The chef Moha Quach, from the restaurant El Terrat in Tarragona and Revelation Award of the Catalan Academy of Gastronomy and Nutrition, has cleaned for the second time graffiti that has been received on one of the signs of his restaurant. A year ago, on the sign indicating that the restaurant is affiliated with the Slow Food movement, the word Vox was painted, which has been difficult to remove; the second time, a week ago, on the sign indicating that it has a Repsol Sun. "Repsol has just sent me a new sign to remove the previous one, on which the word Vox appeared again," explains Quach.

Joan Pera (Mataró, 1948) has one of the most recognizable and beloved voices in Catalonia. Sixty years on stage and a long history of memorable characters and voice acting do not prevent him from assuring, with laughter, that he is not "a very good actor." A defender of authenticity, in conversation, on stage, and at the table, the actor sees in wine a magic similar to that which he sees in theater.Where is this magic found?

The story that the restaurant La Caleta in Sant Vicenç de Montalt is experiencing has three protagonists: Adif, the State Coastal Demarcation (in Barcelona), and the Casado family, who have been serving seafood dishes there since 1955. Since Albert Casado's grandfather, the current generation in charge, opened the restaurant located between the beach and the road, they have paid a semi-annual rent to Adif, who represented that they were the owner of the land. However, without the Casado family knowing, in 2017 the owner of the property was transferred to the State Coastal Demarcation in Barcelona, an agency that depends on the Ministry of Ecological Transition. And this is where the big mess begins.

It is Wednesday at noon, and at the bar of the Hermós fish bar, located inside the Llibertat market, in the Gràcia neighborhood, there are two couples sitting talking whether they choose razor clams, mussels, or scallops. At the stall of six numbers (which means six meters) that the Hermós bar occupies, the cook Alexis Peñalver and the waiter Alejandro are living farewell days. They explain to regular customers that this Saturday will be the last day of Hermós, the fish and seafood restaurant in the Llibertat market, which has been four years full of joys and also "losses, especially linked to the restaurant's opening hours, which can only be from 12 to 4 p.m.". And they also tell everyone that there will be a new restaurant, which will be directed by the cook Carles Ramon, who will cook new fish and seafood dishes with other techniques and will do it very well. And what will happen to all the dishes that Alexis had made during these four years at Hermós? They will not disappear: "I am returning to the La Pubilla restaurant, which is about to turn sixteen, and there we will continue making them," he says.

We begin a five-week journey through Brazil with gastronomy as the common thread. If I tell you to close your eyes and imagine a restaurant in Brazil, it's possible your mind will take you to Rio de Janeiro. It's a magnetic city and a unique enclave in the world. However, despite being the most popular image, it's not representative of a large part of the country. Gastronomically (and sociologically), what does Rio have to do with the miner cuisine of Minas Gerais, the Bahian cuisine of Salvador, or the ancestral cuisine of the Amazon? Very little.

The Gramona winery, from Corpinnat, began this morning the earliest harvest in the history of Penedès, on July 22nd. A unique and exceptional event that has broken all records, if one can say so, that there had been in the harvests in the territory. If in 2023 the same Gramona winery started it on July 26th, a date that was already very advanced because we came from a tradition of harvesting in mid or late August, this year it is still four days earlier. And that's despite the fact that last year it seemed like this advancement was slowing down, because July 31st was the first day of harvest in Penedès. Climate change has broken all our schemes, and if this year it is July 22nd, it could be that soon everything will change again.

I am interviewing oenologist Bruno Colomer (Barcelona, 1964) at the Codorníu winery on one of the hottest days of the summer. We enter the tower built by architect Josep Puig i Cadafalch, which houses a restaurant open to the public, and the temperature is more pleasant. The oenologist is very passionate about his work, to which he came through his vocation for nature, landscape, and urban gardens. Bruno has just rejoined the board of the Denominació d’Origen Cava after years of absence. Codorníu has its ownership divided, with 38% belonging to the family and the rest to the American investment fund Carlyle. The company has just announced that it commits to buying an additional 20% of grapes to strengthen its commitment to winegrowers.

The flavor that we all people in the world like the most is vanilla, according to the scientific journal "Current Biology". As the industry is aware of this, it uses it for custards, ice creams, infusions, and much more. Vanilla seems to be infinite, but it's not possible to use so much of it, because it's one of the most expensive spices in the world. "Its pollination is practically manual; cultivation is slow and production is very vulnerable to droughts, cyclones, and market fluctuations, so its price can be 500 euros per kilo", says dietitian-nutritionist Anna Grífols, who adds that vanilla comes exactly from an orchid, generally Vanilla planifolia". "Its pods don't smell when they are picked, but, on the other hand, when they are cured and fermented, they do, and this smell can last for months", she comments.

The most veteran readers will possibly remember Will Kane, played by Gary Cooper in High Noon (1952), or John T. Chance, played by John Wayne in Rio Bravo (1959), two of the most emblematic sheriffs in the history of American westerns. These two acting legends masterfully brought to life fictional sheriffs that many Catalans discovered at the cinema or through the first television sets. But today we want to tell you a very real story: that of Pedro Ruipérez, originally from Murcia and adopted by Barcelona.Pedro was an eccentric character and a passionate actor. He liked to dress up as a sheriff, with two toy guns and the characteristic badge of the American guardians of the law. He adapted the word sheriff in his own way, turning it into his nickname and, at the same time, the name of the restaurant he opened with his family in 1959. Initially, it was a small fish and seafood shop, but it soon transformed into one of the most iconic establishments in Barceloneta.When, in 2016, Belinda Wicksteed and Eduardo Iborra acquired El Cheriff, they were very clear that they wanted to preserve Pedro's legacy, maintaining its essence and neighborhood soul, while incorporating a nautical and elegant aesthetic. The ones in charge of materializing this transformation were two of their sons, Teddy and Benji, a photographer and an architect, respectively. Today, this gastronomic temple is run by Alexia Iborra, another of the family's daughters, and her husband, Ferran Bas. In charge of the dining room, we find Adrià Barberà, a young man with a clear vocation for service who enjoys helping diners turn a good meal into a memorable experience. And we can assure you that he achieves it.Let's set aside the battles for a moment to talk about food. We'll go with a sure bet and choose two of Cheriff's most emblematic dishes: the shellfish platter (with Galician clams, mussels, cockles, and razor clams) and a magnificent lobster rice prepared by Ejaz Iqbal, the restaurant's head chef. Twenty-three years ago, he learned the original recipe from María de los Ángeles “Nini”, Cheriff's daughter. It should be easy to find good rice in Barcelona, but reality forces us to admit that it's not always the case. That's why we want to acknowledge the merit of cooking one of the best rice dishes in our region. Cheriff's rice dishes continue to be its great emblem and stand out for their unmistakable flavor, with a characteristic smoky touch achieved thanks to its final finish in the Josper oven.To finish, let's taste a Catalan cream with ladyfingers. We pair the whole meal with a bottle of Iura, a red wine from Priorat made by the Atavus Vines winery in Gratallops.We chat with Adrià so he can explain the latest news from Cheriff: “We defend the essence of Pedro Ruipérez's cuisine by staying out of contemporary culinary trends. We want to keep alive the traditions, recipes, and unique characteristics that have made Cheriff an iconic restaurant”. It's time to leave, but we do it after they serve us, with the porró, a sip of well water. It's a brandy with a secret touch and a story behind it. When you go there, ask Adrià to tell you about it. History, gastronomy, and life in Barceloneta in its purest form.

Ramon Tremosa i Balcells (Sant Boi de Llobregat, 1965) is an economist and university professor and has been, for more than a decade, one of the regular faces of Catalan politics: Member of the European Parliament (2009-2019), Member of Parliament, Minister of Business with Torra and councilor in Barcelona with Trias. Panelist on Betevé and 3Cat, independent director of Aena and son of a mother from Pla d'Urgell and a father from Ribagorça, he has made high-altitude wines from Pallars a personal mission.

Maria, our wise woman of today, is 89 years old, but she looks many years younger (later we will see that all the members of her family seem much, much younger). Now, she has a vision impairment, and she can barely see, but, nevertheless, she cooks. “I have always liked to cook a lot, but, of course, I have had to give up many things, because I can’t see. I have a very big floor lamp, a desk lamp, is it called? And the fico inside the pot, to see myself in it, but I don't even see myself in that one. Then, I use my nose a lot, for roasts. When I smell it, I say, "that's already roasted," and the same with embers. I used to do it very differently, I used the pot, but not anymore, because I'm afraid ofescald me, because I don't see it. And I do it as I can..., but well, I manage. And they are delighted at my place".

The new restaurant in Poblenou catches the eye as soon as you pass by. Located at Pujades street, 133, it occupies a single ground floor. It's part of one of those blocks of houses in the neighborhood that used to be cheap. In fact, through a side door, you access the interior of these narrow streets full of plants and their own life, away from the hustle and bustle of the main street. But let's return to the main street, we find a polished façade, cream-colored with painted letters that say: Finca Nebot 1924. The Nebot family used to be there then, hence the name, which its current owner, Leo Chechelnitskiy, wanted to revive as a tribute.

We are at the Baix Llobregat Agrarian Park, amidst tomato plants and under a blazing sun. "We have planted 540 varieties of tomatoes," says Jaume Torras, owner of SoulBlim. He grows and supplies fruits and vegetables for the restaurant industry (he previously had a market stall and sold to individuals through his website, but for several years now he has only worked for professionals) and has recently become part of the Catalan Academy of Gastronomy and Nutrition (ACGN). Today he presents his project, we taste all kinds of tomatoes, we discover things we didn't know and confirm others we suspected, like the fact that many tomatoes have tougher skins than ever. Why?

I interview the hotelier Cristina Cabañas (Lloret de Mar, 1974) at Guitart Grand Passage, the hotel she manages in Barcelona. Cabañas, a pharmacist by training, took over Guitart Hotels following the death of her husband, Climent Guitart. She has presided over the hotel chain for twelve years, and does so with the intention of passing the baton to her three sons, who confessed to her as children that they would like to dedicate themselves to their father's work. In parallel to her business work, she presides over the Climent Guitart Foundation, in memory of the businessman, to preserve his legacy in the world of tourism, as well as collaborating with other foundations. Through the foundation, she has managed to have over a thousand young Ukrainians visit Lloret de Mar and Catalonia so they can breathe away from the war their country is experiencing.

Do you know the white shrimp? It is that small one, larger than the plump one, which until about ten years ago was from the south, from Andalusia, and was prepared breaded, fried, and eaten as a tapa or as an appetizer. And how good! Well, the white shrimp is now Catalan, we can say it that way. Meridionalization, the scientific term that explains the phenomenon, has caused species from the south to move north, where they seek suitable temperatures to live and reproduce. And the fact is that in our country the white shrimp has found them. Miquel Mir, patron mayor of the fishermen's guild of the port of Palamós, assures that during the months of March and April each boat has caught 200 kilos per day this year.Marine scientist Anna Bozzano explains that white shrimp has always been traditional to Andalusia. "It used to be found in the west of the Mediterranean, near Gibraltar, and the resulting cuisine was battered and fried," and it was eaten whole. Since white shrimp needs a higher sea temperature to live, it has moved north, where it has been found. "If it's comfortable there, then it can reproduce more," and hence the large quantity caught by boats from Catalan ports. In the markets, it is a shrimp that is well-received, and in homes, it is easy to cook and eat. Furthermore, the price is usually low, so we have all the arguments to understand its good acceptance: abundance and low price.

I ring the doorbell of Pilarín's house, and she herself opens the door. It's Saturday afternoon, she has just turned eighty-five, and we have arranged to have a snack and talk about food, one of the topics that the artist from Vic enjoys. Wherever she goes to sign books, there is always someone who brings her food. She herself has given away thousands of times Vic sausages. In Vilafranca del Penedès, where she has presented the books of the Castellers de Vilafranca, the Xerigots cheese shop gave her a box full of cheeses. “I’m taking them to my son’s house tomorrow for lunch,” she tells me as she prepares a nice tray on which she places Vi De Muller (she says the ratafia broke the other day), some biscuits from Reus, and the sponge cake that I have brought her. “I have sugar limited because I have had diabetes since I was 70, but having it limited doesn't mean I can't eat it from time to time,” she comments.

The actor Pep Plaza (Mataró, 1972) has shown his face (literally) and lent his voice to many of the biggest names in Catalan and Spanish culture, politics, and sports. The man who has been Pedro Sánchez and Pep Guardiola, Joan Pera and Albert Om, is also the protagonist of El substitut, a show he premiered at the Teatre Borràs in 2023 and continues to perform this summer in various locations. But Plaza has not only dedicated himself to the stage; his work as an insurance salesman also led him, unexpectedly, to wine, a world he already knew from childhood.

It was during the pandemic that the Ferré family realized things had to change. “Sometimes without realizing it, inertia takes you to a place you don't want to be. When we stopped, we had time to think, and that's when we realized we had lost the essence that our father had set,” explains Sílvia Ferré. She is the owner of the iconic Gothic restaurant Els 4 Gats together with her three brothers Lluís, Ivan, and Òscar. Four brothers to tame Els 4 Gats.

To talk about Sitges, we could go back many centuries, when, thanks to its privileged coast, it began to become a town of fishermen and maritime trade. But we want to focus on the present. Sitges is one of the six municipalities that form part of the Garraf region. It is a town that looks to the sea, both from the more playful aspect and from the commercial necessity, and which, at the same time, stands out for its economic, cultural and social fabric.We are at the La Nansa restaurant, founded in 1963 by Antoni Rafecas and his wife, Rosa Maria. Currently, the restaurant is run by three of their four children: Anton, Mireia, and Francesc, with the invaluable support of Angel in the kitchen and Isidoro in the dining room. You can feel the Mediterranean, both in the decor of the place and in the numerous references on a menu that seeks to preserve the memory of the Sitges cuisine of our grandparents. There is a traditional menu for 38 euros, but we opt for the a la carte menu.We start with a prawn salad with caramelized onion, a Sitges xató (with endive, cod, tuna, and anchovies) and some fried prawns with garlic and parsley, chosen from the list of suggestions. The wine list dedicates a prominent section to wines from Garraf, while the rest of the references are mostly Catalan.In the second part of the meal, we want to taste some of the most representative seafood dishes of the local cuisine. The first is octopus romesco with beans, a fishermen's recipe made with one of the least commercial, but most appreciated fish. The second is a turbot caught, possibly, by Oriol or Alfredo, two of the most emblematic fishermen of the town. The third deserves special mention: lobster with margin snails.The reference to this dish comes from the book Sitges dels nostres avis, written by Emerencià Roig i Raventós and published in 1934. The work collects the history and popular memory of Sitges and its inhabitants. “At the end of the 19th century, there was the Fonda Carcolse in the area of Carrer de les Parellades. The book talks about lobster with snails; we make it with lobster so as not to excessively increase the price, but the recipe did not appear there. My father started preparing it after talking with fishermen and added a very personal touch. Now my brother Francesc is leading the kitchen and preserving this recipe book”, Anton tells us, proud to be able to maintain, together with his brothers, a family and town legacy.We have left the Sitges-style rice, made with pork ribs, sausages, cuttlefish, langoustines, and clams, for another day. The desserts we taste are also homemade and deeply rooted in the region: Sitges foams, according to the recipe of the old pastry shop l'Estrella (meringue and almond cookie), burnt cream, and carquinyolis from Sant Quintí de Mediona. All of this, well accompanied by a sip of Sitges Malvasia.Anton, Mireia, and Francesc, still with their parents' remote support, run a restaurant that honors the seafood cuisine of a town open to the Mediterranean. Respect for fishermen, local produce, Sitges' history, and the hard work of the three siblings are the pillars that make La Nansa a must-visit establishment. It's always a good time to go to Sitges, but for us, now even more so.

Chef Òscar Manresa has created the Catalina Foundation, named after his mother and the restaurant he has in Gavà Mar. "One day I told myself that I wanted to do something more than cook at the restaurant," he says, and above all he explains that he saw it clearly during the pandemic, six years ago, when he then had Casa Leopoldo in Barcelona along with chef Romain Fornell, and there he began to prepare lunches for hospitals, for associations. When restaurants were able to reopen normally, he cooked meals for organizations once a week from the Catalina restaurant instead of every day, as he had done until then. "And I took it to the San Lorenzo residence." That's when he thought that, in addition to distributing dishes, he wanted to go further: "I thought I wanted people to have a day where they enjoyed the food, where they learned to make recipes at home, and all this that I was thinking about I had to do with a foundation".