The Eixample, meaning ‘extension’ in Catalan, filled in the space between Barcelona’s Ciutat Velha (old town) and the once separate towns of Gracia to the north, Sants to the west and St Andreu to the east.
Consequently it contains many of the city’s Modernisme architectural masterpieces which I have put in separate posts on the Quadrat d’Or and Diagonal.
La Camarga (Advanced A) 117 Calle Aribau, Tel, 933 236 655., www.lacamarga.com
Was taken here by my friend Dixy and his girlfriend Natalia. Dixy has impeccable taste in food and wine and has written many articles about the food scene in Barcelona, so I trust his judgement completely.
My favourite dish here was our shared starter of Garotes Gratinades, sea urchins baked in the oven with cheese served in their shells and the creamy sauce eaten with a teaspoon (A+).
After that the Amanida de Carxofes artichoke salad found it hard to compete and for me they tasted bland by comparison (C). It would probably have been better to have them first.
For our mains Natalia had Calamars Farcits, squid in a tasty sauce (A).
Dixy had Tronc de Tonyina (tuna baked with young garlic) which was also excellent (A) and I had the Raviolis D’Anec, deep fried black pudding ravioli which were good (B) but not quite what I was hoping for.
With this a fine bottle of Albet i Noya Tempranillo (B+) from the Penedes DOC.
Dixy made the best choice again for dessert with a dish called Neules LLavores and Natalia couldn’t fail with her Coulant de Xocolata (A).
My choice of Tarta Tatin was good (B+) if unexciting.
The perfect accompaniment was a few glasses of Pedro Ximenez /HI me neth/ which was a grape variety rather than a bodega as I learned off Dixy.
It’s a very sweet dessert sherry made from raisins, this one made by Don Zoillo. I first had it in combination with Cabarales, a blue cheese from Asturias in the north of Spain, which was a mind blowing taste combination, but it goes very well with sweets too.
This is quite a posh place but the service was friendly. The decor is bright and modern and the food is great. Thanks Dixy x
Hi Ralph
Hoe do you find the time????? there are clearly more hours in your day than in mine! I’m going to Barca on Thursday to do one day of exams on Friday. Will you still be there?
Hi Sue. Thanks to my tiny netbook I write up a lot of my reviews on coaches, trains and in airport dearture lounges. I download the photos when I can (which takes more time than anything else) but usually a couple of weeks after my actual movements. Have left Barca since but will be coming back, sadly after you have left, but hope to catch up with you soon Rx