Âme: a Catalan restaurant with a French soul and Venezuelan hospitality in Barcelona's Eixample district

BarcelonaYou walk into Âme and the first thing you see is Pachi Rodríguez at work. He never stops, but moves with grace and diligence. The restaurant is elegant and welcoming, with small details and no stridency. I'd heard it was well worth a try, and I was very interested in trying this dish from a Venezuelan who learned the basics of French cuisine and then fell in love with Catalonia.

Âme It is a restaurant located in the Eixample of Barcelona, ​​on Londres Street. It opened in December 2023 and has gradually seduced the palates of Catalans, and during the summer, also those of tourists with a gastronomic discernment. The story of Pachi Rodríguez is that of a chemist who one summer visited his brother who was doing a postdoc in Paris. There he was captivated by cooking, and decided to make a life change. He started in his native Venezuela, where they had a strong connection with the Basque Country. In fact, Pachi writes his name with ch and not with tx Because his parents didn't dare to try it at all. His childhood was a mix of Latin America and the Basque world. Perhaps that's why Rodríguez values the product so much and fell in love with the Catalan food.

His partner is a neurobiologist, and her studies led her there, and there he trained in the restaurant world. In Sant Pol de Mar, he met the man who would eventually become his partner, Joey Attieh, who also owns the Lebanese restaurant Albé. With Attieh, they built Âme. The name of this restaurant is very well chosen. Âme means soul in French. I think it's a good idea because from the moment you walk in, you sense that this place has personality. And, in fact, it's been the project itself that has grown in the direction it wanted. One example is that here they've ended up opting not to have separate dining room and kitchen staff. Pachi himself comes in and out and explains the dishes. He loves chatting with diners and telling how he's conceived the dishes. He's enthusiastic about the Palamós prawns. He explains how he's made a lighter meal. white butter adding fumet, and like in Catalonia this can be done, in France it's harder to accept changes, even if they're meant to improve a dish. This extroverted scientist really enjoys finding the why of things. In five minutes, he has the entire dining room in his pocket. In the kitchen, Gareek, which is the nickname of the Russian-born chef Aidar Garipov, is constantly working. Gareek has worked at Cocina Sant Pau, by Carme Ruscalleda, and at the restaurants of the Mandarin Oriental Hotel. They make a well-coordinated couple, and the food flows without us realizing how incredible it is that they do it alone.

A hug before bed

The menu is a tasting menu, with a short and a long version (78 and 98 euros). The dishes are tasty, light, and balanced. Perfectly cooked and cooked to the perfect temperature. The maitake, consisting of a roasted chestnut mushroom, cashew cream, foie gras, and fig vinegar, is memorable. The scallop with salsafines and sea foam is outstanding. The river omelet has an incredible texture. The pigeon is delicious, as is the wonderful selection of cheeses before dessert. A well-rounded meal.

I found the two-person bar particularly attractive, framed by the large window overlooking the street. It seems it's not most people's favorite, but that's a matter of taste, of course. There are very few tables in this "unpretentious place where you don't feel intimidated," as Rodríguez describes it. He's right that it doesn't have the cramped atmosphere of some gourmet restaurants. They don't harass you with changes of cutlery, plates, long explanations about wines... Here you feel much less rushed. Rodríguez's natural approachability goes a long way. When he picks up the clean, polished plate containing a date pudding (which would have eaten ten people), he asks if we liked it. He sees our faces and replies: "Dessert is like a hug before bed, right?"