Before going on a calçotada ‘the popular gastronomical fiesta of Catalunya’ it is important to first work up an appetite. So along with some friends in our Hiking and Outdoors Meetup Group we went for a walk, a stroll to see some 13th century castles.

The first…just outside the town of El Pont d’Armentera (where we soon would be returning for our feast of calçots). The ruins of the tiny village and castle of Selmella.

(more…)

Jason and I have been busy sampling the wonderful gastronomy that BCN has to offer. The map is an ongoing collection of places we have been to or want to try. Bon Profit!

View Larger Map

What could be more intriguing than a restaurant claiming to serve courses made up of nothing but deserts. Woo hoo, chocolates, ice cream, pastries oh my, oh no. We should have done a little more research before booking a reservation for ourselves and 6 friends for Espai Sucre…

At ESPAISUCRE, we fight for the right of the restaurant dessert to be seen as an element with its own personality and codes, where the result, the sum of technique and experience, quietly blurs the limits that separate the concepts of sweet and savoury.

Nothing could have prepared us for the molecular gastronomy that awaited us.
The menu (these are just a few of the courses)

• “Marialuisa” cold soup with green apple and spicy yoghurt ice cream and pineapple foam
• Flowered flavour: raspberry sorbet, hibiscus soup, rose ice, tomato foam, red wine gel
• Extra virgin olive oil cake, white peach sorbet, green olive and “San Simón” cheese whip
• Empyreumatic (i can’t begin to explain this thing. meringue, chickory ice cream (did not like) and beer foam (oh god it looked like a drunk had hiccuped on my plate)
• ”Ginger ale”, cucumber and pineapple-tarragon sherbet
• Truffle mushroom, butter ice cream, hazelnut, cocoa

(more…)