One of my passion is tasting new plates to discover a country. I moved from Brussels to Barcelona several months ago and (my stomach and) I don’t regret it. Food is actually one of the good reasons why you should definitely come here! It’s pretty easy to travel from one continent to another by going to different restaurants. I’ve been particularly falling in love with Spain and other Latin America countries (I’ve to admit that it’s pretty hard to be faithful in that area) and the list goes on and on. However, even if living and working in Barcelona has been an amazing experience so far, I sometimes feel homesick. What better solution than to look for comfort food?
Born in Belgium but with Italian and French origins, I am really lucky as I have been growing in a multicultural environment. It is really easy to find in “le plat pays”, as Jacques Brel calls Belgium, Italian (thanks to the immigration) and French products. I have to admit that it is however more difficult to find these products in Spanish supermarkets. After a long quest and some tips exchanged with my fellow colleagues (no operation bikini at Babel Profiles!) , I’m more than happy to share with you some addresses of amazing places where you can feel at home, or where you can have a taste of the cuisines of these three amazing countries.
Let’s start from the north. In Belgium, we don’t mess with chips (and please start calling them Belgian fries). We can eat them everywhere, at every time, with amazing sauces (try the “Andalouse” one, you will not regret it!) even inside big sandwiches called “mitraillettes”. Tempted? Imperfecto offers you the opportunity to taste Belgian fries. Oh! Let’s not forget the beers! In Belchica, you can try different types of our beloved drink.
Maintenant, la France! I truly miss French bakeries, where you can find wonderful baguettes and viennoiseries every day. Pay a visit to Baluard for their homemade breads and Hoffman for their amazing croissants. I strongly recommend the mango one. Délicieux!
Last but not least: let’s move the South and finish our trip in Italy. This country has such an amazing and diverse cuisine that it will be difficult to give a list of all the wonderful plates we have, so let’s stick with the most popular ones: pizza and ice cream. Pizza comes from Naples and it is such an art to make a good one. If you want to taste the traditional one, go to Nap, you will not be disappointed. They have two different spots: one in El Born and a bigger one in Barceloneta. After a delicious pizza, we truly deserve to eat a perfect gelato. Don’t hesitate to go to OGGI (they deliver ice cream to the pope, what else?) or Gocce di latte (crazy flavours, my favourite one: black chocolate, salt and extra virgin olive oil).
Our culinary journey is nearly over, as there are always new plates to discover. For the bravest one, pay a visit to B.H.G. Supermercat del Món (C. Parlament, 21. Barcelona) a true Ali Baba cavern with products from every continent.
And you, what plates do you miss the most since you have been living in Barcelona? Don’t hesitate to share your tips/nice places!