Rouge, cult cocktails

Located at 21 Poeta Cabanyes street and reopened just a month ago, the new Rouge has burst onto the city's festive scene by leveraging two fundamental ingredients: culture and hedonism. At Rouge, there are cocktails named after vedettes, ironed brioches, Sherry wines, electronic music, and anchovies from l'Escala. An eclectic offering that combines audacity, good taste, and a calculated dose of nostalgia.

Fans of subtitles and masters of hype, the project's promoters have gone all out when naming their creation. At the entrance of the venue, under its arched sign, one can read "Cocktail Club/Cultural Bunker". It promises a lot.

Once inside, a neon light, with a pictorial feel, seeks to seduce us with another idea: "Cult Cocktails". But who is behind so much literature? Jorge Ferrer, Jandro Giner, Betu Martinez, and Pau Ortiz are the four friends – now partners – who claim authorship. Linked to the cultural world (Serielizados, TMATNB), this group of young entrepreneurs has set out to open the kind of bar where they would be regular customers. To give consistency to the project, they have sought advice from people who truly excel in each of the areas they wanted to highlight.

The interior design of the venue, which David Lynch could sign, is the work of Daphne Muñoz (La Movida Studio); Joel Moreno was involved in the lighting, and all the branding is by the Snoop agency, including the iconic neon that welcomes patrons.

Behind the Rouge bar, bar manager Nicolò Coppa is in charge of the drinks, combining classic cocktails with the seven "cult cocktails" that mixologist Mattia Bertoglio has created for Rouge. Names like Mula 54, Mustang or Sideral refer us to the musical effervescence of the glory nights of Paral·lel, while La Bella Dorita or Mistral are liquid tributes to two mythical vedettes of El Molino. The Margarida is for "la Xirgu"; and the Snooper, the only cocktail at Rouge not related to the history of our decadent Broadway, is a nod to the studio that helped them build the brand.

The cocktail of the day, as Pau Ortiz explains, "takes as a reference cultural themes that are happening right now in Barcelona, for example, until now we have had a Consumed in Green, in honor of Richie Hawtin DJing for the first time at Apolo."

If you are not in the mood for cocktails, a glass of fino en rama or amontillado can also dye the afternoon with happiness and make you rise a few centimeters from the ground. The commitment to fortified wines is completed with Vermò, a vermouth that Jorge Ferrer, one of the four partners, makes in Turin "following traditional production methods, but adding ingredients like ginger, white pepper or cardamom."

For a snack, you can order a can of L'Escala anchovies or some J. García potato chips: crispy gold made in Castellón. But there's more: the Gilda Bloody Mary or the mussel aguachile show that things are happening here. Chef Albert Ibáñez, from Castellón, like the potatoes, is the gastronomic advisor for Rouge and therefore, responsible for the most playful part of the menu: the brioches grilled. "The idea was to seek creaminess and exuberance, two bites full of flavor."

With these words, Ibáñez describes the famous "brioixets," which, based on his recipe, Vidania –the workshop of Bodega Amposta– prepares daily so they arrive at Rouge ready to be grilled. There are five different buns, but the Poble Sec bomba and the pig's trotters and shrimp are a guaranteed success. Pleasure concentrated in buns that disappear in a matter of seconds.

The menu includes an enigmatic dish: "the house dessert." An elegant and digestive surprise.

Rouge opens from Wednesday to Sunday, and Friday and Saturday nights are synonymous with live music. In its first month of life, names like DJ Coco, Vince Void, Spacer, or Marta Mer have paraded through. The rest of the days, activities such as podcasts, stand-up comedy, concerts, and other events linked to festivals held in the city will be offered, with the intention of contributing to the resurgence of a neighborhood that deserves to return to the creative effervescence of the past.

While waiting for details of its cultural agenda, let's toast to the rebirth of Rouge!

Make Paral·lel Great Again!