Comerc 24

[Matthew Grant]

With our table booked by phone a couple of months previously we were more than a little relieved to find that the language barrier hadn't presented too much of a problem and that they did have our reservation for Saturday night, the only error was that it was under the name of Guint, I told them that if Mr Guint turned up we would leave, predictably he didn't.

Very sleek and modern with large pillars, soft lighting and Kruder Dorfmeister - The K&D sessions playing (always a good sign). The menu consisted of small plates that were basically a modern take on Tapas which made us a little nervous. However, we needn't have been.

We started by ordering 6 dishes, the waiter advised us that we could order more if necessary, please note that I may not have the correct names of the dishes!

1) Asparagus with a parmesan mousse and Mandarin sauce - Lovely cheesy mousse which contrasted surprisingly well with the sauce and both were a good match for the nicely al dente asparagus.

2) Lamb kebabs with a mint yoghurt and basil. It took a while to figure out the yoghurt as it was completely smooth an colourless. Very simple but nicely done, slightly pink, tender cubes of lamb. The dish was credited to a restaurant that I can't remember.

3) Tuna sashimi pizza with Wasabi and radish. Not nearly as ghastly as it sounds, not really a Pizza, a small piece of crisp bread with tuna, wasabi and radish in very complimentary proportions. Excellent quality fish with just enough heat from the Wasabi to make it interesting

4) Fish Rice (this may not be the proper name) was explained as rice cooked in the oven with a very strong fish stock. This was beautiful, slightly firm rice with a great strong seafood flavour but without any sign of sea food whatsoever, a kind of paella without anything in it. Superb.

5) Hamburgers with Foie Gras and truffle - a complete rip off of the DB burger (not that I've tried it). Miniature hamburgers with melting foie gras and a hint of truffle. Absolutely superb, very moreish. The waiter was very excited when I mentioned DB, I can only presume that nobody else had guessed!

6) Tuna Stew. Perfect rare tuna in a fishy stew. again this dish was superb, made all the better by the fact that the fish must have been added at the last minute

The meal was going well and the food was so good that we decided to order another couple of dishes. It took all our will power not to order a couple of dishes that we had already tried but we deferred to the waiter and ended up being persuaded to have:

7) Salmon and Salmon with vanilla. This was raw salmon cubes topped with salmon roe laid out in two lines with two thin lines of vanilla sauce. We were so won over by the previous dishes that we decided to forget about our dislike of salmon fish eggs. I'm sure this dish was good if you like salmon roe but we didn't so it didn't quite work for me although the balance between the 3 elements was excellent and the vanilla sauce created totally different flavours when combined with the Roe and the Salmon.

8) Bull tail with Parmentier. This was outstanding. Bull tail removed from the bone in a very rich sauce (presumably the one that it had been cooked in), topped with potato which had been lightly foamed. This was served at a little above room temperature and was a great combination, the foam like potatoes were not so light as to be insignificant to the dish.

After all that we couldn't manage dessert following our earlier meal at Ca L'Isdre. A great meal with intelligent flavour combinations.

Edited June 3, 2003 by Matthew Grant (log)

[KNorthrup]

That sounds wonderful. Glad to hear it wasn't another disappointment. The details are appreciated.

I once had a Basque tuna stew that was pretty much just tuna (chunks) and potato (probably not yukon gold but they seemed like it) and some onion and it was a fish broth with saffron. Very tasty and very light/refreshing. Was this one anything like that?

[Elissa]

Thanks for the report Matthew Grant. Sounds super chulo. Never thought of salmon and vanilla or asperagus with Mandrine before. Did you drink?

[Matthew Grant]

That sounds wonderful.  Glad to hear it wasn't another disappointment.  The details are appreciated.

I once had a Basque tuna stew that was pretty much just tuna (chunks) and potato (probably not yukon gold but they seemed like it) and some onion and it was a fish broth with saffron.  Very tasty and very light/refreshing.  Was this one anything like that?

It was exactly like that.

We did drink, but I can't for the life of me remember what, I'll have a look later to see If I can find out and how much it cost (not too much)

[thelastsupper]

Marmitako?

I am surprised that you enjoyed your meal considering your response to El Bulli. I remember being disappointed that the primary flavors of the amazing ingredients had been masked by their complements: the mint yogurt muddying the lamb, the soy/ginger on a cube of bonito, an enormous pile of microplaned reggiano and a slick of balsamic syrup on incredible anchovies, etc. I remember thinking each dish as a mockery/grotesque version of an ethnic cuisine.

I will have to dig out my notes.

[Matthew Grant]

Marmitako?

I am surprised that you enjoyed your meal considering your response to El Bulli. I remember being disappointed that the primary flavors of the amazing ingredients had been masked by their complements: the mint yogurt muddying the lamb, the soy/ginger on a cube of bonito, an enormous pile of microplaned reggiano and a slick of balsamic syrup on incredible anchovies, etc. I remember thinking each dish as a mockery/grotesque version of an ethnic cuisine.

I will have to dig out my notes.

That was the baby - Marmitako!

We were pleasantly surprised at the meal, we nearly didn't go after El Bulli, especially as he worked there for so long. But this was food with flavour, food that combined. We enjoyed it far more than we expected and nearly returned a couple of nights later.

[onions]

Before spending a weekend in Barcelona I asked some amigos catalanes about good restaurants.

I got the well known list, already posted in several threads in eGullet. However for most of the good restaurants I always found someone talking about a disappointing visit, and I wanted to make no mistake.

(Although being Spanish, I can always take another weekend and go).

Barcelona in August is like Madrid. Many good restaurants are closed and 90% of locals are gone.

However there were still a good number of places to choose from. We ended up opting for Comerc 24, which my friends clearly recommended, and has received good reviews in eGullet.

We went for the "Menu Festival" with which, according to the waiter, we would manage to taste 70% of their tapas. We chose a bottle of San Roman to go with it: a powerful wine from Mariano Garcia, a famous wine producer that worked many years for Vega Sicilia and has produced other wonders like Mauro, Terreus or Aalto. (My wife found the wine a little bit too powerful for the meal served, but it worked fantastically well with the meat dishes).

The menu started with a mojito foam followed by a myriad of small dishes: mussels en escabeche, mackerel cebiche, mushrooms "al ajillo", tuna chunk marinated in soy sauce and ginger (simply amazing), tuna "ventresca" with schezchuan pepper, a cone of crisps crumbs with a big cockerel that we were told to drop in our mouths, wild rice with curry, bikini of jabugo ham and mozzarella with truffle oil.....

It was followed by two drinks served in tequila glasses: ajo blanco with melon, and gazpacho with cherries, served at the same time as cucumber spaghettis with cream and coriander and a toast of anchovies with mozzarella and tomato.

So far dinner was faultless. Light tapas with first class ingredients, clear and amazingly fresh flavours in smart combinations. The ajo blanco and the gazpacho were just top class.

Later came a lamb kebab with yoghurt sauce, perfectly spiced and left slightly raw, which worked pretty well, even though I normally like my lamb well done. This one came together with Salmon sashimi with its roe with cream and vanilla sauce (Fish and Vanilla might be a really intelligent combination but it's not for me. I've tried Turbot in a vanilla sauce at Gordon Ramsay's in London, and didn’t like it either).

Prawns covered in a light butter came with a mild red Turkish sauce (couldn’t figure out the name, anyone?). The prawns were fresh and were left slightly raw. To my taste there was too much batter for such a delicate ingredient. This set of tapas (except for the lamb) was not spectacular, as the previous ones.

The last savoury bit were some thin slices of a rock fish with a dollop, of what it turned out to be mash potatoes and saffron, on top. The waiter then poured a deep fish broth/fumet over it. It was a stylish version of the fish stews one can have in Ibiza or Menorca. Again, deep clean flavours. Top.

Desserts were good, but nothing worth describing.

I finished with a glass of a cold Pedro Ximenez.

All in all a really enjoyable experience with some top class dishes.

[Bux]

Welcome to eGullet. We're delighted to have another local corresspondent in the Spain forum, especially one who leaves informative mouth watering posts. I enjoyed both the objectivity and the subjectivity displayed in your post. I hope we hear more from you on both the creative and traditional food. Where in Spain are you when you're not spending a weekend in Barcelona?

bikini of jabugo ham and mozzarella

Many US readers may not be familiar with "bikini" as a food. I believe this is a grilled ham and cheese sandwich and a popular snack in bars and cafes. I've never had one, but clearly this was not the usual bar offering.

[onions]

I'm from Madrid but I'm currently working in London. I quite enjoy your Forums (I'm impressed with the knowledge you guys have of Spain), and will try to do my best to provide with some local insight.

As you say, bikini is just a grilled ham and cheese sandwich. I'm not sure why we call them like that.

[Bux]

As you say, bikini is just a grilled ham and cheese sandwich. I'm not sure why we call them like that.

The first time I saw "bikini" on a menu, I thought it was so sexy, I had to have one. Then I discovered it was, as you say, just a grilled cheese sandwich and it didn't appear to be the best cheese or ham, so I passed. I assume the bikini tapa at Comerc 24 transcended the genre.

As for our knowledge, some of us take eating very seriously. And vserna is a ringer, so to speak.

[Matthew Grant]

Cata 181 does a fantastic version of a Bikini which includes truffle butter - I was sceptical at first but it worked very well.

[Bux]

As you say, bikini is just a grilled ham and cheese sandwich. I'm not sure why we call them like that.

I was discussing this thread with Mrs. B over lunch and sort of repeated what onion said and she looked at me with some incredulity. I failed to notice what she had noticed. They're made with square slices of white sandwich bread cut in half on the diagonal and each half sandwich triangle resembles a bikini bottom. I suppose you have to understand that just about all other sandwiches in Spain are made on rolls. On the other hand, she could be dead wrong, but the premise was too good to argue with.

[vserna]

Mrs. B. is entirely right.

[Mrs. B]

Thank you Victor

[vserna]

¡De nada!

[anil]

Last time we were in BCN, my old colleague said the buzzz on '24 was worse than P/E ratio of a DOMCOM so we avoided it. We'll soon be in BCN and I intend to catch up on new and hidden gems. Much of the great treats in BCN are not in top-notch hotel attached restaurants (a trend that is becoming quite universal in many EU and US cities) but in small places that have limited seating and a selective menu.

Edited August 14, 2003 by anil (log)

[vserna]

Last time we were in BCN, my old colleague said the buzzz on '24 was worse than P/E ratio of a DOMCOM so we avoided it. We'll soon be in BCN and I intend to catch up on new and  hidden gems. Much of the great treats in BCN are not in top-notch hotel attached restaurants (a trend that is becoming quite universal in many EU and US cities) but in small places that have limited seating and a selective menu.

Old colleague, uh? Culinarily speaking, with friends like that, who needs

enemies?

Your comment on hotel restaurants hardly applies to Spain. Very few of this country's interesting restaurants are attached to a hotel, unless it's in the country and the restaurant itself offers a bunch of rooms (that's the case now for Can Fabes, formerly the Racò de Can Fabes). But in large city hotels - very, very little. Drolma, in Barcelona's Majestic Hotel, is certainly the best in that category.

[pedro]

Drolma, in Barcelona's Majestic Hotel, is certainly the best in that category.

So, in your opinion, do you think that Drolma has surpassed Arola's La Broche in Hotel Miguel Angel in Madrid, or were you talking exclusively about Barcelona?.

PS: BTW, this is my first post here!.

Edited August 14, 2003 by pedro (log)

[vserna]

Very possibly Drolma is ahead of La Broche right now, whatever Michelin says. Then again, it's hard for me to consider La Broche a 'hotel resrtaurant', as it's more like a 'restaurant against the hotel', with its back to the Miguel Angel in more senses than one - an uncomfortable situation if I ever saw one.

[onions]

In Madrid Hotels have started to look seriously into having a good restaurant on its premises:

Santceloni de Santi Santamaria in the new Hesperia Hotel, Europa in the Villa Real, or Goizeko Wellington in the Wellington Hotel, are examples of interesting restaurants in hotels.

Last time we were in BCN, my old colleague said the buzzz on '24 was worse than P/E ratio of a DOMCOM so we avoided it

I'm always suspicious of herds (Never bought an internet stock), but having eaten at Comerc 24, I can say that I tried some very, I mean very, interesting food. Some people might not like it: As usual, it will depend on one's taste, mood, or if you've ever tried something similar before to compare it to. Next time I'm back in Barcelona I won't go there again because there are many other places I fancy trying out, but I do recommend it for fist time visitors.

[paulbrussel]

Unfortunately it is closed now till September 1st; I wanted to reserve for mid September, but that will be impossible, since they only take reservations by phone, I think.

Does any one knwo whether that will be a problem when I reserve for about ten days later?

[Bux]

Santceloni in Madrid is also in a hotel and just a block away from La Broche. It didn't leave anywhere near the same impression on us that Santamaria's primary restaurant, Can Fabes, in Sant Celoni did, but it was certainly a restaurant worthy of notice. I don't know enough about fine restaurants in Madrid to place in any ranking. Santceloni seemed to be a part of the Hotel Hesperia far more than La Broche was a part of its hotel, whose name I can't remember. Santceloni's address, in the Michelin, is at the hotel and the e-mail address is at the hesperia-madrid.com domain.

Can Fabes has built a hotel this was supposed to open in July. I don't know how many rooms it has. I don't know his past business model or where his diners came from. I assume many were day trippers from Barcelona, as were we the day we had lunch there, but at lunch some must be tourists on the road, perhaps going to, or coming from Barcelona and there must be some local contingent. It's only a half hour from Barcelona and presumably accessible for dinner as well. It can take me a half hour to get uptown by taxi in Manhattan for a special meal. I don't know that he needed the hotel, but it certainly meets a demand by those who wish to travel as they do in France by having a gastronomic meal and a comfortable room under the same roof, or at least in close proximity so they don't have to drive after a long meal and so they may feel free to imbibe to their heart's content. I wonder if this is going to be a trend. I wonder if vserna, or any of the other Spaniards on eGullet have thoughts on this.

The issue of restaurants in the boondocks being attached to hotels, or at least simple inns with bedrooms (I personally have little need for public rooms or faciltities when I spend one night) is of far more interest to me than where restaurants locate themselves in cities. One of the reasons fine restaurants are once again moving to hotels, is that in a competitive market, hotels believe a top restaurant on the premises offers them an advantage and they are in turn willing to sign leases that offer a nice concession to the restaurant in turn.

[vserna]

There are no more than a dozen Michelin-starred restaurants with bedrooms outside of big cities in Spain, plus perhaps another dozen with no stars but serious foodie interest (as I've mentioned here, Michelin is stingy and unfair in many parts of Spain). Still too few. There should be more.

[Gerry Dawes]

Bux wrote "Santceloni in Madrid is also in a hotel and just a block away from La Broche. It didn't leave anywhere near the same impression on us that Santamaria's primary restaurant, Can Fabes, in Sant Celoni did, but it was certainly a restaurant worthy of notice. I don't know enough about fine restaurants in Madrid to place in any ranking. Santceloni seemed to be a part of the Hotel Hesperia far more than La Broche was a part of its hotel, whose name I can't remember. Santceloni's address, in the Michelin, is at the hotel and the e-mail address is at the hesperia-madrid.com domain."

I had a terrific lunch at Sant Celoni and, while it may not yet be quite as good as Can Fabes, I thought it was damned good. So did Len Pickell, Charlie Trotter, the Batterberrys and Roger Yaseen.

[Gerry Dawes]

vserna wrote: "Michelin is stingy and unfair in many parts of Spain"

Victor is right on. If fact, if the Michelin Guide was Spanish, there would be Spain were doing the ratings, there would probably be a dozen restaurants in Spain with three rosettes. And, if some of the great, traditional regional cuisine restaurants got their due, there would be a slew more of one- and two-star places. In fact, the greatest places to eat in Spain are not the modern cuisines places, although I do appreciate many of those, they are the wonderful restaurants that have perfected traditional Spanish food and have evolved, just as Spain has evolved.