Little by little, Barcelona is recovering activities that the covid crisis has forced to cancel for more than a year, now that vaccination has allowed reducing the incidence of the pandemic. One of them is the Tast a la Rambla, an event organized by the Amics de la Rambla association and the Gsr group in collaboration with the Barcelona City Council, which from this Thursday, September 30, until Sunday, October 3 will fill the city's most emblematic artery with gastronomic tastings with prices of less than five euros and about twenty free talks and workshops with chefs, pastry chefs, and sommeliers.
After not being able to be held in the summer of 2020 and opting to postpone this year's edition until this week, the Tast a la Rambla will present a different appearance compared to previous editions. The stands of bars, restaurants, and pastry shops will be inside a fenced enclosure, where access will be controlled to not exceed the maximum capacity of 2,000 people and a route will have to be followed where hydroalcoholic gel dispensers and masks will be the new assistants. The number of participating restaurants has also been reduced, from about forty to about 25, and seven spaces have been enabled where dishes can be tasted.
Crispy red tuna empanada (Besta), smoked sardine toast with tomato compote and Cebreiro cheese (Louro), creamy duck and mushroom rice (Ca la Nuri), truffled omelet (Bar Alegría 1899), marinated salmon tartare brioche (Telefèric), lamb kebab (Albert Raurich y Takeshi Somekawa), Catalan-style chicken croquettes (Tapas 24 by Carles Abellán) and Chinese pastrami with grilled brioche (Kao Dim sum by Josep Maria & Meilan & Nayan Kao) will be some of the options to try during the four days the event will last. All of them accompanied by soft drinks, beers, wines, cavas, and vermouths, in addition to desserts from L'Atelier, Mervier Canal, Escribà, Takashi Ochiai, Oriol Balaguer, and Gelateria Da Gallo.
The tastings are complemented by didactic activities with chefs, pastry chefs, and sommeliers that were traditionally organized at Arts Santa Mònica. This year they will be located in a space at the end of La Rambla de Santa Mònica. They will continue to be free and no prior reservation will be necessary, although capacity will also be limited to guarantee social distancing.
The Tast a la Rambla was born in 2014 with the aim of positioning Barcelona as a great gastronomic city, while also reclaiming the playful side of La Rambla. This seventh edition will coincide with the celebration of La Rambla's Fiesta Mayor, which will kick off this Saturday, and will feature sponsors such as Estrella Damm, Coca-Cola, Royal Bliss, and Hostelgrup.
The gastronomy and wines of César Manrique's island
The guest territory in this edition of Tast a la Rambla will be Lanzarote. The island will bring its gastronomy closer to Barcelona residents, characterized by products such as mojo (you cannot visit César Manrique's island without repeatedly trying the typical papas arrugás con mojo picón) and gofio. It will also be an opportunity to discover Lanzarote wine from local wineries such as El Grifo, Los Bermejos, and Vulcano. The island's viticulture emerges among the black rocks that lava created with the eruption of Timanfaya, which occurred at the beginning of the 18th century. Considered heroic viticulture, at the El Grifo winery, one of the oldest in all of Spain, they go further and classify it as "the viticulture of the impossible," capable of overcoming the extreme climatic conditions found in Lanzarote, with much sun, little rain, and strong winds.