The "guys" are back

When we were packing up in Siracusa, having already spent time in Girona and Mount Etna, C.C. realized that she was missing her “guys.”  She has had a set of small, stuffed dinosaurs for years—they are her “guys” and they are her absolute favorite toys.  The Apatosaurus, who is blue, is named “blue guy,” the T-Rex, who is green, is “green guy” and so on.   She had brought two (blue guy and XXX) of them on our Sicily trip.  We looked everywhere but could not find them. We couldn’t remember packing them up at the Mount Etna agriturismo, so we called several times but could not get anyone to answer. C.C. was quite upset, wondering if someone had made off with them and if they’d be okay. 

A few years ago, after one of them got lost and could not be found, Alec got on the internet and ordered a replacement.   Smart man that he is, he ordered extras of all of the “guys” should a similar situation occur again.  The extras are stored in a box in the basement, and over the years we have miraculously “found” one or another of these guys, restoring calm and order to the household.  I wondered if I could steer our tenants to the box and have them send replacements, assuming our stash included the right ones.

Finally, I sent an email and, sure enough, they had been found.  C.C. was ecstatic.  After a long journey in a box (along with all of Alec’s socks, which I had also left at the same place) they arrived yesterday, safe and sound.

Meanwhile, back in Barcelona, Alec and I skipped out of work early on Wednesday to meet our friends Michael and Don at Comerç 24, a much-lauded restaurant where Carles Abellan rules over an incredible kitchen.  The room is lovely—clean and bright with red and yellow banquettes, sculptural Lucite cubes filled with ice for filling drinks, lots of light.  When I walked in, a few minutes late because I’d made a wrong turn, the hostess greeted me warmly and one of the cooks called a welcome from the spotless open kitchen.  Some high end restaurants make you feel as though they are doing you a favor by deigning to let you eat there, but at Comerç 24, it felt as though they were genuinely happy to have us—which is as it should be.

You can dine a la carte at the restaurant, but most people choose either the Festival or Grande Festival pre-set menus.  Now, doesn’t “festival” put you in a much better mood than a simple “tasting menu”?  Once we learned that the Grande Festival took three hours, we opted for the simpler Festival menu—Alec had to pick up the kids and I had an appointment to have my hair highlighted.  We had some lovely rose cava while we decided, and then a Priorat—Michael and Don had discovered Priorat at 7 Portas, and there was no turning back.

The food delivered one amazing taste and texture combination after another—my favorite was the “kinder” egg, which had truffle, egg, and potato foam.  It tasted like the most upscale, rich comfort food you can imagine.  They even graciously accommodated Don, who eats no meat or fish; he reported that it was the best vegetarian tasting menu he’d ever had, and he’s had a few.  Dessert was also spectacular.  The servers put all five sweets (yes, 5 for each of us) on the table at the same time and instructed us on how to eat them and in which order.  We started with a layered drink that included peach juice and green tea, and ended with a rich chocolate mousse-y thing drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with salt.  I had had it at Abellan’s Tapaç 24 (more accessible, less expensive, also excellent) and loved it.

I left Michael and Don to wander the Born, and headed to the train so that I could get to the salon on time.  I was so full, happy and relaxed that I fell asleep in the chair.

Michael and Don left this morning and, when we came home, we found a copy of Abellan’s cookbook waiting for us.  I don’t know if I have it in me to tackle potato foam, but you can bet your bottom dollar I’ll be making that bread with olive oil, chocolate and salt before too long.