Four restaurants to travel the world without leaving Barcelona

BarcelonaIn Montevideo there is a sacred tradition: going to the Mercado del Puerto to eat one roastOn the beaches of Batangas, in the Philippines, any time of day and any day of the year is good for taking a lomi, a noodle soup of Chinese origin. In all the towns and cities of Armenia, there is no shortage of khorovat, the meat barbecue. And on the island of Java, in Indonesia, the most popular breakfast is soto ayam, a warm soup with medicinal properties. You don't need to fly to enjoy these small pleasures; you just need to give minority cuisines, which are very present in Barcelona, a chance. Beyond a gastronomic discovery, they are also a cultural legacy that fuses memory and landscape. We suggest a tour of four restaurants that will take you on a journey through recipes and flavors without leaving Barcelona.

Gurí

In just two decades, chef Nicolás Zas has lived on three continents, a life journey reflected in the cuisine he practices at Gurí, a signature restaurant located in Sants that proposes an intimate dialogue between Uruguayan memory and the Catalan landscape. "The heritage of immigrants, especially Italian and Spanish, has shaped the Uruguayan recipe book, which is why the menu includes our version of the empanadillas and the alfajoras, which originally came from Galicia and Andalusia. And also pasta dishes," says Zas. Some come from family memories, such as the training work that his grandmother prepared for him and that he now reinterprets with artisanal Reixagó cheese and acorn-fed Iberian bacon, a bite as tasty as the tortellini artisanal lamb, New Zealand's national meat. Zas also retains vivid memories from his southern journey, such as those he embodies in the plating of lemon fish—sublime in substance and form—inspired by Aboriginal symbolism. "These are things you don't see or that I don't tell, but they're there," he asserts. At Gurí, they put a lot of effort into fermentation and garumos, which enhance dishes like the surprising grilled lettuce with Creole sauce or a red shrimp from Palamós with zucchini blossom and fermented romesco sauce. Zas's two-way cooking revives memories of Sunday meals at his grandmother's house—he loved her macaroni. with sauce– or the typical one roast in the Port Market of Montevideo, which condenses in a loin Friesian cow with chimichurri. He also enjoys deconstructing these same memories as he does with the chajá, a traditional dessert now dressed in nectarines, or the popular mate presented as a sophisticated and aromatic cocktail. A high-end gastro-cultural combination that honors the produce of our land with dazzling creativity.

Kasarap

Filipino cuisine is an amalgamation of influences, as captured in the extensive menu at Kasarap, a restaurant in the Eixample district decorated like a traditional house. Dumplings, spring rolls, meat skewers and lomi, a gelatinous noodle soup that is sold everywhere there. Batangueños "We can't go more than three days without eating!" he confesses. On the other hand, stews with a base of sofrito or tomato sauce are of Spanish origin, such as lechon paksiw that cook at low temperatures. But the most representative of Batangas is the kaldereta, a goat stew that, as with the pan-fried dish, is made differently in every home. "We use my grandfather's recipe because my mother is the restaurant's cook, and we also make a version with beef," he points out. The other major influence on Filipino cuisine is Mexican, which dates back to the Apaculco Galleon route, which operated from the 16th to the 19th century. "That's where ours comes from." ceviche, based on vinegar, ginger, and coconut milk. We serve it with grilled bacon and also tuna. It's a typical dish from the Visayas Islands, where there's a lot of fish, while in Manila, the more popular dishes are okoy, nails pancakes "fried vegetables with dried shrimp," explains Arianne, who always recommends the dessert halo halo, a bomb of unexpected colors and flavors that must be stirred thoroughly.

Tapan

Anyone who has visited Armenia will always remember the candlelit monasteries, the profile of the majestic Ararat mountain—where Noah's ark is said to have grounded—the taste of apricots, and the ever-present aroma of barbecue. Visiting Tapán—a restaurant with a Caucasian soul in Les Corts—is like returning to Armenia to taste the matsun, the creamy yogurt that is dipped in homemade bread; the exquisite zhingyalov hats, a bread filled with a dozen herbs; the putuk, a chickpea and beef stew; or the khurjin, roast lamb served inside a crusty bread called lavash"I opened the restaurant with my friends Simon and Andran because of this dish," jokes Hayk Gevorgyan. His mother, Juletta, is the cook at Tapán and also prepares other Armenian specialties, such as sour soup. spas, based on yogurt, herbs and wheat; tolma, vine leaves stuffed with rice and meat; they go, a chicken breast with quince and walnut sauce; and the Khorovats, the traditional meat barbecues. "We also have who u their, which means "eat and shut up" because this sirloin with peppers is so good!" he adds. For dessert, Hayk recommends the cat, a typical Garni pastry resembling a donut without a hole and topped with a scoop of ice cream. And when it comes to wine, you must try the pomegranate wine, a sweet and creamy experience reminiscent of a port, which can be served by the glass. And if anyone is wondering why they feel like they're eating on a boat, the explanation is in its name: tapan means ark, a word as sacred to Armenians as pomegranates.

Makan Makan

Andrey Finanta grew up in a Chinese community on Java, one of the main islands of Indonesia. He lived for a time in Sydney, moved to Barcelona, and after gaining experience in several Thai restaurants, seven years ago he opened Makan Makan in the Raval district. The menu is a declaration of love for Southeast Asian cuisine—Vietnamese salad and pad thai–, but above all in its roots. "One of my favorite dishes is the Shao never, a steamed dumpling filled with pork, bluefish and shrimp, a recipe inherited from my grandmother," explains Andrey, who also cooks other Chinese-influenced delicacies such as pangsit goreng -one wonton Chinese stir-fry, very well done - and a miso eggplant that melts in the mouth. Corpus is Indonesian cuisine: from the island of Sumatra it has brought the rendang, a beef stew cooked for six hours over low heat using grated coconut that is chopped by hand until it turns into oil. "It's the star dish," says designer Imanol Ossa, Andrey's partner and partner. rendang competes with the aromatic soup soto ayam, typical of Java and famous for curing everything. As a tribute to the famous rice fields of this island, the meal should culminate with a ketan hitam, the black glutinous rice dessert cooked with Jackfruit and salted coconut milk.

GURI

c/ Rector Triadó, 72 (Santos). 934 177 440

KASARAP

c/ Consell de Cent, 141 (Eixample Izquierdo).

TAPÁN

c/ Tenor Massini, 96 (Les Corts) 603 94 11 00

MAKAN MAKAN

c/ Luna, 4 (Raval) 670 82 53 19