An enthusiastic foodie I met sitting at the bar at Tayēr + Elementary in London this past autumn asked me, “If you had to recommend just one wine region in Europe to visit, which one would it be?” He was surprised how directly my answer came. Priorat. I did, after all, live there through the…
I’ve been spending some time in the Priorat as of late, drawn there by both the addictive majesty of that rocky terroir and by my impending thesis deadline. Back in March I paid a visit to my old friend and colleague at Terroir al Limit and stayed in the Cal Compte guesthouse off and on…
A 50-minute flight from Bordeaux to Barcelona, followed by a 1.5-hour train ride down the Costa Daurada to Reus, and I’m greeted at the train station by Alex Frisch, Resident Chef of Cal Compte guesthouse in Torroja. He’s here as every Tuesday to visit the local market, chat with the vendors and do some shopping.…
It starts in line at La Bodega del Sol. I’m clutching a bottle of Ca L’Arenys Guineu IPA Amarillo. Why? Because it’s delicious and has a fox on the cap. My friend next to me has found for herself some obscure Danish artisanal microbrew, carefully chosen from a vast selection. La Bodega del Sol is a…
I had been looking forward to a trip back to Barcelona from the morning after I first left, back in February. But when the chance finally came, I never really made an itinerary for what I’d do while there. I knew I wanted to walk a lot, to spend time with friends and revisit some…
Upon landing, I marched straight through El Prat, passing the Desigual and Dehesa Santa Maria with those big yellow letters that anyone who has ever lived in Barcelona would likely recognize. Ten minutes after reaching ground, I was already on the Aerobus headed to the center, where familiar Independista flags dangled out of windows (along…
Saturday mornings in Barcelona meant l’Abaceria Market to shop for weekly groceries from our four ladies. We’d hit Chicken first, and ask for 2 breasts freshly sliced off a bird, wrapped tight in skin as bright yellow as it should always be. We’d continue to fish, where a woman wielding a massive knife would chop…
This is one of those meals I’ve been wanting to resurrect from my Drafts folder for quite some time now. Here goes. About a year ago, the beau and I rented a car and drove out to Benasque to spend some time enjoying the Spanish town’s gorgeous natural surroundings with my brother and his wife,…
Passing through the ruby red doors of Quimet & Quimet in Poblesec means entering a culinary wonderland, a food nerd’s Eden cleverly disguised as a no-frills neighborhood tapas joint. Nobody’s ordering bravas or croquetas here. There’s no chorizo or day-old tortilla stabbed through with a toothpick, no questionable crab spread with a salty anchovy lain across, no fried…
A few weeks ago my boyfriend and I visited 2 Michelin-starred Moments restaurant in the Mandarin Oriental, Barcelona to celebrate our anniversary. He got overexcited and ruined the surprise the night before but I didn´t mind; it allowed us to read up in advance on mother-son culinary team Carme Ruscadella and Raül Balam, and to get excited…
That Best Bite 