Dos Palillos

Spain meet Far East

Newly awarded its first Michelin star in 2013, Dos Palillos is suited inside Hotel Casa Camper, right on the edge of the Gothic area in Barcelona. Chef Albert Raurich used to be the head chef of the famous El Bulli so it was no surprise seeing how his food is heavily influenced by Far East flavours. The restaurant has 2 bars where customers sit behind the long bar table, overseeing the open kitchen to witness all the action from the chefs.

Dos Palillos' Asian bar picture from dospalillos.com

Dos Palillos' chef in action!

We were sited at the main bar, the Asian bar and went for the 14 courses tasting menu for 60 Euro which I found it extremely value compare to UK standard. Some of the highlight of my meal: The mackerel with tororo kombu was a thing of beauty, the raw mackerel was fresh, rich and sweet, as was the grilled prawn. It was just so sweet and fresh, just a touch of seasoning before going on to the grill.

Barnacle with seaweed 

Mackerel with tororo kombu

Grill prawn

Agedashi tofu

Grill oyster with sake was an absolute delight, the oyster itself was lightly grilled on the fire with a pool of hot sake in the shell. The meat itself sucked up the all the earthy flavours from the sake and it was juicy and tender.

Grill oyster with sake

Tempura

Steamed spinach and shitakes dumplings

Char siew bao: steamed Chinese bread with a char-grilled Iberian pork filling was as good as char siew bao you can get, I eaten this famous Chinese bun countless time in my life and I can say that this is the best version I had so fat. The Iberian pork offered a much more richer taste and curried a lot more body than the usual pork version. The Japanese yellow mustard was not overly spicy and went extremely well with the sweet bun.

Iberian pork char siu boo

Wok fried vegetables

Tuna temaki

Japanese burger: Home-made steamed bread, beef, ginger, cucumber and shiso. The Asian style steamed bun was made wonderfully, as was the beef itself, well seasoned with Japanese spices and good use of vegetables, the ginger and cucumber added a note of kick and freshness, a great burger.

Japanese burger

Mango and coconut flan

Chocolate ningyo yaki

Overall it was a great meal and fun experience, while the taste combination isn't as ambitious as Comerc 24, Dos Palillos offered very refined and well executed Far East tapas dishes using Spanish essence. Good use of fresh and quality ingredients, also it was great seeing how all the chefs prepare your food in front of you. The concept reminded me of L'atelier de Joel Robuchon, but both the food quality and atmosphere were far superior at Dos Palillos, I will return. 

My Dos Palillos experience in full:

Barnacle with seaweed 
Mackerel with tororo kombu
Grill prawn
Agedashi tofu
Grill oyster with sake
Tempura
Steamed spinach and shitakes dumplings
Tuna temaki
Wok fried vegetables
Iberian pork char siu boo
Japanese burger
Free range chicken yakitiri
Mango and coconut flan
Chocolate ningyo yaki

Food 4/5

Executive chef: 
Albert Raurich

What I paid: 
£55 per head 

Average cost without drinks and services:
£55 tasting menu


Carrer d'Elisabets, 9, 08001 Barcelona, Spain

www.dospalillos.com