From Madrid, we took a high-speed train to Barcelona. Traveling at close to 300 kilometers an hour, we reached Barcelona in about three hours.

We dropped our bags at the beautiful and unique Omm hotel, a very modern hotel with 91 rooms and a fine-dining restaurant at the ground floor. It is in the heart of the city and close to the shopping and food places, and the famous Plaça de Catalunya.

After a few minutes, we were off in search of a local tapas bar for lunch. I asked the doorman where he ate on his lunch break. He pointed us to a place not many tourists go to, a restaurant bar still packed with diners at 2 p.m.

In Spain, I am happy to just have the tapas or Pinxo for any meal. On the counter were a selection of all kinds of tapas. Similar to our turo-turo, you just point and the server heats the dish and and serves it with crusty bread.

We ordered a dish that had a variety of mushrooms, sautéed with morcillas or blood sausage with a little chili and drizzled with extra-virgin olive oil. Fantastic. There was another one with artichoke hearts, green peas and squid rings, also floating in olive oil.

Then we had a dish of paella. All the paella we had everywhere here was delicious, totally different from what I’ve experienced in Manila.

Simple dish

Another dish I immediately took a liking to is pan de tomate. So simple, the quality of this snack relies solely on the quality of the ingredients. It is a crusty bread, rubbed with garlic, then rubbed with a tomato, drizzled with good extra-virgin olive oil, then seasoned with good sea salt. The origin of this is leftover bread that became hard, then was softened by rubbing tomatoes on it.

After coming from Madrid, I noticed I was beginning to see the beauty of Spanish artwork and how this country could compete with the art of France. But when I got to Barcelona, I was convinced Spain has equal if not better artwork than the French.

One evening, we were guests at a cooking school where we shot one of our “Foodprints” episode. The school opens itself to visiting groups, teaches and assists them in a cooking lesson and demo and, after the food preparation, the teachers and students sit down to enjoy what they have cooked, and have a party. Great idea!

We were shown how to make pan de tomate, pickled sardines and a tasty seafood dish called Monkfish Suquet.

Food is the best way to bond with people close to you, and I confirmed this with my trip. Also, I learned a secret from the school’s proprietor. The key ingredient in Spanish cooking is extra-virgin olive oil. So, now, I use good EVO as opposed to butter. I was also able to bring home two bottles of very good extra-virgin olive oil.

I was blessed to have seen how the Spanish cook their food. It was such a great evening.

Variety of food

The next day, we were at the Rambla market, where we shot some scenes showing the variety of food the market had to offer. I got some almond-coated chocolates, freshly cooked and warm nuts, a selection of different grades of Jamón Ibérico de Bellota; and I also checked out a couple of places packed with diners eager to try the tapas.

There are many Barcelona tapas you will not find in Madrid. The unassuming tortilla de patata is everywhere. Another simple potato dish is the Patata Brava. These are deep-fried potatoes with either aioli sauce or a spicy brown sauce on top. Simple yet delicious!

That evening, we were also invited to a food market that offered a variety of Catalonian tapas. I noticed again that anywhere we went, the wine was good. I am now a new convert to Spanish red wine.

We ended the evening with a hearty meal and retired late to wake up early for our train trip to Valencia and Cuenca. I was very excited, for we were told we were going to be shown how to cook authentic Paella Valenciana. Exciting!

Happy eating!

Suha season is back. Just got a box (tel. nos. 7091627 and 0917-5937450).

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