Spain Archives ⋆ The Dining Traveler

El Nacional Barcelona: A Gastronomic Experience

Maria Perdomo — Tue, 26 Sep 2017 05:39:21 +0000

I recently spent the weekend with friends in Barcelona. A local friend suggested I check out El Nacional Barcelona, an elevated restaurant concept located in the heart of the city. The restaurant has four different areas that serve a wide selection of food from the Iberian peninsula. All about our experience…

El Nacional Barcelona

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El Nacional Barcelona

El Nacional Barcelona

Location

El Nacional Barcelona is located in the prestigious street “Paseo de Gracia”. The building itself was constructed in 1889 to host a show room. After the Spanish Civil War, it served as a parking area before it was repurposed as a dining space. The restoration was led by top interior designer Lázaro Rosa Violán who was inspired by the 1930’s and 40’s. He preserved the assets of the building, to include the authentic skylights which allow the entrance of natural light. With more than 3,000 square feet, it can accommodate up to 770 guests. It is open everyday from 12.00 pm until 2.00 am. Given its history, El Nacional Barcelona place is now considered a modern architectural jewel of the city of Barcelona.

Food at El Nacional Barcelona

Food at El Nacional Barcelona

The Food

This innovative concept of El Nacional Barcelona offers the guest many different ways to dine. Their menu focuses on Spanish ingredients from the many diverse culinary regions of Spain. When we entered the building, it gave me the vibes of being at a trendy market. As I learned about the menu and indulged, I realized it is so much more.

Food at El Nacional Barcelona

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Food at El Nacional Barcelona

Food at El Nacional Barcelona

El Nacional has 4 restaurants: La Braseria, La Llotja, La Taperia y La Paradeta. Additionally, the space has 5 bars where you can have beers, wine, cocktails, champagne, Oysters and even Russian caviar. All products are Spanish with the exception of the Champagne and Oysters from France and the caviar from Russia.

We chose to do a “Gourmet Stop” at La Paradeta

We got a very nice table and ordered several plates from the menu. Marco Rocha, the manager of La Paradeta, was very kind to explain us the differences between “Cocas Artesanas” and “Cocas finas”. These are homemade pastries with different toppings.

All the dishes were delicious. I say try them all! Here are some of my favorites:

- Desalted cod salad with Xató sauce, this is a typical Catalan dish. It is made with almonds, hazelnuts, breadcrumbs, vinegar, garlic, olive oil, salt, and the nyora pepper
- Coca fina with veal carpaccio, parmesan and rocket
- Noodles with “La Paradeta” Iberian sauce
- 2 chocolate crepes
- White cheesecake

El Nacional Barcelona: The Verdict

The staff was very friendly and professional. During our dining experience, we observed many people enjoying their experience at El Nacional Barcelona. The space is loved by tourists and locals alike. From what we observed, it is the place to be in Barcelona! Dining Traveler Tip: Reservations will be recommended as it is always busy even between lunch and dinner hours.

El Nacional Barcelona, Passeig de Gràcia, 24 bis 08007, Website

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Wine Travel: Cava Tasting in Penedes

Jessica van Dop DeJesus — Mon, 10 Nov 2014 03:57:00 +0000

When we decided to have our destination wedding in Barcelona, we wanted to organize something unique for our guests. We both love wine and good food and decided to go cava tasting in Penedes. Our local friends recommended we visit the Cellar of Jaume Giró i Giró, a small artisanal cava maker located in Sant Sadurní d’Anoia, a small wine producing village in the iconic Penedes region of Catalunya. A fifty-five minute drive from Barcelona (it also has its own train stop), Sant Sadurní d’Anoia is not only very accessible from Barcelona but it offers a beautiful escape. After a few days discovering Barcelona, the sight of rolling vineyards automatically made us feel relaxed and at home.

Garden at Cava Giro i Giro

When we arrived at Cava Giró, we were welcomed by the owner, Ramón Giró, a third generation winemaker. His grandfather, Ramón Giró i Mata started the business in 1926 and tradition has continued since. Ramón personally took us on a tour of his whole cellar and gave us a warm introduction. Although Ramón speaks English, Gloria, one of our guests volunteered as a translator because the narrative of the tour had so much more passion in Spanish (which was felt even with those who did not understand the language).

Wine Tasting at Jaume Giro i Giro

He began the tour of the property with talking us through his organic garden across the street from the cellar. There, they grow vegetables which are used for food and compost. The garden also has a lovely seating area which can be used for parties (I am already fantasizing about a vow renewal!) and family events. He shared with us how the place is popular in the summer as he allows guests to bring their own food and have barbecues in this space.

Ramon Giro i Giro

The day was warm and sunny which created a contrast as we followed to the second part of our tour, the cellar. In the cool and dark space, we got a step by step process on how the cava is made. The scent of fermented grapes accompanied us as we walked by the thousand bottles of cava, in different stages of production. Mounted on the wall was the first bottle the third generation Giró made: a cava from 1983, a reminder that this is truly his passion, something you can feel as he enthusiastically speaks about the production years. He went on great detail about the latest vintages and how much of the production is still made by hand, contrary to the mass production from larger houses.

Cellar Giro i Giro

We returned back to the surface and admired the garden of the cellar: bright yellow lemons grow against the walls, beautiful art hangs from the office space (which Ramón also volunteers for art exhibits), and the sun shines through the small windows of the receiving hall. After a very thorough and passionate tour, we were ready for the best part: degustación, (the tasting). We sat on the cellar’s second terrace, adjacent to the welcome hall. The sun shone on us and grapevines hung above us as natural garlands. There we sampled three cavas: Bombonetta Gran Reserva, Rosat del Cal Rei, and Selecte Gran Reserva Brut Nature. The Selecte Gran Reserva was the winner among us, which many people took home as souvenirs. It’s a Brut from 2007 which I plan to pair with a tuna tartare for a special occasion.

Entrance of the Cellar

Given we were a group of twenty, we rented a coach to get to Sant Sadurní d’Anoia. After a little research, we discovered it was half the price of a guided tour and provided us the autonomy to see what we wanted at our own pace. Our original plan was to visit this house and a larger cellar on the same day but we were completely taken by the process of artisanal cava making and spent the whole day there sampling all the different varieties. I’ve been to Veuve Clicquot in Rheims and Moet et Chandon in Epernay and although amazing experiences, having a personal tour from the wine maker himself cannot be compared. Have you been cava tasting in Penedes? What is your favorite cellar?

Photos by Carlis of Spicy Candy DC

Thanks to Photojournalist Italo Morales for recommending this lovely cellar.

Thanks to Ramon Giro i Giro for the amazing tour!

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