Barcelona's best: Can Pineda

I've been to Can Pineda twice.  Even so, I still can't tell you how to get there.  It is tucked away in one of Barcelona's least popular "barrios" (areas), and even the directions given to taxi drivers illicit blank stares.  When you arrive there, you question yourself again.....uh oh, did I make a mistake coming here?  The decoration is, how should I put it? Kitschy, to be nice.  The wooden tables and chairs look like the ones your italian friends' grandmother had in her kitchen, and the walls are fully tiled in, oooh, let's see......a yellowish brown hue that can best be described as what you find in your baby's diaper.  Then all the plates and old pictures also remind you of "Luigi's" grandmothers house again.  Anyhow, you sit down, read the menu, and everything starts to feel alright......because in this little non descript place, magic happens.

Last night, we made the pilgrimage to Can Pineda.  Two of us having been there, and two virgins.....Emmanuel whom has been to several restaurants with me and always expects the best, and my other friend, Fernando, who is also one of the worlds biggest food lovers and critics.  It took us a good 10 minutes to decide what we wanted to eat, not because we were unsure of what was on the menu, it was because suddenly we all became 5 year olds at a candy shop.  Hardly containing our excitement, we wanted to order everything.  Emmanuel, knowing not a stitch of spanish, let the recently converted children choose the menu....and he was very, very happy indeed. 

Of course, we ordered a bottle of Enate Sotomontano Merlot, from Fernando's beloved region of Aragon.  Then out comes the plate of pan con tomate, tomato bread, which was eaten almost in its entirety by Emmanuel.  Then another plate of bread with Iberian Ham.  I usually don't gush about ham in my blogs because it is kind of a staple here, but this one deserves a mention.  The hue of the ham was darker than I am used to, with large edges of fat.  I was dubious of its quality at first, but as I sampled the first bite, those doubts all fled immidiately from my mind.  Umami.  That is the only way I can describe the sensory sensation that can best describe this ham.  It just dissolves in your mouth, coating your tongue in this inexplicable feeling of pure joy.  Before we could finish the ham, our second plate was brought out.
Pulpo con papada, Octopus and pork cheeks.  We chose this dish for the unusual combination, and also because it reminded Fernando of his childhood when they celebrated the day of St. Martin, which is when they massacre the pigs here in Spain.  He said that after the massacre, they would extract the pork cheeks, which is the best part, and make sandwhiches.

I have to apologize for the quality of the picture, because in our excitement, we dived straight into this marvel of a dish.  The delicate sweetness of the octupus, balanced out the saltiness of the pork cheek, topped with crunchy thin slices of yuca and drizzled with a balsamic reduction.  The octupus was fork tender, and the pork cheeks just melted in our mouths.  All the flavors balanced each other, it just combined perfectly, no one flavor outdoing the other.




After this came the dish that we ALL agreed we would have, Huevo poche con foie, butiffarra y trufa negra,  Poached egg with foie gras, blood sausage and black truffles.

Do you see the mountain of truffles?  This was, as Emmanuel put it, orgasmic.  The waitress explained that we should cut it all up and mix it together, and she was right.  Every single bite cause us to moan with pleasure.  It was a sensory overload.   Every single plate was left clean, and our intrepid diner, Emmanuel, promptly ordered a second dish.  He stated that basically, he would come back here just for this dish, and we said, well, the place might be booked.  Emmanuel quickly answered, " I don't care, I'll eat this on the sidewalk outside, in the rain, under an umbrella" as he quickly devoured the second one in two seconds.

On to our mains.  We chose three different things.  Paolo chose Entrecote de vaca vieja, Entrecote of old cow,  Fernando and I chose the Oxtail with truffled mashed potatoes, and Emmanuel the Gambas de Palamos, Prawns from Palamos (a city in the Costa Brava).

This is Paolo's Entrecote.  Perfectly cooked, on a sizzling plate of oil and it's juices.  Juicy, tender, moist.  It was perfectly seasoned, and accompanied by roasted red Piquillo peppers.  This plate of aged beef was one of the best that I have tasted in Barcelona.  After Paolo was done, everyone was sopping up the pan juices with bread, and as Emmanuel rightly stated, it should be served with a side of Lipitor.

This was what Fernando and I ordered.  The taste was incredible, but we both agreed that the oxtail was a bit dry.  It was disappointing, because done properly, this had the workings of being something superb.  We also found that they had skimped a bit on the truffles, which I personally think that they had given them all to Emmanuel, who had ordered a side dish of just the potatoes and truffles.  His came with the equivalent of Mt. Everest of truffles on top......oh well, perfect it isn't. 

And here are Emmanuel's prawns.  How can I describe these?  Better than lobster is what comes to mind.  Succulent and sweet, and tasting freshly caught from the sea.  Perfectly grilled and topped with just a smidgen of fleur de sel, you are hard pressed to find prawns like this anywhere else in the world.  Gambas de Palamos are reknowed to be the best,  mainly because every two to three years, they disappear.  This is a natural phenomenon that happens when there are extremely cold winters in Cap de Creus (northern Spain) that provoke underwater "waterfalls" that push the prawns to unfishable depths.  These currents also carry a variety of nutrients that feed the prawns, where they proliferate untouched by fishermen.  Then they slowly make their way back up to the coastal areas, in abundance and we have our Gambas again for a short time.  It is said that in 2011 the prawns will "disappear" again, so I am extremely happy that we were able to eat this bounty from the sea.

Now, on to dessert.  I wish I could say we were too full to order dessert, but you know me better than that.  Also, because at Can Pineda there is a gorgeous dessert called Bombetes.  This translates to little bombs.  It's basically filo pastry filled with cream or chocolate, then deep fried.  The result is an explosion of flavor in your mouth, as the cold liquid tempers the hot pastry in your mouth.  You have to eat them in one bite to get the full effect!

So, today, I don't think I will be able to eat anything until dinner time.  But it was well worth it.  I can't wait to make our "pilgrimage" to Can Pineda again some time, because I am sure that it will only surprise me once again.

If you want a break from your Barcelona nightmare of tourist restaurants, and would like to try excellent traditional Spanish cuisine, come to Can Pineda.  You won't regret it.

Can Pineda

St. Joan de Malta, 55

+ 34 933 083 081

Restaurant "Sense Pressa".....No hurries indeed!

Anniversaries, birthdays, after holiday reunion dinners.....yes, that is what has kept me from blogging.  Oh yeah, and a little something called exercise....yuck.  But don't worry, I have managed to go eat at a wonderful restaurant that I would like to share with all my foodie friends.  This is one of those places that when you discover it, you are happy to be amongst those "in the know".  This tiny little place, is called "Sense Pressa", which literally translates to "No Hurries".  Isn't that how all food should be enjoyed?   I mean, it is an obvious concept, but I think that more and more each day, we take our food for granted.  I know, I know, I am one of the lucky ones who doesn't have to be in a car, or office and wolf down food as if tomorrow will never be, never knowing what or how much you are putting in your mouth.  An act to just fuel your body instead of your soul. 
Anyhow, if you are in my part of the world, secure your reservations here well in advance, they are ALWAYS fully booked.  And for good reasons too:  10 tables, amazing, delectable food.

For my boyfriends birthday, we were lucky enough to get a table (actually, he had booked it waaaay in advance without my knowledge) and we promptly arrived at 9pm anxious to sit down all night and sample their delights.

Their menu is quite extensive, but as all my favorite places here, it has a daily off the menu selection.  Which is what we ordered from.

Of course, the meal started off with a bottle of wine.  We tend to stick to whites, only because I have adverse reactions to very strong reds (and most spanish wines are strong and full of tannins, which cause me to have an itchy rash.)  The sommelier recommended a full bodied white to go with our meal.  He explained that it was almost like having a red, that it could accompany meats such as lamb or pork......so much so that it had to be decanted.....VALLEGARCIA   VIOGNIER 2007.  Lovely, subtle, yet with a woody finish.

As our appetizer we ordered a plate of Cecina de Leon, which is  cured beef leg, almost like a spanish ham but with a smokier, meatier taste.  It is usually served with some ground black pepper and a dash of extra virgin olive oil.  Of course, accompanied by Pa amb tomaquet, toasted bread with tomatoes.  This is not a recent discovery, but somehow, if there is a good spanish ham on the menu, the Cecina is usually overlooked.  I think this is a mistake, since good Cecina can be just as good or even better than the ham, especially since most places won't spend the money to get a good quality ham because it can cost over 130 euros per kilo.  ( I am sure this place isn't one that will skimp on good ham, but I have that almost every day.  Yes, I am spoiled.)

The razor thin slices were complex and delicate all at the same time, and with a crusty slice of bread, it is a pairing made in heaven.

Then we moved on to our next appetizer, Foie gras carpaccio with black truffles vinagrette.  I have two complaints.  1. Too much foie.........crazy huh?  2. There was too much vinegar in the vinaigrette, so after a few bites, it started to cancel the sublime taste of the foie.  Oh well, perfection is hard, but I expected more from a place like this. 

We decided to have fish as our main, since it was fresh off the boat, and the fact that it was Turbot.  Turbot is one of my favorite fish, its delicate and meaty texture is highly prized in these areas.  I love it "a la donostiarra" which is basically pan fried with just a smidgen of oil, garlic, chili pepper and a drop of vinegar.  This is typical of "Donosti" or San Sebastian (Donosti is how you say it in Basque).  I was so delighted when my plate came out, not only was the turbot incredible, it was accompanied by what at first inspection looked like a vegetable tart:

After a closer look and my first bite, the crust was actually razor thin potato slices cooked to perfection.  It was spectacular.  The bottom slices were perfectly crusty, like having a potato chips crust, and the second layer of potatoes were so tender and juicy, all topped with onions and peppers, and carrots.  The two paired perfectly, the slight acidity of the vinegar in the sauce complemented the sweetness of the onions and peppers from the tart.  I have to say.....I cleand my plate. ( But really, when don't I clean my plate?)

After this, I think we had dessert, but honestly, I don't remember.....I think I was so pleased with this meal that the dessert was definately not center stage!

So, once again, I reccomend this restaurant to all my friends.

Sense Pressa

Enric Granados, 96

Barcelona

+34 93 218 15 44

Tomorrow.....Emmanuel is back! Sooooo.....that means I HAVE to eat out again.  Awwww.

Recipe: Mario Batali inspired Raviolone

I have a bone to pick with Mr. Batali.   For our anniversary dinner, I chose to recreate a recipe that I had seen on Iron Chef America.  Since it was his creation, I decided to use his pasta dough recipe as well, and boy was that a HUGE mistake.  I did exactly what he said, and it turned out to be a big pile of mess.

Here's why, his recipe called for

3 1/2 cups flour
4 xtra large egg yolks

That's it.  I should have seen the warning signs........like there is way too much flour, and no oil.   So, I tried it anyway and just ended up using up six egg yolks, because I didn't have extra large eggs, and then getting this sand-like mass of dough, and having to throw it all away.

So, I decided to pull out my notebook from culinary school, and searched for the recipe we used to make pasta dough, and it was quite different.

100 grms flour ( 1 3/4 cups flour approx)
1 egg
1 tbsp. oil
Salt

Perfect.  Perfect, perfect.

Now, the fun part, is coming:

Pile your flour on a clean counter or board.  Mix in the salt.  Make a well in the center, and crack the egg and add the oil.  With a fork, mix the egg and oil, and then start incorporating the flour from the top sides of the well, working inwards until all the flour has been incorporated and you have a ball.  With well floured hands, knead the dough approximately for 12 minutes, using the heel of your hand to push forward and then gather back in with your fingers.  You'll know its done when you make an indentation with your finger and it springs back into shape.  Cover with plastic wrap and let it rest at room temp for 15 minutes, or a few hours in the fridge, but bring it back to room temp when you are going to roll it. 

So, Mario's recipe didn't work, but the filling was very promising.....but I did end up changing a few things.
His raviolone was like this:
Sweet potato and egg yolk stuffed raviolone with pork guanciale and shaved white truffle.
1.I bloody wish I could buy a white truffle.  But alas, no $$.
2. I think pork guanciale is very strong, so I omitted it.

Mine went a little something like this:
Roasted pumpkin, ricotta, pancetta and egg yolk stuffed raviolone, with white truffle oil.

I know, the oil is a crude and completely fabricated substitution (the oil, that is) but hey, beggars can't be choosers.  Let me tell you, IT ROCKED.

To roll your dough, roll it out in your pasta machine until setting 5, which is the second to thinnest setting.  If you don't have a pasta rolling machine, with a rolling pin, roll it out to 1/4 inch thick.

So for the filling you need:
250 grams roasted pumpkin
125 gr. ricotta cheese
30 gr. diced and cooked pancetta
3 egg yolks
egg white
salt and pepper to taste

Mix all your ingredients together, except for the egg yolks, which should be on separate plates or bowls.
Cut your pasta into 5 inch squares, and place 1/3 of the filling, and one egg yolk.  Top it with another pasta square, and seal the edges with egg white.  Do the same with the remaining 2 squares, and the rest of the pasta you can freeze it for up to a month.

In a large stockpot, bring 3 liters of salted water to a boil.  When it is boiling, reduce heat to med high, you want a less vigorous boil, and drop in your raviolone, and cook, turning, for 4-5 minutes.  Carefully take out of the pot, straining it on a paper towel if you like, place on a plate, drizzle it with as much truffle oil as you like, shaved parmesan and a fresh sprinkling of fresh cracked pepper.
When you cut the raviolone, your egg yolk starts to ooze out and mixes with the truffle oil to make your sauce, absolutely sublime!
We had it with a wonderful bottle of Laurent Perrier Cuvee Rose Brut Champage, but you can pick and choose what you like!
Buon appetito!

 
 

Recipe of the day: Beef and shitake stew with Spaetzle

Aaahh....sundays.  Doesn't everyone love a lazy sunday?  I made this dish on saturday, so I would just have to reheat it on sunday.  Not gonna write too much, because I actually have to make something a little more complicated today, as it is my 2 year anniversary with my boyfriend.  Today I am tackling a little recipe I saw on Iron Chef America, created by Mario Battali and Emeril Lagasse.  They had to make things out of sweet potato, and this dish made me salivate.  It was a Raviolone stuffed with sweet potato and one raw egg yolk, boiled for a few minutes, and when they served it, as you cut into the raviolone, the perfectly cooked egg yolk became your sauce along with some pork guanciale and freshly shaved white truffles.
Tonight, I am going to TRY, and recreate the recipe adding my touch, and suffice to say, it will be on the blog, wether it worked or not. 

Anyhow, back to my stew.  This is probably one of the easiest dishes to make, but it really knocks them out.  It is soooo stick to your ribs yummy, that I beseech all of you to make this on a cold winter day.  Or as my friend Miki in Dubai said, turn your aircon as high as it will go, and pretend. 

500 gr. Beef chunks for stew
Oil, for sauteeing
3 onions, chopped
200 gr. fresh shitake mushrooms, sliced
1/4 cup red wine
4 tbsp. Hungarian paprika
Salt and pepper to taste
Water
Sour cream for garnish
Spaetzle

In a large dutch oven over high heat, drizzle a little oil.  When the oil is hot but not smoking, add your beef chunks and sear them until they are golden brown.  Remove from heat, and add a little more oil to the pan if necessary.  Add your shitake mushrooms and saute, until soft, about 4 minutes.  Add your red wine, and deglaze the pan using a wooden spoon to break up any brown bits.  Let the wine evaporate, and remove your mushrooms, set aside.  Lower the heat to low, and add some more oil if necessary.  Add your onions and saute until soft, about 10 minutes.  Add  your paprika and stir, then add your beef and mushrooms, salt and pepper and fill the dutch oven with water, until it fully covers the beef chunks.  Bring to a boil, and then lower to med heat and let simmer, stirring ocassionally, for at least two and a half hours.  Keep checking it to make sure the water hasn't evaporated, and that your beef is cooking through until it is fork tender.
You want there to still be some sauce, so not too dry.
When it is done, place your cooked Spaetzle on the plate, spoon over some of your stew and garnish with some sour cream......yummy!
I served it with a lovely Rioja red wine, but any full bodied red will do.

Recipe of the day:My Dark Chocolate Orange Rosemary Muffins

Hello my fellow foodies and Happy New Year!  I hope 2010 is a better year all around, and that I am fortunate enough to taste many many more delicious treats!  Sorry about my absence, I have been in Miami on Holiday, and yes, I did go to many delish (and one completely forgettable) places, but truth be told, I was just so relaxed, and so gosh darn hungry most of the time that I would take the picture of the place when we sat down.  Then after I was with a very very very full stomach, I would realize, huh.....I forgot to take a picture of the foods I ate.  Oh well, I go to Miami often, so don't worry, you'll get yours yet.

So, on to 2010!  This year I have made a few resolutions.  One, was to quit smoking, which this year, I am 13 days in and 13 days sans smoke!  The other was to exercise more, which I have been doing as well (because if I didn't, I would probably have to sign up for the Biggest Loser next year) and the third kind of stumped me for a while.  But, I figured it out, and I am pretty excited about it!  I'll let you know later on.  So anyhow, since before I got back to Barcelona, I've been toying around with this idea for a Muffin.  I know people love the combination of Chocolate and Orange, I'm not so keen myself, but everyone else seems to love it.  So, Monday morning bright and early, I decided to tackle it. 
Bought the oranges, the chocolate, all the basics........and started cooking.  The first batch turned out, well, let's say less than stellar.  The taste was there, but it was kind of dry.  So, the second batch I decided to just use egg whites.  Disaster.  They just tasted like eggs.  Then, I tried a combo of egg whites and yolks, more liquids and fats......and VOILA!  I DID IT!!!  It helps to have a very very picky audience on what Moist and Tender and Fluffy should look and feel like.  So my fellow readers, I will share my recipe with you, and hope that you will try these at home.  You will make quite a few people happy, of that I am sure!

 Makes approx 12 muffins.

2 cups cake flour
1/8 cup sugar
1 Tbsp. Baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 egg + 1 egg white
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup orange juice
Zest of 1/2 an orange
1 cup milk
1/2 stalk fresh rosemary, leaves chopped and 12 leaves reserved
3/4 cups good dark chocolate, at least 60% Cacao, chopped into 1/2 inch chunks




For the orange garnishes:
12 orange triangles, thinly sliced
1/4 cup orange juice
 1/4 cup sugar
 1 Tbsp. Butter
 1/4 cup marsala wine, or port wine

For the chocolate ganache topping:

1/2 cup dark chocolate, at least 70% cacao, roughly chopped
1 tbsp. butter, cut into pieces

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees F.  Line your muffin tin with paper holders, or butter the tin.  Sift together the flour, sugar, baking powderand salt, set aside.  Chop the chocolate into chunks, set aside.  In a non-reactive bowl, mix your eggs with the oil until emulsified.  Add the orange juice, zest, milk and rosemary.  Fold carefully the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, you don't want to overmix and it will be lumpy, stir in the chocolate chunks.  Spoon into the muffin tin, and set on the bottom rack for 20 minutes, approx.  When done, place a knife or toothpick into the center and make sure it comes out clean.  Place on a rack to cool.

Meanwhile, for the caramelized orange slices, place all ingredients in a deep saute pan over high heat.  When it starts to boil, reduce heat to med high, and swirl sometimes just to make sure your orange slices don't stick to the bottom of the pan.  When the liquid is almost all evaporated, turn off heat and place slices on paper towels to drain some of the liquid.

Now, over a double boiler, melt your chocolate and butter.  Mix thorougly.  When the muffins are cool enough to handle, with a spatula, coat the top with the melted dark chocolate, add a reserved rosemary leaf and and orange slice.  Continue for all of them.  Don't coat too much, you want a thin coating of the chocolate.  Now, ENJOY!!!!!
                  

Recipe of the day: Black trumpet mushroom quiche

You know how some people get excited buying clothes?  Or electronics?  I get really excited when I find a new and completely useful cookbook.  It becomes an obsession.  I lovingly read it as soon as I get home, turning the pages and salivating at all the pictures, trying to decide which one I am going to tackle first.  Well, that happened to me last week, twice.  I found this great book by Michel Roux called "Pastry".  It is absolutely delicious.  Every recipe is worth a try, and of course, being a book about pastry, they are all low fat/calorie/sugar etc.  (I WISH, now that would be a dream come true.)   And you know that pastry is what the french do best, well, besides champagne, of course!  So, there were so many pastries that I wanted to try, and when I get excited like this, I want to do them all at once, which of course would cause all my family and friends to have a sudden heart attack.

So anyhow, I decided to try the Pate Brisee, which is your basic pastry for quiche.  The recipe was for your typical Quiche Lorraine, but I had some black trumpet mushrooms at home, so I wanted to make a quiche out of them.  What I love about them is that when you cook them, they release their juice and it becomes this thick, rich sauce....and if you add wine, or port or anything that tickles your fancy, some salt and pepper, this by itself can be a sauce for meat, chicken, or pasta.  If you can get your hands on some of these mushrooms, please please please make this quiche!  It is soo easy and you will be so surprised at how absolutely scrumptious this is!  So here you go!

Pate Brisee:

250g Flour (approx 1 1/4 cup)
150g butter (approx 1/2 cup) softened and cut into cubes
1 Tbsp salt
1 egg
1 tsp. cold milk

Place half of the flour on a clean surface and make a well.  Place the butter, egg and the salt into the well and with the tip of your fingers, mix and blend into the flour.  Little by little, add the rest of the flour and blend until you get a grainy texture.  Add the milk little by little and mix with the tip of your fingers until the dough start to come together.  With the palm of your hand, knead until it becomes firm.  Form into a ball, cover in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least one hour.


Black trumpet mushroom quiche:

375g of Pate Brisee (what you made before)
2 Tbsp butter
2 shallots, cut in half and sliced thinly horizontally
200g black trumpet mushrooms, cleaned of all dirt and roughly chopped
1/4 cup of ruby port
1 egg
2 egg yolks
300 ml creme fraiche
pinch of nutmeg
freshly gound salt and peper
140g provolone cheese, grated

In a large frying pan, melt the butter over low heat.  Add the shallots, and cook until soft, about 10 minutes.  Raise the heat up to high, and add the mushrooms, stirring until they soften a bit.  With the heat on high still, add your port and flambee until the alcohol evaporates.   Cook for another 4-5 minutes, making sure the liquid doesn´t evaporate, turn off heat, set aside to cool.

Roll your dough out to a large circle, 2 mm thick.  Butter your quiche tin, and place the dough into your tin.  Cut the overhanging dough, and press the dough into the sides.  Refrigerate for 20 minutes.   
Preheat your oven to 190º (375 F), with a fork pinch your dough all over, and cover with parchment and fill with pie weights.  Bake for 15 minutes.  Reduce the oven temp to 170º (350 F) and discard parchment and weights (well, save them but just take them off your pastry) and bake for another 5 minutes.  Take out of the oven and set aside while you make the rest of the filling.

In a large bowl, add your egg, yolks, creme fraiche and add your nutmeg and salt and pepper, mix vigorously for about 5 minutes.  Stir in your mushrooms and mix to combine.  Put the mixture into your pre-baked crust, scatter the grated cheese on top, and pop in the oven.  Bake for about 25-30 minutes, until the center of your quiche isn't wobbly anymore.  To check if its done, place the knife tip into the center and see if it comes out clean.  Let cool and transfer to a serving plate.

I like to serve it with a side salad of Mache, with just a little extra virgin olive oil, sherry vinegar and salt and pepper, and a lovely glass of wine......

Bon appetit!

Restaurant: Cheriff

The Barceloneta, Barcelona´s fishing village, is one of the greatest places to go have lunch.  I love the area itself, its narrow tree lined streets, the many stores, bars and little restaurants that have so much history.  It also is home to 8 of my favorite spots....yes, count them, 8!!!  If I had to choose where to have lunch or dinner or drinks with my friends or family, any day of the week, but especially on Sundays, it would be the Barceloneta.  The last post talked about my favorite seafood restaurant, which is located at the end of the "Paseo".  This one, is at the beggining, on Calle Ginebra (which is Gin....and you all know how much I love Gin).  This street holds three of my favorite places, and the street before it has another. 

So, lets get on to the food.  Cheriff is one of the classic Paella and seafood restaurants in Barcelona.  Its old world charm stays true today, and every time I have been there, it is chock full of business men, families, friends and the odd tourist couple sampling their finest dish, the Paella. 

When you think of Paella, you think of Spain.  The only problem, is that you can get really crappy Paella everywhere, and it is really hard to get a good Paella outside of Valencia or someone´s home.  In Barcelona, we like our seafood paella.  Now, the stuff you get in the states, which is usually chicken and shrimp, really does not exist.  The typical Valencian Paella is rabbit and chicken with vegetables, and then there are the seafood ones, which usually have cuttlefish, clams, shrimp and norwegian lobster. 
Cheriff's paellas are truly special.  Here, they only serve the seafood variety, ranging from the ones described above to lobster paellas.  And the best part, is that it is really inexpensive, you can share a paella for 15 € per person, but obviously the lobster ones are market price. 

I first came to Cheriff because of my very good friend Albert.  He is Mexican, but his family is of Catalan descent.  My first impressions of the locale were mixed, the decor itself reminded me of an outdated Red Lobster (to all you europeans, this is a very cheap seafood chain all over the states), but it had a certain charm to it, especially when you see the owner and chef, a jolly,corpulent lady in her fifties.  It made me realize that this was truly, homemade food.  This last time I went though, Albert and I opted for the Fideua, which is kind of like a seafood Paella, but with short thin noodles instead, and a lovely side of Allioli....yummmm.

We started off our lunch with a bottle of Cava, as all good Catalans do.  Then we ordered the fried baby squid as a starter.  This is much like fried calamari, but only tiny and whole.  When it is done right, they are crispy and light and battered and fried to perfection.  Cheriff is definately a place where you can have one of the best fried baby squid in Barcelona.  You can get this almost everywhere, but most of the time they will be soggy, or just tast of oil, or maybe not even that small......I highly reccomend them here.  We chose to have this, but as starters there is an infinite variety of seafood that you can choose, from steamed mussels, clams, razor clams, tuna, anchovies, cockles, etc.  I could go on and on, and trust me, they are all fabulous.

Then, it was time for our Fideua.  I personally love this dish, when made well, it is truly sublime.  It isn´t Michelin star food, but whoa nelly, its what you wish your grandma would make you on a sunny Sunday afternoon! (If you like seafood, that is)  Now, the fideua here is extremely good, better than most restaurants, but I have to say, it is not the best I have tasted.  It was beautifully presented to us, at the table before serving, which is tradition here with paellas and fideua's.   The one thing I missed, is the noodles standing up on end, which is what happens when you put this in the oven.  See, Fideua has a process.  First you pan fry the noodles so they become brown.  Then you add your fish stock and the rest of the ingredients, cook a bit more until the stock is almost reduced, and then you place it in a hot oven until the noodles stand up....it really is a beautiful thing.

This fideua was lacking in that one detail.  The tast was spectacular though, and the allioli was freshly made, which is always a plus.  Nothing ruins a dish like store bought allioli.

It was an amazing meal, that I have to admit.  And I implore all of you to try Cheriff if you make it down here.  Because you will be highly disappointed in any other Paella you try in Barcelona, especially the ones on the Ramblas, which are frozen.  The greatest thing about having lunch or dinner in Barceloneta, is being able to take a stroll to digest the copious amounts of food you have consumed.  Then, make a stop at the FOC cocteleria, they serve all types of delicious cocktails, and take in the gorgeous sunset over the Old Port of Barcelona.  Simply, maaahvelous darling.

Tootles and stay tuned for the next post!

Cheriff Restaurant

Calle Ginebra 15

Tel. 933 100 760