ roll among young Spaniards, but suddenly gourmet pilgrims from the States, Japan or Australia are showing up with the express intention of splashing some cash in restaurants.
This has led to an increase in quality overall, but also to a rash of new and excellent dining options, among them Andaira, Cinc Sentits, Lasarte, Moo and, in the Hotel Palace, Caelis.Welcome new additions of a less rarefied nature include the wonderfully cosy Tapioles 53, the excellent tapas at Mam i Teca or just a really good pizza at Ravalo.
Culture clash
The recent accolades afforded to Spanish restaurants have gone a long way towards resolving their image problem. To be fair, the bad press that Spanish restaurants have had until recently was down, in large part, to ignorance or a certain cultural inflexibility on the part of other nations. The oft-heard complaint of the northern tourist regarding the lack of vegetables fails to take into account that these are served first, in order that the meat may be better appreciated. Ironically, this then gives rise to another complaint when a mere plate of vegetables is presented as a starter. ‘My water wasn’t chilled!’ is another, but Spaniards often find water more palatable at room temperature and may assume you prefer it thus. When the food arrives, if one person hasn’t ordered a starter, it’s considered only polite to bring their main course to the table together with the other diners’ starters. As in France, there is no stigma attached to leaving the cutlery to be used for a second course. The list goes on.
International rescue
Meanwhile, and despite record levels of immigration from around the world, authentic global cuisine is still hard to find in Barcelona. Local resistance to spices and the difficulty of sourcing key ingredients mean that it’s difficult to find good Indian, Chinese or Italian food. Middle Eastern and Japanese restaurants have been rather more successful, along with a growing number of Latin American places. Most of the ethnic variety – including good Korean (San Kil), Nepalese (Himali) or Iraqi (Mesopotamia) – is to be found in Gràcia.
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