Las Vegas just isn't our thing. That being said, it has not escaped my notice that many of the world's best chefs have opened outposts in Sin City, so there would plenty of options for culinary adventures during our stay.
More photos from our dinner at Hoja Santa.
More photos from our dinner at Pakta.
Disfrutar received its first Michelin star in 2015, a year after opening, and in 2016 was named Best New Restaurant in Europe. I thought it would be our best meal in Barcelona, but for overall best experience it was outdone by our meal at Spoonik.
We gathered in the modern, open kitchen that looked out over Las Ramblas with our chef, Stefano Marcellini, who hails from Italy but considers Barcelona his home. He quickly went through the menu we would be preparing and all the steps for each dish so we would get an overview. It was a little overwhelming and I didn't know how we would remember everything, but there was no need to worry.
I'm staring at the photos I took of our drinks and dinner at Chicago's The Aviary and Next Restaurant, and everything looks delicious and inviting. Why then did I leave the table feeling underwhelmed and dissatisfied with that night?
Just a couple of weeks ago we were sitting on the front porch of Willows Inn, drinks in hand, gazing out over the shimmering Salish Sea on a warm, sunny afternoon and waiting to enjoy what The New York Times claimed was one of the ten restaurants in the world worth a plane ride to dine at.
Fourty-one courses consisting of tastes and sips in a culinary trip around the world. There are some elBulli classics here, as well as many other unique and new dishes, all with the common goals of intense flavor, gorgeous and pain-staking presentation, along with surprise and magic.
Tickets is considered the hardest reservation to get in Barcelona right now. Seats are released at midnight GMT exactly sixty days in advance and are quickly snapped up, so it requires calculated advance planning if you're going there. And you are going – because it's Tickets, and because it's the Adria brothers.
It's no wonder then that as we were planning our trip to Barcelona food was going to be high on the agenda. With just four nights I spent months doing research, reading reviews and articles, and pouring over websites. There were so many options, and even more opinions. It was overwhelming. But in the end, we narrowed it down to four we hoped would both satisfy and delight: La Pepita, Tickets, Hisop, and 41 Degrees.
kimpluscraig.com