
#SpanishFoodieMonth: The Rise Of Spain As Europe’s Hottest Food Destination
Sometimes it takes an underdog to shake things up a bit, and that’s exactly what happened with the unstoppable rise of Spanish gastronomy. Traditionally, it has always been a sturdy kind of cuisine built on a base of locally grown, seasonal fruit and vegetables, grains, meat and fish, olive oil and lusty wines, reassuringly lacking in pretension and tasty to boot. Any visitor to Spain who has experienced the joys of a joyous pollo al ajillo (chicken stewed in garlic) in the spring, a refreshing gazpacho in the summer, a Catalan beef stew with wild mushrooms in the autumn, or a sumptuous seafood feast on a wintry New Year’s Eve, could not argue otherwise.
But in the 1970s, with chef Juan Mari Arzak (www.arzak.com) at its helm, New Basque Cuisine was born and it changed everything. Inspired by the French Nouvelle Cuisine that was happening in the north, a band of precocious young chefs wanted to take Spanish cuisine to the next level, to elevate it beyond the sum of its parts and lavish it with creative genius. The previously unloved merluza (hake) became their centrefold and with it dishes like hake in green sauce (a lighter, more vibrant take on dishes gone before) emerged. Perhaps more importantly for those of us living in Spain today, so did a new breed of young Spanish chefs who may have learned the craft of good cooking at their mother’s knees, but inspired by this new movement, wanted to dance to the beat of their own drums.
A decade or so later a young chef name Ferran Adrià, who’d been washing dishes at a bar in Ibiza, got his first proper job in a kitchen at El Bulli on the Costa Brava. By then it already had a Michelin star but he’d been spotted by late restaurant manager Juli Soler who was fascinated by his rock-and-roll approach to cooking, a seemingly endless capacity for innovation and a solid work ethic. The comments coming back from the dining room about his food were too enthusiastic to ignore and Soler, hands down the most astute and progressive restauranteur in Spain until his death earlier this year, wasn’t going to miss the opportunity.
In 1985 Ferran took over as head chef, moved his brother Albert in as pastry chef and set about becoming the greatest living chef in the world. In 1993, after a visit to the restaurant New York Times journalist Arthur Ludow asked ‘Is Spain the new France’ and just like that a legend was born. El Bulli was voted the best restaurant in the world four times before it finally closed in July 2011 and will shortly re-open as a foundation for the future of gastronomy, but the far-reaching tentacles of Adrià’s legacy spread not just across Spain, but all around the world. There’s barely a chef who makes it into the World’s 50 Best that didn’t come out of the El Bulli kitchen, and the Spanish cuisine of the 21st century is lauded as one of the best in the world.
The Adrià brothers now have several restaurants in Barcelona and one in Ibiza that run the gamut from new-wave tapas (Tickets), to Japanese-Peruvian ‘Nikkei’ (Pakta) and haute Mexican (Hoja Santa). Their protégées have gone on to open critically acclaimed restaurants of their own (Disfrutar in Barcelona, Paco Roncero in Madrid, Mugaritz in San Sebastian to name but a few) and today, as many people come to Catalonia just to eat as they do to hit its beaches or admire its architecture.
These days, from Bilbao in the north to Barbate in the south, from designer-dining rooms to hole-in-the-wall market stalls, the ‘El Bulli effect’ continues to reverberate around Spain and shows no sign of stopping. The country is the best place in Europe to eat and its star keeps on rising, paving the way for the next chapter in the cuisine’s history. Given the impossible task of listing all the fabulous places out there, instead here’s a whistle-stop tour of 30 of our favourite places all around the country.
Málaga
La Cosmopolita is arguably the buzziest, most atmospheric bar in town and headed by its most gregarious chef, Dani Carnero, who gave up his high-flying gourmet restaurant to do what he loves best. Authentic, regional food made with unsurpassed passion. His prawn and white bean stew is to die for.
www.facebook.com/restaurantelacosmopolita
Marbella
Andaluz chef Dani García made waves when he opened Calima several years ago on the seafront in Marbella (now changed to his own name). And he’s gone global, food-wise at least, with a menu that spans everything from food his grandmother used to make to molecular showstoppers from Peru.
Estepona
The Kabuki Group now has five restaurants between Spain and Japan, including Kabuki Raw at the Finca Cortesin where it combines pristine Mediterranean seafood with elegant Japanese cooking. A theatrical dining room, gorgeous plating and sustainable principles are bonuses.
www.fincacortesin.com/en/hotel/cuisine/kabuki-raw
Vejer
Aside from huge, white sand beaches and stupendous sunsets, the Costa de la Luz is also celebrated for its Retinta cattle, which produce extraordinary beef. Try it, in all its juicy grilled glory (no need to do anything else) at the pretty, countryside of La Castillería just outside of Vejer.
www.restaurantecastilleria.com
Barbate
Known for the almadraba – an ancient Roman tuna fishing ritual – that takes place every year at the end of April / start of May, El Campero is the best place in the land to sample red tuna at its finest. Dishes range from simple sashimi and elegant tartar, to more robust stewed tuna with onions and burgers.
Jerez
Home of insanely good sherry, wonderful tapas bars and our favourite night out in the world. Tabanco El Pasaje is taken over by flamenco puro performers every weekend, but it’s worth dropping by mid-week for superlative local charcuterie and oloroso from the barrel.
Seville
When you tire of the jamón, and the Manchego, and the grilled seafood, Nikkei Bar is just what the doctor ordered. Product centric dishes celebrating the best of Japan and Peru, with a killer pisco sour to boot. There’s no better way to end a weekend away.
www.equipompuntor.com/portfolio/nikkei
Cádiz
The king of the south, Ángel León has been hailed the new Ferran Adrià over the past couple of years. Little surprise when his core ingredients are plankton and fish discards (good to eat but generally thrown overboard in favour of more popular specimens). Expect the unexpected and a magnificent sherry pairing. Now open at the Mandarin Oriental, Barcelona also.
Madrid
Long a favourite among the heady whirl of the capital’s dining scene, Sudestada always manages to be a breath of fresh air thanks to Chef Estanis Carenza’s (heading the restaurant at the new Casa Bonay Hotel in Barcelona too) ability to bring the culinary genius of all of South East Asia into a Mediterranean context. With 7 course tasting menus from €45 he’s also one of the best bargains.
Burgos
For all Spain’s reimagining of its culinary future, it’s just good to know some things never change. Casa Ojeda has been around forever and a veritable mecca for slowly roasted, milk-fed lamb, grilled morcilla (blood sausage), pickled partridge with wild mushrooms and lashings of magnificent Ribera del Duero wine.
A Coruña
Casa Pardo by Eduardo Pardo at the jaw-dropping Museum of Mankind offers the chance to take in the views from within sensational architecture while tucking into stellar grilled scallops and mero with uber traditional veggies like grelos (turnip tops).
Llanes
It’s fair to say Asturias is one of the most beautiful regions in Spain with some of the worst weather. That’s where the sidrerias come in. You won’t mind the rain once firmly ensconced in the stone dining room of Casa Poli tucking into homemade grilled chorizo and morcilla followed by a hearty fabada (bean stew) paired with the regions excellent cider.
Santander
Cañadio is a local institution. A lively tapas bar with a more formal, sit-down restaurant at the rear, but it’s bar side you want to be, rubbing shoulders with locals and tucking into treats like bacalao and chorizo croquettes with a endless copas of albariño.
Bilbao
Another great museum restaurant, Nerua is fast giving San Sebastian a run for its money on the serious food stakes. Even the dining chairs are more art than furniture, and the food is simply sublime, which was enough to earn it 51 on the World’s 50 Best earlier this year. We’re betting on a top 20 entry next.
Getaria
If you love wild turbot, unadulterated and cooked over a wood flame you’ll love Elkano. The dining room occupies a bay window overlooking the Bay of Biscay – not much wrong with that – but what we love is the old school Spanishness of the place. Simply heaven.
San Sebastián
Probably the best tapas bar in the world, Ganbara is where you’ll find all of San Sebastián’s feted Michelin starred chefs on their night off. Come to tuck into wild mushrooms, simply grilled and tossed with the yolk of an organic hens egg, sumptuous seafood and conviviality of José and Amaia who opened the joint over 25 years ago.
Pamplona
Café Iruña was Hemingway’s favourite haunt for knocking back the Navarra’s excellent Rosado wines. We love it as an atmospheric spot for breakfast before a day of sightseeing, or for a bargain menu del día.
Logroño
In the heart of La Rioja the main pastime is glugging wine, but when the munchies strike make for the Calle del Laurel, which has around 60 tapas bars to choose from. It’s all good stuff but make a beeline for any pintxos coming hot out of the kitchen and topped with grilled jamón and a fried quails egg.
Tudela
The Hotel Aire de Bardenas stands out for its lonely spot within the haunting Bardenas badlands. Don’t be put off – it’s starkly beautiful in that unique way that deserts are. The restaurant specialises in vegetarian cooking with goodies plucked from their very own garden, and its well worth staying the night just so you can stay up star-gazing.
Cadaqués
Former El Bulli chef’s Mateu Casañas, Eduard Xatruch and Oriol Castro opened Compartir in 2012 determined to continue the legacy in a more low-key way. The pretty stone restaurant serves tapas with plenty of new wave flourishes like beetroot salad with almond ‘glass’, but don’t think of it as tasting menu, these plates are meant for sharing with the gang.
Ullastret
The sort of village restaurant you dream of for winter weekend lunches: a stone cottage with a real log fire and hearty Catalan dishes that are perfect after a long walk in surrounding countryside. Tuck into soul-warming spicy baked snails, stewed beef cheeks, and grilled duck liver with palm honey.
Girona
Unless you’ve been living under a rock the current World’s Best Restaurant, Cellar de Can Roca, needs little introduction. The original was opened by their parents way back when and still exists as a village bar Can Roca (well worth a visit for Montserrat’s sensational calamari), but the three brothers moved down the hill to the operation that is the restaurant today. Come for the do-before-you-die tasting menu, stay because they’re the sweetest family on earth.
Alella
This bright, conservatory style restaurant is one of the best examples of Catalonia’s KM0 principles in action using only sustainable, local and organic ingredients. The result is a menu that tastes deeply, authentically of place in dishes like lettuce soup with marinated mackerel and cucumber sorbet and sweet Cal Pauet lamb.
Barcelona
For buzz factor few places beat Bar Brutal Can Cisa with its gregarious vibe, largely natural wine list (try them, they just might surprise you) that changes regularly and stupendous cooking. Think decadent, oozy balls of burratta lavished with truffles and grilled octopus tossed in leche de tigre.
Sant Pau d’Ordal
For a wine region the Penedés has a curious dearth of good restaurants, but Cal Xim is an exception. Squirreled away in the pint-sized town of Sant Pau d’Ordal, owner Santi is a local legend for his unpretentious menu of dishes cooked over a real wood flame: sausages made in the village, wild duck and fish from nearby Vilanova. Did we mention it has one of the best wine lists in Spain?
Tarragona
Casinet is an old boat house right on the shore at the San Salvador Playa, with wood floors, soaring pitched ceilings and jolly, blue and white trim. Famous far and wide for its fried fish and 13 different types of rice and fideuàs, it’s perfect for a family Sunday.
Valencia
The city’s paella joints are well documented. Less so is its dazzling fresh produce market and the stall of chef Ricardo Camarena, Central Bar, where you can indulge in the crunchiest buñuelos de bacalao, grilled calamari and heavenly crunchy pigs ear with mojo picon (the spicy Canary Island salsa) washed down with local wines by the glass.
Denia
One of Spain’s most innovative chefs, Quique Dacosta’s self-named restaurant is well worth the journey for a menu that constantly surprises. The full tasting menu doesn’t come cheap at €185 (before wine), but it’ll take you to the stars, starting with snacks in the garden and ending with desert in a playful dining room by hot shot designer Jaime Hayon.
Granada
Not the best city in Spain when it comes to food, so stick to the classics – wedges of tortilla, Iberian ham, Manchego cheese – and have it at the wood-paneled Bodegas Castañeda which oozes atmosphere from every corner.
www.facebook.com/pages/Bodegas-Castañeda
Antequera
One for the serious foodies, Arte de Cozina is an extraordinary little restaurant by Charo Carmona who specializes in the recuperation of traditional recipes from the region like orange porro (somewhere between a gazpacho and a dip) and chicken escabeche. Not to be missed on the route south.