The height of Japanese cuisine in Europe?
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| Canapes of mackerel, monkfish skin, dashi |
When I travel to a country, I usually stick to local cuisine as it doesn't make sense to me to eat Indian food in France, British food in Italy, etc. So picking Koy Shunka, a Japanese 1 Michelin starred restaurant in Barcelona was an unusual move for me when I was planning my trip to visit Barcelona and Girona. It has been a while since I last had a decent Japanese meal, I feel everything in London is overpriced, and is not easy to travel to Asia these days. Given Koy Shunka is highly recommended by a local friend and loved by chefs, I see no harm in giving it a go. The space has an open kitchen with 2 tasting menus to pick from, I booked for the counter space which was perfect to check out the magic from the chefs.
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| Lobster sushi |
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| Grilled lobster in carrot glaze |
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| Red bream in 2 ways |
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| Grilled squid sushi |
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| Raw squid in soy and BBQ squid |
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| Razor clam on rice |
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| Caviar, seabream and barnacles |
I opted for the long menu, and it was truly special. Each dishes are small but with about 20 course in total. Everything turned out to be great, the most memorable dish had to be the red prawn tartar served with its own juice reduced from its shell, it was such a sweet sensation, with some truffle on top to increase the lovely aroma. The A5 Japanese wagyu was another outstanding dish. It was grilled on an open fire, with a smoky charred taste on the edge, while the meat tasted like butter, finely seasoned with a beef and fish broth. The carrot sauce clothed lobster was creative and turned out to be the perfect match, with the natural sweetness of the carrot enhancing the richness of the lobster wonderfully.
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| Grilled wagyu A5 on rice and broth |
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| Grilled eel roll |
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| Red prawn tartare with truffle |
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| Red prawn sushi |
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| Fatty tuna sushi |
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| Fatty tuna belly with cured egg and sweet soy |
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| Apricot and orange blossom |
Koy Shunka went well beyond my expectation. Normally in a long-tasting menu format, it is normal to find a few average dishes but that is not the case with Koy Shunka (20 dishes!). Everything tasted great and I had the best Japanese meal ever in Europe. It managed to get the best out of the amazing ingredients and was finely seasoned, and cooked to perfection. I can't really fault anything at all. After experiencing the output from this lovely restaurant, Nobu now felt like canteen food, this is how much of a gap in the quality difference for me. Along with Azurmendi, MartÃn Berasategui, and Disfrutar, this is only the 4th 5/5 restaurant for me in Spain.
Food 5/5
What I paid:
£155
Average cost without drinks and services:
£150
Carrer d'en Copons, 7, 08002 Barcelona, Spain
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