17-08-2019
Oliver Peña, at the helm of the kitchen of Enigma since the first day. Of his boss, Albert Adrià, he says: «I knew from the start that one month with him would be worth six months with any other chef»
Enigma is not a common name for a restaurant. But after all there’s nothing ordinary, and classic at Enigma. Which is indeed the most ambitious and recently opened restaurant (in January 2017) of the Adrià brothers and of their “El Barri” (literally: the neighbourhood) in Barcelona.
Since its birth, Enigma was presented as a project that at least in part was mysterious: besides the name, to access the restaurant you must make a reservation and wait for a code. You then have to type the code at the entrance, which has no sings, in a building in Poble Sec. For the first months they even highly discouraged (only because saying they forbade it did not sound nice) taking photos and most of all sharing them on social networks. The experience at Enigma had to be a surprise.
One of the spaces at Enigma: the room where they serve most of the menu
In the same location as Enigma, Albert Adrià had already managed, for a few successful years, a place called 41°, in which the most avantgarde mixology was matched with the culinary research inspired by Elbulli. Part of the inspirations of that restaurant can now be found at Tickets, which is part of the new Enigma.
Two and a half years after its opening, most of the aura of mystery that enveloped this restaurant has dissolved. Without this being a flaw, in fact the contrary. Once you type in the code, which you receive on your mobile phone on the day of the dinner, they guide you inside a place with rigorous and minimalistic aesthetics. Here grey dominates, whether you’re looking at the stones on the walls, at the iron used for the furniture, at the glass separating the different areas, at the ceiling covered with a very light fabric shaped as if it were clouds.
The open view kitchen
Percebes and Codium
Oyster cooked in jamòn fat, with broth of jamòn
Rabbit Tamal: the brain of the rabbit is cooked in escabeche, then served with rabbit broth in a soufflé of tamal
Mushroom chawanmushi with vinaigrette of black truffle
Calamari handkerchief
Broad beans, wasabi and lime
Asparagus cooked in three ways
Warm spring salad, with sea anemones and lettuce heart
Lobster matured in beef fat
Pan de cristal with hazelnut and mushrooms
What about Oliver Peña? Which dish does he feel represents him the most? «Of course, it’s difficult to answer because there are many. But I’d say Lobster matured in beef fat, which we cook in the Josper for two or three minutes. It’s a rich dish, it fills your mouth and surprises you, even though it’s based on a simple technique and only two ingredients. I could mention Pan de cristal with hazelnuts and mushrooms, but the “pan de cristal” is made with a complicated, avantgarde technique. So, it’s something very different for me. Perhaps people expect from us this kind of things, but today I don’t believe it’s these dishes that define our style».
Translated into English by Slawka G. Scarso
Enigma Carrer de Sepulveda, 38 Barcelona +34.616.696322 Closed on Sunday and Monday Tasting menu 220 euros
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Journalist, based in Milan. At 8 years old, he received a Springsteen record as a gift, and nothing was the same since. Music and food are his passions. Author and broadcaster at Radio Popolare since 1997, since 2014 he became part of the staff of Identità Golose Instagram: @NiccoloVecchia