The Chef's List by José Andrés

The Chef's List by José Andrés

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The Chef's List by José Andrés
The Chef's List by José Andrés
My ultimate guide to Barcelona
Spain

My ultimate guide to Barcelona

It's the city where I grew up...and one of my favorites in the world for eating.

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José Andrés
Nov 10, 2023
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The Chef's List by José Andrés
The Chef's List by José Andrés
My ultimate guide to Barcelona
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Friends! A quick note before we get into today. I’m so amazed and happy with how many of you sent us memories and stories about your favorite restaurants, foods, and dishes…I know we’ve found the right people and we’re going to keep creating an incredible community of food lovers and travelers. Many of you have also found our map—my team has been adding you in real time as you sign up for a paid subscription, but if you haven’t gotten access yet, please be patient. If you don’t get a notification about the map by early next week, send us a note at chefslist@joseandres.com and we’ll make sure to get you on there.

Now, without any more chatting…my ultimate guide to Barcelona!

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My family and I moved to Barcelona from the northern region of Asturias when I was six years old. It’s the place where I feel like I grew up, where I went to school (and dropped out!), where I started to see the world through food. 

My culinary career started at Escola Superior d´Hostaleria de Barcelona, a cooking and hospitality school in the city, where I started to learn the life of working in a kitchen while getting around and tasting the food of the city. I never graduated, though—instead, I landed in one of the greatest kitchens not just in Catalonia, not just in Spain, but the entire world…the restaurant elBulli on the Costa Brava. If you know it, then you know how iconic the restaurant was when it was open (it closed in 2011, of course)…and I was there with Ferran and Albert Adrià when we were all much, much younger. It was there that I saw what food could be, and so many others of us—Bullinianos, which I’ll tell you about in the future—started to see the potential we all had in our hands.

It seems like so much culinary magic was born in Catalonia, so I am lucky to have spent my early years there. The culture and cuisine of the entire Catalan region is at the core of who I am and how I eat, and Barcelona is, to many, the heart of Catalonia.

This list is the tip of a massive iceberg for the amazing food of Barcelona—and we are not even talking about the rest of Catalonia here. You’ll see some restaurants from my friends (Albert Adrià and Albert Raurich, for example) but not all of their restaurants, because there are so many incredible places to visit in the city. And someday I’ll have to share my lists of cocktail bars, and vermuterías, and tapas bars … there are a few of those here, but again, you could explore for an entire year and not try all the best ones.

Is the best way to see Barcelona on a moto? You’ll have to go and see for yourself!

 You know what? I’ll just have to add more to this “ultimate guide” in the future! 

Do you know anyone who *loves* Barcelona, or is planning a trip there sometime soon…? Share this post, they’ll know you have great taste!

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But for now, here you go, many of my favorite places to visit when I am home in Barcelona.

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