Enigma (Barcelona)

The height of experimental cuisine 

Roasted lobster in aged beef fat

Enigma is part of a mini restaurant empire by Albert Adrià. One of the key players behind the legendary El Bulli. After the closing of El Bulli, Albert has created a number of restaurants which instantly became a hit. The most famous one has to be Tickets. However, Enigma is slowly gathering a reputation. It was launched in 2017, and the concept was highly ambitious. It serves only a blind tasting menu with more than 30 courses. The restaurant is spread into 6 sessions where guests would enjoy a few dishes per station before moving onto the next one. You would kick off the journey from the reception area, followed by a mini-bar station to enjoy some canapes, before moving onto a raw bar, a grill bar then to the main dining room and dessert bar.

Squid in miso and olive oil

Lobster sashimi

Red prawn and it's head

Abalone in sherry sauce

Foie in anchovies 

BBQ wagyu

Wagyu and egg yolk form

Sea urchin blini

Rabbit tamal

Glass eels noodles

It was the first time I have tasted so many dishes in one sitting, as expected from such a long menu, there were some outstanding dishes, as well as some fairly standard ones. In the raw bar, I had one of the best ever lobster sashimi. It was lightly cured with sake and dashi, packed with a great depth of seafood umami taste. Another outstanding dish was the foie gras which was rubbed in aged anchovies salt, I was in love with the intense and creamy taste, every mouthful was an explosion of luxurious savory taste. In the grill bar, the best dish was the fresh baby eels which were cooked in sherry, shallot, and red wine. The end result tasted like a bowl of soup ramen with a pleasant oily finish. Dish of the evening had to be the "surf and turf" blue lobster tail. It was aged in ox fat for 24 hours which created a bold, meaty taste while maintaining an element of the sea, it was truly special and I would rate it as the best ever lobster dish I have ever tasted.

Wagyu pate

Saffron, mushrooms, sea urchin

Peas and truffle

Cod with chickpeas

Artichoke in oyster cream

Lettuce & avocado

Curry and strawberry

Yuba with seaweed

Pineapple and mustard

Soy 3 ways

Dining at Enigma is one of a kind experience, it was nothing like anything I have encountered and the whole Enigma was a serious delight, especially for foodies like myself. The cooking was creative, unusual with a global influence. For me, some dishes went a bit far such as serving an eel ice cream to serving a salad as one of the final savoury dishes. Having said that, I have tasted some truly exceptional dishes at the same time. I wonder how often they will change the menu as I really don't mind heading back to Enigma again as it was really a special place.




Food: 4.5/5

Average cost without drinks and services:
£200

Carrer de Sepúlveda, 38, 40, 08015 Barcelona, Spain

https://elbarri.com/en/restaurant/enigma/