Gastronomic Catalonia - Fine food & wine, art & architecture

Food is the beating heart of Catalonia. The glorious variety of Catalan gastronomy reflects both an extraordinary passion for food and the singular cultural history of Catalonia. Food culture, husbandry, medical and dietary matters reach back to the period when the Greeks first settled at Empúries to worship the healing image of Asklepios. The Carthaginians followed, bringing lentils, chickpeas and fava beans; the Romans introduced the vine and olive.

For centuries Moorish domination brought a passion for sweetmeats, spices and aubergine. The Catalan larder expanded further in the Middle Ages when control over Mediterranean trade routes brought pasta from Naples and the discovery of the Americas introduced other key ingredients for the Provençal and Catalan table: tomato, potato and paprika.

The Barcelona food markets and specialist emporia are among the most beautiful and enticing in the world. Set out in cartwheels under ceilings of Art Nouveau stained glass, the stalls fan out from their fresh fish hub. Marble sinks soak the milky salt cod; cornucopia of fruit and vegetables are displayed with the subtlety of a still-life; butchers offer specialities and recipes upon request; the mushroom man has thirty varieties, fresh and dried. At the outer edges are the dealers in nuts and artisan cheeses that never find their way out of Catalonia.

In the city of exuberance and riotous colour of Antoni Gaudí’s architectural confections, it is but a little way to the tour-de-force of a zarzuela fish stew, shot through with a firework display of saffron, bright red peppers and the creamy smooth burnt allioli sauce. The mar i muntanya dishes – the original surf and turf – marry together a remarkable blend of game, fowl or rabbit with langouste, enriched with a subtle chocolate sauce.

On 30 July 2011, the most influential chef in history, Ferran Adrià, closed the doors of the mythic El Bulli to dedicate himself to research. His pioneering cuisine celebrated new tastes and complex techniques which migrated deep into France; even to the Élysée Palace. A disciple of Adrià, El Bulli’s charming and eagle-eyed maitre d’ Toni Gerez (voted in 2022 as the best in world) continues in the castle of Peralada to create a contemporary vision of Empordà cuisine. In Barcelona the charming Hermanos Torres, with 3 Michelin stars, cook in front of us with new spins, beguiling twists and astonishing flavour bombs. In a converted farmhouse near Vic the dynamic Nandu Jubany grows his own fruit and veg and herbs at the door to serve in celebration of authenticity and alluring profundity.

There is far more to Catalonia than Barcelona, and historically the region extends into France. There are the fishing ports and the countryside, the Pyrenees and the Vallées Orientales, and the wines: Priorat, rich and tannin-steeped; Cavas and their new elite Corpinnat sparkling wines offering brilliance and clarity; sweet Moscatel, peasant foil for the great Gewürztraminer experiments of the last decade; Penedès reds, as good with meat as slightly chilled with fish. Catalan wine is enjoying an extraordinary renaissance.