January 1 - 15 , 2017 PHILIPPINE ASIAN NEWS TODAY A23
The Roundabout
By : Sandee SIyangco – Masigan
Barcelona – Party Central and Cava Trail ( part 1 )
Happy New Year ! Am starting off 2017 with gratitude … once again to our gracious publisher Rey and his lovely wife Cely … to the rest of the Philippine Asian News Today team … am honored to be part of this . Maraming salamat po .
I ’ ve been blessed with opportunities to travel to different places and with more frequency than I imagined . Add to that my love of food , and am a happy camper !
One of my favorite cities to visit is Barcelona . But there is so much more to Barcelona than the Sagrada Familia , Barcelona Cathedral and the outlet mall La Rocca an hour away . This bustling capital of the Catalonia region is home to some of the world ’ s most famous modernist artists like Picasso , Miro and Gaudi . But beyond the museums and architectural wonders … back on the ground , Barcelona is party and food central .
Home to over a million and a half Catalans , its burbs and commercial districts abound with a plethora of cafes , bars and restaurants . It ’ s almost impossible not to find good food here . Only an hour away is Girona , home of El Celler de Can Roca … rated THE # 1 restaurant in the
world .
On a recent trip , we shared an apartment with some friends , instead of going for the standard hotels . We were lucky enough to land a spacious Apartamentos that put is in ground zero , right smack along Ramblas de Catalunya . We all loved the apartment . I could tell this trip would be different as we were greeted by a double rainbow the next morning .
The best way to get a feel of Barcelona is to hook up with the locals and go with the flow . Our Catalan friends Maite , Ricardo and Oscar wasted no time in planning our itinerary .
First on our list was Moritz , a microbrewery / pub / restaurant . I loved Moritz not so much for their beers but for another yeast product … bread ! About a third of the space in Moritz is dedicated to a bakery counter and retail area . All the breads and pastries are baked fresh every morning for sale at the counter or the restaurant ’ s use during the day . German sausages , country pate with crusty sourdough … Coca bread … all were thrilling and worth going back for .
On another evening we squeezed in dinner at Botafumeiro . Arguably the
best seafood restaurant in the city , with the likes of Eva Longoria , George Clooney and Hillary & Bill Clinton having dinner and smiling down at us from framed photos on the walls . Then we walked off our dinner and ended up at the hip Boca Chica Wine Bar & Cocktail Terrace on Passage de la Concepcio .
The next day was downtime for our big group . We strolled down the gothic quarter past the cathedral and stumbled into Plaza St . Jaume , another beautiful enclave housing restaurants , shops and the Philippine Consulate .
No visit Barcelona is complete without a trip to the Boqueria de San Jose just off Ramblas . My local friends insisted that it was too touristy for them , but I love the place just the same . I swear all that fabulous food in one place is a sin . It ’ s too much for one city to handle . I went back to the market by myself and spent two hours on my own wandering around ogling the best of Spain ’ s produce and tasting from the many open vats of nuts , chocolates , jellies and other sweets so generously offered to me by the merchants .
Near our apartment , along Ramblas de Catalunya is Ciudat Condal … a tapas bar with several branches in the
city . During our whole stay in Barcelona this particular branch was always full . There was no let up of patrons lining up outside . Inside , the salon had beautiful old wood and a marble top counter facing the street . The counter always has a dizzying variety of tapas laid out for the taking . Mind blowing ! Behind the long bar , the room opens up into a 40 ’ s salon with a second floor neatly packed with hungry diners at all hours of the day . One afternoon A friend and I managed to score a table in the corner upstairs overlooking the salon . We had a fabulous view of the activity downstairs allowing us maximum visibility for spotting the delicious looking plates moving around downstairs . We ordered 5 tapas to share and a glass of cava each . We managed to finish off every last bite despite my friend ’ s protestations that we ordered too much . My personal favorite was the roasted pimento in olive oil topped with a fried brie … yum !
To be continued …
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