el Bulli (and Rafa's) - Roses, Spain

Last October, purely on a whim, I decided to send an email to el Bulli to see if I could get a reservation in 2009. I requested a table for two, any day in June, July or August. After sending the email, I forgot about the whole thing. About six weeks later, an email arrived in my inbox stating the following:

We regret to be late giving you an answer. The demand has been again extraordinary and is difficult to go on with the management. We have found a solution and have an option for you on

Wednesday June 24th of 2009, table for 2 people at 8.30 p.m.

Ferran Adrià will prepare a personalized tasting menu. You will try many different elaborations and it means many different products. It is very important for his confection to know in advance if some problem exists, like allergies or any other product that we could not include for anyone of you.

What?!?! Are you freaking kidding me?!?! I sent an obligatory email to my wife to make sure the date was ok (her reply...OMG!). We then started planning a 10 day trip to Spain built around this dinner (I have other reports from Madrid and Barcelona that I will post in separate threads).

Not wanting to take any chances, we decided to arrive in Roses the day before our reservation. We took a train from Barcelona to Figueres, and then a taxi to our hotel in Roses (about 20 minutes from the train). This gave us a chance to just relax on the beach before dinner and make sure we were in peak condition for our meal.

A taxi picked us up about 30 minutes before our reservation and took us up and down the long, winding mountain road that leads to el Bulli.

Upon arriving at the restaurant and checking in, all guests are taken into the kitchen for a tour (here begin the pictures, which aren't great since my camera doesn't take very good pictures with the flash turned off):



After being shown the kitchen (and getting to take a picture with Ferran Adria) we were shown to our table.



The meal started off with two sugar canes that we were instructed to suck on (not pictured). One tasted like a mojito and the other like a caipirinha. We then moved on to a series of snacks which included the famous spherical olives:



We also had (not pictured) crispy rabbit ears, tomato biscuits, and mimetics peanuts (shaped like peanuts, these had a very delicate shell that broke easily in the mouth and oozed peanut butter).

After the snacks, we started to move through the rest of the meal…


Rose frost – passion fruit ice carved into the shape of a rose. This had a great tartness to it that really captured the essence of passion fruit


Pinenut shabu-shabu – The little packets of pinenut flavored liquid were picked up and “cooked” in the pine flavored broth in the bowl to the side


Oyster leaf with dew of vinegar – After placing this dish down, our waiter wanted us to eat it and then guess what it tasted like. After a few seconds, the answer was abundantly clear…it tasted like eating an oyster on the half shell with some red wine vinaigrette. Our waiter told us that the leaf naturally tastes like an oyster; the kitchen just adds the vinegar to enhance the experience


Grilled strawberry – These were served hot along with some gorgonzola moshi (served cold) that had to be eaten right away so they aren’t pictured. They were an excellent follow up to the moshi, in that the sweetness complemented the moshi and heat of the strawberry contrasted the coolness of the moshi.


Cuttlefish with pesto ravioli – In my opinion, one of the few misses of the night. The cuttlefish had a very strong taste, and I just didn’t “get” the combination with the pesto ravioli


Parmesan frozen-air with muesli – Following one of the night’s misses, this dish was a hit. The box was opened to reveal the “frozen air”. We were instructed to sprinkle on a bit of the dried fruit and nut muesli a little bit at a time.


Frozen-air with muesli added


Lulo – Lulo is a very tart tropical fruit. Here, gelee of lulo was topped with shavings of foie gras fat. Basically, this was a super amped up version of the traditional fruit/foie pairing.


Pumpkin and almond sandwich – The “baguette” for the sandwich was light and crispy and I believe made from pumpkin. The meat in the sandwich was pretty healthy quantity of shaved truffles (which actually didn’t add as much flavor as I thought they would).


Interior of pumpkin and almond sandwich


Tomato-basil – Absolutely delicious, sweet tomatoes coated in something (maybe a black olive sauce? I know black olives figured in this dish somewhere). Served along with the tomatoes were crispy basil leafs that had been dusted with mango.


Razor clam with seaweed – One of the most interesting things about this meal was that while there were certainly plenty of “molecular gastronomy” touches, there were also several courses which focused almost exclusively on the ingredient and not the technique. This was one of those courses. Two plump razor clams (fresh as could be) served alongside a seaweed salad made from three different types of seaweed. Delicious.


Asparagus with miso – Freakishly large asparagus from Navarra that was the sweetest asparagus I’ve ever tasted. The miso provided a nice, salty note to the dish.


Asparagus with miso (reverse angle)


Abalone – The abalone had been sliced down to cubes, and were alternated with similar-sized cubes of ham fat. Both were served on a bed on mushrooms. Probably one of the richer dishes of the night, but very satisfying (and chock full of umami).


Sea cucumber with mentaiko and rhubarb – This was one of my favorite dishes of the night. I’ve never had sea cucumber before, but the taste and texture of this preparation really blew me away. The cucumber was both meaty and tasted of the sea (in a good way). The rhubarb provided the perfect amount of sweet balance to the dish.


Sea anemone 2008 – Without a doubt, the most “challenging” dish of the night. The anemone was served with rabbit brains and an oyster sauce. Eating this dish was like swimming out into the middle of the ocean, going under water, and opening your mouth. Not my favorite, but I’m glad we ate it.


Gnocchis of polenta with coffee and saffron yuba - Similar to the spherical olives, the outside of the "gnocchis" didn't serve much or a purpose other then to hold all of the polenta inside together. Nice and clean tasting after the sea anemone.


Suckling pig tail - Another one of my favorite dishes. The pig tails were crispy, and served alongside a ham consume. What could be bad here?


Water lily - A transition course as we headed towards dessert. Very floral and a nice way to start to clean the palate.


Omelette surprise 2003 - The surprise was a skim milk/yogurt mixture, which honestly isn't the best surprise in the world. But still, it was nice to have another transition course heading into dessert.


Omelette surprise 2003 (interior)


Coco - A big, hollow sphere made from white chocolate. After being placed on the table, it was sprinkled with curry powder and then broken up. I'm not a huge curry fan, and I found this borderline inedible.


Coco (cracked open)


Amber - Another dish similar to the spherical olives, but this time made from honey.


Ices - Under the layer of ice show above was a mixture of mainly watermelon and fruit-flavored yogurt. Sweet and cold, this was a very satisfying dessert.


Tea service, el Bulli style - My wife, needing something to settle her stomach innocently ordered tea. What came out was the table of plants shown above. One of the staff came out to clip individual leafs off of each plant and place them in a French press along with honey and spices. Needless to say, after witnessing this, I had to order a tea of my own.


Morphings... - Our waiter came out and placed a huge box of chocolates on our table. The box contained 19 individual types of chocolate (I believe that most, or all, were meant to recall previous course). Our waiter told me that they make over 500 individual pieces of chocolate each day to keep the boxes stocked.


Morphings II


Morphings III

el Bulli is considered by many to be the #1 restaurant in the world. It is likely the hardest reservation to get. Did the restaurant live up to all of the hype? In a word...yes. I would say this was probably the greatest high-end meal of my life. The flavors were bold, the ingredients were of unbelievable high quality, the plating and serving pieces were gorgeous, and the service was friendly and refined (I would actually rate the service as comparable to Alinea). Not every dish blew me away, and some were clear misses, but this is one of those meals that should be viewed as a whole. As a whole, I can't think of any high-end meal that I've had that could approach this one in terms of overall taste, presentation, and just the general ability to make the diner really think about what they're eating.

This was a great experience, and I'm glad I decided to send that email back in October.

The night before our dinner at el Bulli, I wanted us to have the full-on Bourdain experience so we went to Rafa's for dinner.

Rafa's was just a short walk down to boardwalk from our hotel, closer to the center of town.


View from our room - Huge thanks to Louisa Chu for the hotel recommendation!

Rafa's is located on a long, narrow, winding street that is full of shops and restaurants. Most of the restaurants have loud awnings and menus seeking to pull in customers. This, on the other hand, is Rafa's...



There is no menu. The waitress comes over and reads from her pad what's available that day (since the focus is on seafood, there are plenty of stories of Rafa's not even opening if they're not satisfied with that day's catch).

We started with jamon, and also got this...


Baby squid - Whole baby squid thrown on the grill and cooked with some olive oil. The flavors were so bright, and really accentuated by the grill.

For dinner we got a whole sole to share. I didn't get a picture of the fish as it was served (sorry, too excited to eat the sucker), but here is the aftermath...



Including a bottle of wine, dinner was a little more than 100 Euros. For another seafood focused meal we had in Barcelona, we paid more than double, and Rafa's was much much better. For those that decide to go, I would recommend calling for a reservation and then calling in advance day of to confirm that they are open.

Rafa's Restaurant
Sant Sebastià 56
+34 972 254 003

Amazing report, thanks!

Josh,

You are my hero and I am so envious of you guys.

Thanks, for the detailed report. I feel like I've been to El Bulli now, even if only in a virtual way.

I'm glad that it exceeded your expectations and I do hope to experience it for myself someday.

=R=

What a splendid holiday -- and how exciting. Thanks for the report on El Bulli and Rafa's. I look forward to more tales of your culinary ramblings.

Amazing. Everytime someone posts something on here about Spain I want to go there more and more.

Thank you for sharing.

Thanks for the pics. I showed them to my 5-year old girl. She said "do you have to eat all that other stuff before you can have the chocolates?"

Then she asked, "is tea the only thing you can have to drink?"

Boy, talk about taking one for the team! Thanks for sending that e-mail Josh. As Ronnie notes, I definitely feel some vicarious experience with your posts.

Forgive me if this has been posted elsewhere, but here is a very entertaining blog about one mans five year quest to get into El Bulli and his resultant meal. Josh, I think you really lucked out with a 1 year wait!

Josh - you're so welcome - so happy you liked the hotel. Gorgeous photos - thanks so much for the detailed post. Yep, the Sea Anemone was the most "challenging" dish I had too. Overall, absolutely amazing for me too.

If you haven't been to El Bulli yet, now's the time to go. Rumors are flying on the Twitterverse that Adria is closing it in 2012, reconcepting, and reopening in 2014.

aschie30 wrote:If you haven't been to El Bulli yet, now's the time to go. Rumors are flying on the Twitterverse that Adria is closing it in 2012, reconcepting, and reopening in 2014.

Can you get me reservations?

gleam wrote:

aschie30 wrote:If you haven't been to El Bulli yet, now's the time to go. Rumors are flying on the Twitterverse that Adria is closing it in 2012, reconcepting, and reopening in 2014.

Can you get me reservations?

See jesteinf, he's got the magic touch.

aschie30 wrote:

gleam wrote:

aschie30 wrote:If you haven't been to El Bulli yet, now's the time to go. Rumors are flying on the Twitterverse that Adria is closing it in 2012, reconcepting, and reopening in 2014.

Can you get me reservations?

See jesteinf, he's got the magic touch.

Yes, I will post something on the Events Board. Who's in?

aschie30 wrote:

gleam wrote:

aschie30 wrote:If you haven't been to El Bulli yet, now's the time to go. Rumors are flying on the Twitterverse that Adria is closing it in 2012, reconcepting, and reopening in 2014.

Can you get me reservations?

See jesteinf, he's got the magic touch.

Yes, I will post something on the Events Board. Who's in?

Ah, ragazzi, mi dispiace ma...
http://espresso.repubblica.it/food/dett ... sa/2119915
[linked article is in Italian -- mi dispiace un'altra volta...]

Antonius

Just got my rejection letter.

Not sure what it says that I'm taking this harder than my college rejection letters.

Good luck to anybody who hasn't heard yet!

A friend of mine was able to secure French Laundry reservations using American Express Platinum concierge. I tried for El Bulli reservations. I was told to get lost. Sigh!

Looks like it's closing for good.

http://dinersjournal.blogs.nytimes.com/ ... rmanently/

Or maybe not

I got in, like you, after sending e-mail on a whim. We've got a reservation for June 18. Any suggestions on lodging in Roses would be greatly appreciated!

dennypcw wrote:I got in, like you, after sending e-mail on a whim. We've got a reservation for June 18. Any suggestions on lodging in Roses would be greatly appreciated!

We stayed at the Coral Platja in Roses. Right on the boardwalk, clean, and reasonably priced. It certainly wasn't the nicest hotel I've ever stayed in (probably about Hampton Inn-level), but for 2 nights it worked perfectly. The hotel can arrange a taxi for you to the restaurant if you won't be driving.

Jeff,

I was JUST offered an invitation to join friends at El Bulli in September. Haven't figured out if I can make this work yet but can you tell me what the price tag was for your meal? Thanks!

Jean Blanchard wrote:Jeff,

I was JUST offered an invitation to join friends at El Bulli in September. Haven't figured out if I can make this work yet but can you tell me what the price tag was for your meal? Thanks!

I believe it was 230 euros per person for food. The wine list is pretty large and there were quite a few local, inexpensive options (I think the bottle we ordered was like 40 euros and it was fantastic...some local white that I don't recall).

If not for the current exchange rate, pricing would be comparable to Alinea, Per Se, French Laundry, and the higher end places in Las Vegas.

If there is any way you can make this work, I would really urge you to go. It's truly a once in a lifetime experience that is hard to put a price on.

Thanks, Jeff. That's certainly well priced as far as I'm concerned. I'll let you know if I was able to book this.

Please go! I'll live vicariously through you b/c they are closing so you it really is a once in a lifetime experience. Please post a detailed review when you get back.

Jean Blanchard wrote:
I was JUST offered an invitation to join friends at El Bulli in September. Haven't figured out if I can make this work yet but can you tell me what the price tag was for your meal? Thanks!

If you can't make it, we're available to cover for you. We will be charming and gracious. They will still be your friends after the experience is over.

My airline tickets are on hold and I have to make the critical decision by tomorrow night at midnight. Still have a couple of details to iron out but I'll let you know if this works. My husband doesn't really care about going to El Bulli but is willing to "sacrifice" for me. Seems kind of a shame to bring someone he isn't as ecstatic as I am but it might look a little weird to bring along a stranger. I'll keep you posted.

Sigh, we finally received reservations for this October and I had to give them up to my brother because Fate has decided I can't be out of the country then. Foiled again...

Yahoo!!! Just booked my tickets to Barcelona. Cannot even believe that I'm going to El Bulli! Now, somebody is going to have to teach me how to post pictures! I know absolutely nothing about the Costa Brava area since I wasn't even planning a trip to Spain this year. All information is appreciated.

Jean Blanchard wrote:Yahoo!!! Just booked my tickets to Barcelona. Cannot even believe that I'm going to El Bulli! Now, somebody is going to have to teach me how to post pictures! I know absolutely nothing about the Costa Brava area since I wasn't even planning a trip to Spain this year. All information is appreciated.

SO jealous!!!

=R=