We thought we might need a recovery day following our dinner at El Bulli so we had booked Saturday night in Roses also. Where though for dinner? Mrs CC hit on the brilliant idea of Rafa's for two very decent reasons. First, after the complexity of the El Bulli dinner, simple seafood well cooked is exactly what we suspected we would want. Second, this is Ferran Adria's favourite restaurant in the region and that can't be a bad recommendation. We made a booking through the hotel but were warned that if the weather was bad and the fisherman had not been out, Rafa's might not open. Put another way, he wont sell yesterday's fish. We like this guy already.
Fortunately, the weather was good, Rafa's was open and first to arrive, we had our choice of table. Rafa's is a very unassuming place with no gimmicks to pull in the punters, it hardly has a name above the door. Nor are you going to get sides with your fish - don't even think about asking for fries. And there's not a vegetarian option. None of this we mind and by the looks of things, nor do other people in the know. By October, Roses has entered 'the low season' and many restaurants sit empty, and there are a lot of restaurants in Roses so make that a lot of empty restaurants. While Rafa's is small (though it appears bigger than it was reported some years ago, we think he acquired the place next door also, it's still not above a dozen tables), not only were all the tables full, he was turning people away and was running out of fish to cook. Locals know where to go for the best seafood it seems.
Fortunately, the weather was good, Rafa's was open and first to arrive, we had our choice of table. Rafa's is a very unassuming place with no gimmicks to pull in the punters, it hardly has a name above the door. Nor are you going to get sides with your fish - don't even think about asking for fries. And there's not a vegetarian option. None of this we mind and by the looks of things, nor do other people in the know. By October, Roses has entered 'the low season' and many restaurants sit empty, and there are a lot of restaurants in Roses so make that a lot of empty restaurants. While Rafa's is small (though it appears bigger than it was reported some years ago, we think he acquired the place next door also, it's still not above a dozen tables), not only were all the tables full, he was turning people away and was running out of fish to cook. Locals know where to go for the best seafood it seems.
The kitchen, if you can call it that for it is little bigger than the desk I'm sitting at right now to pen this blog, is fronted by a glass refrigeration unit with the catch of the day. We asked what was good but broadly, if Rafa has it and Rafa cooks it, it's good. We chose a mix of stuff with some ham to start and sat down outside.
While waiting for our food to come, Mrs CC notices Albert Adria across the road and we say hello. Lovely fella, really friendly and as you might know, El Bulli's (former) pastry chef. We didn't know he had moved on from El Bulli and we're guessing that starting a family took priority over the madness that must be the daily ritual of being in El Bulli's kitchen. Funnily, he said that he ate at El Bulli for the first time last year. Of Rafas, he said 'you're in good hands. It's a temple of seafood'. We like.
The food then began to arrive, though at an altogether more leisurely pace than El Bulli. Jamon to start, very nice too. We found that overseasoning was prevalent throughout food we were served during our stay in Roses - perhaps its the local way - but at Rafa's, everything was seasoned just right.
Clams followed. Fresh, perfectly cooked (as everything else served here would be) and in a beautiful cooking sauce that we would mop up with our bread. After that squid, the best squid either of us had ever had. Not a single trace of any rubberiness, beautifully tender and with a lovely char on the body. The arms meanwhile were crispy. Rafa took care to cook both parts to perfection rather than cook it as a single lot.
The final starter was a couple of prawns and a couple of langoustine. No complaints here.
Clams followed. Fresh, perfectly cooked (as everything else served here would be) and in a beautiful cooking sauce that we would mop up with our bread. After that squid, the best squid either of us had ever had. Not a single trace of any rubberiness, beautifully tender and with a lovely char on the body. The arms meanwhile were crispy. Rafa took care to cook both parts to perfection rather than cook it as a single lot.
The final starter was a couple of prawns and a couple of langoustine. No complaints here.
For the main courses, we had monkfish and gurnard, we thought it would make a nice change from sea bass and sea bream which were also on offer. The monkfish itself was a small monkfish so we had the whole fish. While we agree that presentationally, this fish is not going to win any awards on the plate, and the photograph above makes it look more like a dog's dinner than our dinner, presentation has nothing to do with taste. This was fantastically meaty and flavourful and if monkfish is known as the poor man's lobster, this was as good as any lobster.
Our second fish was gurnard. Back in 2008, The Independent ran a story titled Ugly fish, tasty dish: the virtues of the gurnard. Not an obvious choice in the good look stakes then but we were glad we ordered it and it delivered plenty of tasty quality meat. To be honest, I think it was my first gurnard but I wouldn't hesitate to order another.
Overall then, this was a great meal, but not necessarily the opposite of El Bulli despite its simplicity for the simplicity here is 'forgiven' if that is the right word by its quality. Both El Bulli and Rafas seek the best ingredients. Both seek to cook these ingredients to perfection. It is here we get the departure, Rafas is traditional, El Bulli of course pretty much defines the avant garde. If Rafas is a circle, that would make El Bulli a non recurring fractal; both have a place. We should also point out that despite the simplicity, and absence of sides and the like, Rafa was cooking his butt off in the kitchen, to ensure that everything that came out was perfect.
Oliver Wendell Homes said 'I would not give a fig for the simplicity this side of complexity, but I would give my life for the simplicity on the other side of complexity'. I wouldn't quite give my life for Rafa's monkfish but it was pretty damned good. You get the idea.
Here at critical couple headquarters, we spend some time enjoying a healthy debate around the merits of the Michelin system. One star of course means 'a very good restaurant in its category, worth a stop' while two stars means 'excellent cooking worth a detour'. Rafas doesn't have a Michelin star and will likely never get one, however, it would be a fool who said this restaurant was not 'worth a stop', and there's a perfectly reasonable case for a 'detour' too; both Adria brothers clearly think so. In other words, visit to El Bulli or otherwise, if you're in the area, Rafas should definitely be on any foodies itinerary.
Our second fish was gurnard. Back in 2008, The Independent ran a story titled Ugly fish, tasty dish: the virtues of the gurnard. Not an obvious choice in the good look stakes then but we were glad we ordered it and it delivered plenty of tasty quality meat. To be honest, I think it was my first gurnard but I wouldn't hesitate to order another.
Overall then, this was a great meal, but not necessarily the opposite of El Bulli despite its simplicity for the simplicity here is 'forgiven' if that is the right word by its quality. Both El Bulli and Rafas seek the best ingredients. Both seek to cook these ingredients to perfection. It is here we get the departure, Rafas is traditional, El Bulli of course pretty much defines the avant garde. If Rafas is a circle, that would make El Bulli a non recurring fractal; both have a place. We should also point out that despite the simplicity, and absence of sides and the like, Rafa was cooking his butt off in the kitchen, to ensure that everything that came out was perfect.
Oliver Wendell Homes said 'I would not give a fig for the simplicity this side of complexity, but I would give my life for the simplicity on the other side of complexity'. I wouldn't quite give my life for Rafa's monkfish but it was pretty damned good. You get the idea.
Here at critical couple headquarters, we spend some time enjoying a healthy debate around the merits of the Michelin system. One star of course means 'a very good restaurant in its category, worth a stop' while two stars means 'excellent cooking worth a detour'. Rafas doesn't have a Michelin star and will likely never get one, however, it would be a fool who said this restaurant was not 'worth a stop', and there's a perfectly reasonable case for a 'detour' too; both Adria brothers clearly think so. In other words, visit to El Bulli or otherwise, if you're in the area, Rafas should definitely be on any foodies itinerary.