Baqueira is the ski resort most exclusive in Spain, also the largest and the only one located on the northern slopes of the Spanish Pyrenees, with more than 160 kilometers of ski area. With these credentials it is easy to see why it is considered a privileged destination for the practice of winter sports in our country.
Good hotels, guaranteed snow and, paradoxically, a one-dimensional gastronomic offer devoted to the vindication of the traditional cuisine of the area.
Baqueira-Beret station.
Don't get me wrong: in the Aran Valley there are good restaurants and the cuisine of the territory has its point. But after several days of hypercaloric diet based Aranese pot, grilled meat or sausage cholesterol reaches a dangerous saturation level for urbanites accustomed to a more varied diet and open. You know, first world problems.
But, like in the Asterix comics, Not everything is lost. In a small village near Viella, a couple of crazy wonderful resist the culinary monotony that surrounds them by preparing craft beer and judiciously blending flavors into an equation involving the surroundings, the Mediterranean and its traveling love for Asian cuisines.
Dim sums at Osteria Roc´n´Cris, Aubèrt, Lleida.
Alien to the gastronomic gossip of the Valley and with little media presence, You arrive at the Roc ‘n’ Cris osteria almost by chance and by chance the parents of the child met, Cristina Delgado and Roc Carbonell.
They both worked in a hotel in the valley in the winter season, Cristina in the living room and Roc in the kitchen. During a basketball party the spark jumped and love did the rest until in 2012 they began their gastrofestive adventure producing its own craft beer in the garage From home.
Three years later opened Roc 'n' Cris in a stone building in Aubèrt, a tiny village located at the foot of the highway France, privileged access point baricauba forest, one of the least known natural jewels of the Aran Valley.
Fusion well understood (and executed) in Roc´n´Cris, Aubèrt, Lleida.
His appearance is that of an alpine chalet with rustic decoration and tasteful details in the room, but nothing at first glance allows you to guess the homemade dough dim sums festival (wheat, tapioca...) with which good judgment indicates that the visit should begin: Xialongbao, Hakao and the jewel in the crown, the Aran-Asia Pot Wonton Sichuan style a show of force in which the iconic stew of local cuisine is transformed into an elegant and delicate bite which is infused into a defatted and light broth.
Nor should you miss the Chinese aubergines with calçots and Chengdu sauce or enokis (Japanese mushrooms) and avocado tempura. One of those preparations that, as occurs with Andalusian fried foods, oscillates between nightmare greasy or, as the case may be, a subtle and ethereal bite That justifies the visit.
Osteria Roc'n'Cris, Aubert, Lleida.
There's also ramen and baos, even a martian Lebanese Shawarma-style lamb taco with papaya and cassis chutney, fermented coconut-soybeans and Korean pickles in corn tortillas which I wanted to try.
The ideal thing on a first visit is to sign up for one of the available menus (45 and 60 €) in which there is a bit of everything and they change daily. This is a restaurant that works in proximity mode, with nearby providers when possible. The attention to detail is manifested in aspects such as breads, long fermentation of sourdough or organic bean coffees and different origins.
Reservation is essential just 5 tables and a private room with a fireplace define the space available in this small bistro mountain where only two people work, Cris in the living room and Roc in the kitchen.
The wine list contains surprises for connoisseurs in which it is possible to find some cult producer like Alain Graillot or Iberian cucumbers such as Penguin flower. To put a but, is missed a wider offer of Champagne, perfect accompaniment for this kitchen, but it can be s substitute without drama for sherries of reference by the glass (Tradition, Tres Palmas de Gonzáles Byass...). Let's also not forget that they make your own beer on barrel, with a marked character of hops and low graduation alcoholic.
It is important to point out that Cristina is a nutritionist, and that translates into measured elaborations that run away from the heaviness and seek lightness.
Aubert, Lleida.
For dinner, the most common option after a hard day of skiing, it is convenient to arrive with a little time to visit a stone's throw from the restaurant Romanesque churches of Sant Martí d'Aubèrt and Mare de Diu deth Rosèr, from the 12th and 13th centuries, with a beautiful octagonal bell tower from the century XVI.
Above the dining room there is a small lodging with 6 rooms, a small study and a apartment.
Osteria Roc 'n' Cris, Aubert, Lleida.
Phone: 606 204 585.
The restaurant and the hotel are open between June 23 and October 12 and between December 1 and May 1.