The Traveling Hungryboy

See those funny-looking things above? They're percebes, those local gooseneck barnacles that you might have seen on a Zimmern or Bourdain episode when they risk life and limb to collect them on rocks near an ocean. I've always wanted to try them, and I was told that this place was a good place to try it (81 Gran De Garcia, 93-218-4230). The place looked pretty encouraging with all of the live shellfish out front plus that wonderful grilled seafood aroma coming out of the kitchen.



And yes, I liked them. After peeling off the tough skin on the neck, one ate the solid and briny flesh inside, tasting a bit like a cross between a clam and a crab. Perhaps more interesting though were those scampi above. Normally I pass on the boring tail meat, but this tail meat was delightfully (and naturally) sweet...and all with the added bonus of some rich headfat to go with it. I nearly wanted to step outside just so that I could pump my fist and yell, "f*ck yeah!" This totally blew me away; I could've easily eaten more of those.



But instead, I closed my meal with some gulas. Mind you, this wasn't the cheap fake stuff, but real baby eels...at a whopping 120 Euros (US$130) for that serving above, but I knew it was going to be expensive. Now, I'll be honest in that I probably wouldn't have known the difference (and interestingly, you're supposed to use a wooden fork, lest a metal fork mess up the taste), but I gobbled it all up either way. This old school place is easily one of my favorite restaurants now. Next time I should remember to try some of that sliced artichoke and even baby shrimp that I thought I saw at other dining tables.

from The Traveling Hungryboy http://ift.tt/1R2sb8P
Botafumeiro in Barcelona, Spain-The Traveling Hungryboy