John Wilmot was an English poet, aristocrat and libertine, who predated the Marquis de Sade. It’s also the name that Eugeni de Diego – one of the former head chefs during ElBulli’s golden age – has given to his tapas bar: Colmado Wilmot. ‘I wanted to get away from the idea of the traditional colmado or old-school bar, and give it a more international feel. But still keep it popular and accessible – a place where anyone can come and have a good time. I’m from Badalona, you know?’ explains the chef-entrepreneur.
He defines Wilmot as ‘a bloody little dive where you can get out for €20 eating tortilla and capipota, but we can also top your fried eggs with baby eels.’ And although everything might seem simple at first glance, de Diego flashes a sly grin. He places a slice of potato tortilla with garlic prawns in front of me, which I devour eagerly. Brief and brilliant like a sin of lust, with the garlicky prawn juices and prawn heads blending into the onion caramel and the egg. ‘I learned this at ElBulli: you have to hit that rising curve of flavour in a single bite. If the pincho were bigger, it would lose that essence,’ he grins cheekily.
Careful with the sofritos. The house callos and capipota are gelatinous wonders with tomato confit and just the right amount of heat – and the same goes for the Strogonoff meatballs. You can also order the stews in rabanera trays – those old-school appetiser dishes – and try them in small portions, like some snails with sobrasada, or jazz up a tortilla pincho with those garlic prawns, callos, capipota or chistorra cooked in cider. And of course, this is vermouth heaven, with sardines, gildas, anchovies, and a homemade aperitif sauce from the Maresme.
This review is by Ricard Martin, food and drink editor at Time Out Barcelona, from his visit in 2023.