Bar Mut

During my trip to Barcelona, I tried to keep all of my food experiences varied – traditional & authentic, hole-in-the-wall, uber-luxe, and this was my hip & chic choice. Bar Mut was our dinner spot our last night in Barcelona. It reminded me of Balthazar in NYC except a quarter of the size, more modern design, no tourists (except us…) and all marble top bar-style seating. Ok, so really it reminded me in that it was packed until late, a bit see-and-be-seen, tough to get into, and good food.

The food style is all tapas – delicious items listed on a chalkboard as well as a seasonal, ever-changing selection. Extraordinarily fresh seafood – we had the simple, grilled head-on shrimp. Before I continue, we went to several places, and I can’t understand why the seafood wasn’t cleaned anywhere we went? Whyyyy? I must admit my husband impressed me with his deveining skills at the table though – I think he’s been hiding them so I won’t put him to work in the kitchen! Back to the food, an egg carpaccio (see: raw egg yolk) with crunchy noodles was pretty comforting, and a tuna belly over tomato was good but could have benefitted from a more rare approach. My favorite dish was the foie – seared with balsamic and cherries and served with a sweet, moist bread that worked perfectly. Loved it.

I decided to forego dessert here in favor of these luscious waffles I had been eyeing on the pier. There were several carts all along the waterfront, and we headed over there promptly after – I seriously can’t resist street food…

The wine list was pretty amazing, and any place that serves my favorite champagne, Champagne Billecart-Salmon Brut Rose, is good with me. It’s located in the Eixample district, a hop, skip, and a jump away from Gaudi’s Casa Battló. I would suggest stopping here for a small plate or two and a glass (or two…) of wine to steal away from touring and enjoy a chic, local experience.

Mercat de la Boqueria

A kid in a candy store. That’s the most apt description for my wide-eyed, wandering around one of the world’s greatest markets during a trip I took to Barcelona. I examined nearly every stall (umm…there are about 250 or so) and drove my husband nuts as he vaguely trailed behind me, snacking on bolinhos de bacalhau (salt cod fritters) – WHICH I gave him to keep him happy on the journey

Located off La Rambla, one of the most popular, walking streets in Barcelona, Mercat de la Boqueria is an indescribably rich market frequented by locals, tourists, and chefs alike. Like our own Union Square Greenmarket, many restaurants in the area source completely from what’s available in la Boqueria. Stalls consist of produce, hams (a lot!), dried fruits, candy, spices and other grocery items, seafood, meat, and even small restaurants. The tapas bars were packed when we were there – diners seated on bar stools scrambling for the servers’ attention. Bar Pinoxto, which was closed when I was there (so sad), is one of the most popular tapas spots in the market with (supposedly) incredibly flavorful dishes

To warn you, the meat stalls are not for the faint of heart / stomach! I refrained from posting any pics of pigs’ heads or whole rabbits. But everything else is pretty spectacular, incredibly fresh, and ridiculously diverse. From truffles to pimientos de padrón to fresh snails, they have it covered. I seriously would lose my mind if I could shop there everyday for my cooking

I personally picked up a boatload of saffron, cava vinegar, a host of cooking salts and sampled juices, fritters, and hams galore. My advice: go on an empty stomach. The U.S. banned jamón ibérico until 2007, so for a (ridiculously expensive) sample, check out Dean & Deluca, Agata & Valentina, or Despaña and let me know if it’s worth it

Dinner @ Can Recasens

I feel like taking a red-eye from NYC to Europe is a gift and a curse. In my mind, getting there first thing in the morning is like cheating an extra day out of the trip. I always have these grandiose visions of getting to the hotel, showering, and heading out for a day of adventure. This almost never happens.

My first day in Barcelona, I ended up spending half the day waiting for the room to be ready because the hotel wouldn’t let us check in “early”…arghhh! I felt trapped, sleepy, and un-showered…not a great combo. And as I waited, I watched as the sun clouded over, the skies turned a deep gray, and then opened up…a thunderstorm our first night in Barcelona. I was told it only rains 28 days out of the year…. what luck!

That said, I heard about a cute, local, uber-authentic spot in an area called Poble Nou. The name of the place was Can Recasens, and I trekked (through the rain!) for dinner. Family-owned, this place was a butcher shop until 2003 when it was converted to a full restaurant. As you enter the front, you are surrounded by shelves of different olive oils, vinegars, and spices and a case full of cured meats and cheeses (all of which are for purchase). Why do the shelves in shops like these look so elegant whereas in my apartment kitchen, it’s just clutter…in any case, it was more reminiscent of a quaint, Catalonian specialty shop than a restaurant, incredibly warm and vibrant.

I felt like I was entering someone’s home, a series of small adjoining rooms, each named after an artist. The rooms were full of diners, none of whom were speaking English. If Spanish diners are there at 11 p.m. on a rainy Thursday, the food must be the truth…

Meats, cheeses and wine – that’s what to expect (as well as being completely dehydrated the next day…). The dinner started with a lovely cava and a salad loaded with oranges, lamb’s lettuce, mint, pine nuts, chili oil and crispy, fried onions. Then came a Spanish cab, delicious, nutty pernil(Iberian acorn-fed ham, a house specialty), luscious sobrassada (cured sausage from the Balearic islands) with rosemary honey, caramelized chorizo from Leon, melted gruyère cheese over roasted red peppers…Many items are featured as torrades, meats and cheeses stacked or melted over crunchy bread. They also have fondues as well as fustes, which are large wooden cutting boards piled high with various Catalan meats, sausages, pates, and cheeses.

We finished with something that was called chocolate mousse but was a bit lost in translation. I would definitely go back for a casual and (slightly) lighter alternative for dinner. All in, a completely delectable evening and well worth the trek through the rain…

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Bar Mut

Mercat de la Boqueria

Dinner @ Can Recasens