Eat & Drink
Originally published on Thursday, 20th October 2011
Tickets
What the Ferran did after El Bulli with his brother Albert and the Iglesias family
Location
Smack dab in the middle of central BCN hipness and not far from Dos Palillos, another restaurant headed by an ex- El Bulli chef. (Every hot restaurant in Barcelona seems to be run by an ex-Adrià alum right now.)
Vibe
This place is sophisticated but unpretentious, and overwhelmingly fun. The clientele were largely Spanish due to booking restrictions (three months in advance is recommended) but once you get a reso, the table is yours for the night, which means you never feel rushed.
Flavours
Where to start? Every dish we tried was amazing – inventive, without being scary – so we had to try everything… until our waiter actually stopped us from ordering more. Highlights included tuna belly with pine nuts and salt, with breadsticks used as a palate cleanser; mini airbags stuffed with Manchego cheese; squid in ink and vinaigrette; tomato tartar with bread crisps; liquid ravioli with Payoyo cheese, and white chocolate and sesame rock for afters.
Décor
We love it here. One part shop, one part deli, one part ‘tickets’ counter complete with red rope and circus-style door man, this was OTT fun, with an ice cream cart, (huge) stuffed hamburger on the counter and fun fair style touches. Albert Adrià was sitting at the open-air bar (no stroppy stay-in-the-kitchen chef here) and the very branded Estrella bar actually just melded into the surroundings. Perfect.
Upshot
Although we’re still sad we didn’t get into El Bulli (we even drove there), we’re happy with Tickets; this is as good as dining gets. If you can’t get in, we say try a walk-in or go for a reservation at 41 Degrees, the bar next door, which is easier to get into and serves many of the same dishes as Tickets. Book a flight now to Barcelona and then just try to figure it out, it’s that good.
