One of the best things about living in Girona is that in the blink of an eye and after a quick car ride, you can be in the middle of nature, changing the urban environment for a rural one. One nearby place you'll find in an enviable natural location is the restaurant Maràngels, situated in an old Catalan country house ('masia') from the 17th century, in the village of Sant Gregori - it has splendid gardens, ideal for relaxing while sipping on a vermouth and getting your appetite up before heading to your table.
Even though it opened back in the '90s, it's been headed up since 2005 by Eva Márquez in the dining-room and Xesco Mas in the kitchen - he's the son of the chef who made the Ànec Blau restaurant in Vic famous, Miquel Mas. While traditional cuisine forms the basis of what they make, the key to their success is in the way they modernise such dishes, taking their cue from the season and local ingredients to create a menu that changes four times a year, although star dishes remain constant, dishes such as: steak tartare, baby squid with egg, wild fish, artichokes with ham, and, of course, truffles, which are in abundance in the local Valley of Llémena.
