A seafaring feast with panoramic views of Barcelona
Eating in the heights gives absolute panic. Not because vertigo threatens or anything like that, but because what we normally eat several floors above the ground is well supported by exorbitant prices.
Rooftops, terraces and 360-degree views of a cosmopolitan and Mediterranean city are almost never accompanied by good service, excellent raw materials or prices that are very consistent with quality. Luckily there is always someone who strives to change things.
With the restaurant ** Marea Alta, ** (finally) the cache that gives going up to the plant 24 of a building like the one in the Columbus Tower of the Ciudad Condal –the first skyscraper in the city built in 1971– with paying a good and deserved tribute, of those that are lacking lately and that stand out from the fifth range, viral dishes or media openings that steal the attention of what really matters: eating and enjoying doing it.
Enrique Valentí's restaurant is positioned as one of the best in Barcelona
opening the season to a kitchen that many already consider to be one of the best proposals in Barcelona, Madrid's restaurant Enrique Valenti It has made a lot of noise since its opening two years ago, but it still has a pending task to make the whole world hear the echo of its power.
A few of us wanted to keep the secret, but no, the good must be shared and shouted from the rooftops.
Even more so when it comes to a place that knows how to combine perfectly a careful and modern interior design with a kitchen that has no competition in Barcelona. Or if? Think about it: is there currently a place where you can eat, with an average ticket of €85 and €100 for a seafaring festival? Now think again: is there a place where it can be done with stunning views?
Here the function can begin, for example, with some appetizers that function as a veneration for our memories of preserves and aperitif time watered with reeds and bars: pickled mackerel with apple puree, anchovies from Santoña, some pickled mussels that insanely transport you, without hesitation, to the embers that have smoked them (spectacular!) and some prawns cooked in sea water.
Next comes his own version of the cod curd with honey, served with spinach and pine nuts. Fresh and a light break between the appetizers and the main dishes.
The Sant Pau bean stew with cheek and tuna it is delicate but spicy enough not to fall into boredom and a good base to give way to grilled fish: some heart-stopping kokotxas and a turbot in which not even the bones are saved from being (re) sucked.
A careful and modern interior design with a kitchen that has no competition in Barcelona
Analyzing the case of Marea Alta (after eating and drinking it), it is worth reasoning whether perhaps we have become too accustomed to novelty and that, maybe it's time to bet, once again, on honesty.
It's fun from time to time to indulge in extreme games and experimentation sprees, but perhaps it will be necessary to think twice when it comes to wanting to eat well and then feel good.
When we decide to do it, it will be there, shining and pulsing in our memory. the flavors and colors of Marea Alta. Tempting us, calling us, telling us nice things...
The 24th floor of the Colón Tower in Barcelona houses one of its (open) secrets