A stamp-sized, eight-seat restaurant flanking the busy Boqueria that serves market-to-table Catalan fare with head-spinning Asian influences, chef Arnau Muñío spent 10 years with Carles Abellan before launching this project earlier this year.
Choose between two menus, 8 or 12 courses. Diners are asked to arrive for reservations promptly as food is served dinner-party style, with all guests receiving identical dishes at the same time, rather than the staggered format of a typical restaurant. Although you will be eating exquisite dishes, such as pickled seasonal trumpet mushrooms on a homemade miso, neither Muñío or his sous will stand over you and tell you how special your meal is.
They’re already too busy getting on with the next dishes, and one mouthful will tell you everything you need to know. Unsurprisingly, Direkte Boqueria won the best chef award this at this year’s Fòrum Gastronòmic Girona.